Free Down Outback Roads by Alissa Callen

donate to a charity yard sale and realised an old hardcover book had all its pages glued together. She’d tugged at the cover and the book had fallen open. Inside, a section of the pages had been cut out to create a secret compartment. Within the hollow lay the pressed sprig of a once-yellow flower and a folded pen-and-ink sketch of an old cottage. She’d assumed the drawing was of a local mountain cabin, until an internet search of the label ‘Glenalla’, had taken her to an outback town in Australia. By itself, the discovery hadn’t appeared significant until, on a hunch, she’d checked her mother’s place of birth on her birth certificate. Sydney. Australia.
    Kree slowed the ute to a crawl as weathered buildings flanked the roadside. From her visit to Mrs Butler’s, she vaguely remembered the wide main street and the two-storey pub on the corner. What she hadn’t noticed was Glenalla’s lifelessness. Sadness filtered through her. Buildings with boarded windows and for sale signs stared at her, their exteriors colourless and drab. Paint peeled from sun-blasted walls while red rust scored tin roofs. Glenalla deserved to be a vibrant and bustling centre. Although the generous heart of its community beat with life, the town itself barely possessed a pulse. She had to find a way to help. If it wasn’t for this tight-knit and unselfish community, she’d have lost the last of her family.
    The flutter of colour from an orange flag outside an open door caused Kree to stop and park. In the window of a small shop, a large, hand-written sign advertised a closing-down sale. Bright children’s toys were arranged on one side of the sign, with an assortment of gift items on the other. Inside the shop, Kree could see racks of hanging t-shirts. When she’d left Colorado, she’d been so worried about Seth she’d only packed enough clothes for a brief stay, and even then she’d only packed a single pair of socks. She needed more clothes now she was staying longer. She could also take some t-shirts home as gifts, plus she wanted to find presents for Tish, Ewan and the boys for having her to stay. She’d see if she could help this struggling shop owner by spending the crisp, technicolour Aussie money filling her wallet.
    Kree put her sunglasses on the passenger seat, slid on her cap and pulled her ponytail through the gap in the back. She drew a deep, hot breath as she left the Tylers’ dual-cab. Summer sure wasn’t yet ready to relinquish its hold. She stepped into the cool of the shop. A wall-shelf of scented candles infusedthe room with a delicate floral fragrance. Kree smiled at the young brunette behind the counter. The girl offered a small and hopeful smile in return.
    ‘You have some great stuff here,’ Kree said as she considered the too-full shelves of knick-knacks.
    ‘I thought so, too, but there just isn’t a market for these sorts of things in Glenalla. My lease expires next week so everything’s fifty percent off.’
    Kree picked up a set of coasters decorated with chickens. She’d noticed Tish had a collection of chicken items in the kitchen. Kree draped a set of chicken tea towels over her arm and then carefully took two china, chicken coffee mugs by the handles.
    ‘Would it be okay if I set these on the counter?’ she asked. ‘I’m such a klutz, I’m sure I’ll drop something.’
    ‘Sure.’ The girl quickly cleared away the book she’d been reading. As Kree carefully placed the china cups on the counter, a baby’s rattle sounded. In a portable cot wedged into the small space at the rear of the shop, sat a bright-eyed baby girl.
    ‘Hello, honey.’
    The baby grinned, revealing a small, white bottom tooth. She banged the rattle in her chubby hand on the soft and colourful mat beside her.
    ‘She’s adorable.’
    ‘She is. I was hoping to be able to work as well as be a mum, that’s why I started this shop. But now Grace will have to be minded by my mother-in-law. Well, that’s if I can find