‘By nightfall the weather was so bad they had to heave-to and turn into it. For the next two days they could do no more than ride the storm. By the second night they were not sure of their position but Mr Murchison believed they were well to the east of Holbourne Island, having been on that heading for many hours. While attempting to gain shelter in the lee of a coral reef during the night Deeral struck an isolated outcrop of coral. The unfortunate little vessel was holed and rolled over almost at once.’
Andrew paused for a few seconds, his mind filled with horrifying images of men struggling in darkness and foam, of being pounded on sharp coral. He read on:
‘Mr Murchison was flung into the raging sea and says he almost immediately lost sight of the boat, which he thinks was still afloat but upside down and being driven by the waves on into deeper water. He says that something stuck his face and he grabbed at it, finding it was a lifebuoy. But for that providential stroke of luck Mr Murchison says he felt sure he would also have perished.’
‘For the next three days Mr Murchison clung to the lifebuoy until, almost crazed by thirst, he was washed ashore on the seaward side of Hayman Island. Throughout this ordeal he says he was several times circled by sharks and gave himself up for lost. “Prayer saved me,” he said.’
On reading that Andrew had a series of vivid flashbacks to his own ordeal the previous year and shuddered. ‘Poor bugger. I know just how he felt,’ he thought. He again bent to study the paper.
The second photo now held his attention. It was a blurry image of the Deeral. The text told him it was a steel work boat with a diesel engine. The photo showed that it had a single mast with a derrick and a small wheelhouse and cabin aft.
“Can we borrow these Gran? I will photocopy them and bring them back,” Andrew asked.
“Of course dearie. They’ve just sat in a box all these years,” Gran replied.
Carmen now said, “We had better go. I have to get to work by six.”
Gran held up another box. “Just wait a few minutes. I also found these.” She lifted out a small cloth bundle, from which came the chink of metal. The bundle was gently laid on the table and carefully unwrapped. When he saw what the cloth contained Andrew gasped in delight.
“Grandad’s medals!”
Gran nodded. Both children bent to study the medals with great interest. Andrew marvelled at how shiny they still were after all the years. Carmen commented on how pretty the ribbons were. That got Andrew biting his lip. He knew that the medal ribbons indicated the meaning of the medals but was quite unable to recognize a single one.
“What are they for Gran, do you know?” he asked.
“Oh dear! That’s a hard one,” Gran replied, holding a hand to the side of her face. She picked up one of the medals and turned it over. “Ah yes! Here, it tells you.”
Andrew bent closer and read: Pacific Star. On the other side his grandfather’s name had been engraved. They were able to read the other three: the 1939-45 Star, the 1939-45 Defence Medal, and the Australian Service Medal (1939-1945).
“Gran, do you know what this little copper leaf badge on this one means?” Andrew asked, pointing to a metal clasp on one of the medal ribbons.
“That means Bert was mentioned in dispatches; that his name went to the king in a report,” Gran answered. “The citation saying what he actually did is somewhere here.”
That really excited Andrew’s interest and pride. ‘Grandad was a hero in the war!’ he thought happily. “It would be great if you could find it Gran,” he answered.
Carmen looked at her watch and let out a little gasp. “Oh, look at the time! Thanks Gran. We really must fly. We will see you again soon.”
As they went out the front door of the low set timber house Andrew turned and said, “Could you please arrange for us to talk to this Mr McCackle bloke Gran?”
Gran smiled. “Mr McGackey,” she corrected. “Yes, I will. Thank you for calling children.”
Brother and sister jumped on their bikes and pedalled hard. As the rode along they discussed the new information and Andrew’s thoughts dwelt on the fact that his Grandad had been a brave man. That made him a bit unsure of himself. ‘I’m not very brave, at least not underwater, and Grandad was a diver in wartime. Maybe I am a coward?’ he worried.
It was only after they arrived home that Andrew’s thoughts shifted to another worry: Muriel had not phoned the night before. ‘Maybe she has changed her mind?’ he fretted.
The worry grew into gnawing anxiety as the evening wore on. Teatime, TV news, homework; all slid by with no call. Carmen returned from work at 9pm and still the phone had not rung. Andrew’s hopes kept sliding down and he became moody and grumpy.
Suddenly the phone rang. But before Andrew could reach it his mother picked it up and answered. “Hello, Mrs Collins. Who is speaking please? Who? Oh yes, Andrew. Here he is.”
She turned and gave Andrew a smile which made him blush. “Muriel,” she said as she handed him the phone.
‘Muriel!’ Andrew thought, his romantic hopes shooting up.
CHAPTER 9
PRESSURE
Andrew was thrilled. ‘Muriel! She has rung me!’ He had to swallow to clear his throat before answering, “Hello Muriel. How are you?”
“Fine,” Muriel replied. “Did you have a good day?”
“Yes,” Andrew answered. Now that she had called he found his mind blank and could not think of anything sensible to say. His hopes kept rising though.
Muriel said, “I tried ringing after school but you weren’t home.”
“Carmen and I went to see our Gran,” Andrew explained. “She had some really interesting stuff on the sinking of the Deeral,” he added.
“The what?”
“The Deeral, the ship Grandad and your Grandad were on when... when.. when my Grandad was lost at sea.. when they were looking for that shipwreck, the Merinda,” Andrew explained.
“Oh yes,” Muriel replied. She did not sound very interested.
“I’m going to do a History assignment on the Merinda,” Andrew said.
“That should be interesting,” Muriel again replied in that flat tone.
Goaded by a feeling of mounting worry Andrew asked, “Have you asked your parents about the movies yet?”
“No, not yet,” Muriel replied. “I will though. I think it is a great idea. Jenny Jervis and Shona and Tina all said they wanted to go.”
That was good news to Andrew so he asked what movie Muriel might want to see. That led to a fifteen minute discussion on the relative merits of the movies that were currently showing at various cinemas. Muriel then began speaking to someone else and said, “Sorry Andrew, but my dad says I have to finish my homework. I will have to go. I’ve got an English essay due. It should have been done over the weekend but diving got in the way.”
“Well, that is over anyway,” Andrew commented.
“It was great fun wasn’t it?” Muriel replied, her voice now vibrant with enthusiasm.
Not wanting to be a liar Andrew made non-committal noises. Muriel then further increased the pressure by saying, “I really want to do the Advanced Open Water Course now.”
“Will