She glanced at him. “What have Brandon and Sam told you of the situation?”
Cagey. He respected that. “Sam gave me a brief rundown on what Stonefish have been up to; the animal smuggling and poaching.”
“That’s not all. They’ve been trying to run the Ridge into the ground, and force us to sell. They even kidnapped Lara to try and get us to sign the lease over.”
Arthur jolted. That he didn’t know. “So you need the money?”
“Yeah. I’ve been trying to get out of my lease in town so I can save the money and move back to the Ridge. Faith and I are keeping it afloat right now.”
Shit. He hadn’t realised it was that bad. He needed to find the treasure for them. “How many others know about this?”
“Just the family, Sam and Penelope, and of course Dot and Nhiari.”
“Dot and Nhiari?”
“Sergeant Dot Campbell and Senior Constable Nhiari Roe,” Georgie explained. “The local police.”
“Gretchen doesn’t know?”
Georgie shook her head. “We’re keeping it as quiet as we can. We don’t want anyone else to be a target for Stonefish.”
Unease stirred in his gut. “Are you two close?”
“She’s one of my besties,” Georgie said. “Why do you ask?”
He was quiet.
“Do you like her?”
“She’s nice.” OK, that was a fib. She was more than nice. He looked forward to seeing her every day, but with Georgie’s news, it might be wise to keep his distance. He’d have to ask Penelope if she’d spoken to Gretchen about what was going on. Gretchen could be a prime candidate for Stonefish’s manipulation.
“OK, it’s my turn to ask questions,” Georgie said.
He tensed.
“When are you going to apologise to Amy?”
Arthur rubbed his knee as the tingles started. How to explain? He looked out at the straggly bushes rushing past his window, the red dirt such a contrast with the bright blue sky.
“Arthur?”
He winced. “Sorry. I always spend too much time thinking before I speak.”
“So you’re not just ignoring me?”
“No, but I kind of want to.”
Georgie’s burst of laughter surprised him, but made him smile. “I don’t have the words to apologise.”
“Just tell her why you acted the way you did. That’s all she wants to know.”
“I’m not sure she’ll understand.”
“Well you won’t know until you try, and hanging up on her isn’t the way to start.”
He groaned. “I didn’t mean to.”
“You could have called her back.”
