Chapter 6
We get to Darwin and decide we should probably eat something before going to the lab. Who knows how long we will be there? So we pull into a little café on the south side of Darwin and order some toast, eggs, some sausage and a bowl of fresh fruit. It is really hard to enjoy a meal after hearing about the attack on that family, but we need to eat something since we have a long day ahead.
After breakfast, we head to the lab and meet up with Dane’s friend. She is strikingly attractive with long straight blond hair and brilliant, emerald green eyes. You can tell that she doesn’t get out in the sun often because she is very pale. We make our acquaintances with her and get right to work. Dane has the blood sample in his pocket, so he hands it to her and she smears a bit of the blood on a very small piece of glass. A clear cover is placed over the smear and put under a microscope. She knows that she has to be very careful with the sample.
She looks carefully and long at the sample and says, “This blood is most unusual. There is something else mixed in with this blood, and it’s alive.”
“What do you mean it’s alive?” I look at her with crinkled brows.
“Have a look. It’s moving around in between the red blood cells that are left in the sample, and it’s very active.” Nicola explains.
“I see. Could it be a worm, like a heart worm or something?”
“No, that’s not a heartworm. This is something I have never seen before.” Nicola says with a puzzled look on her face. “I really want to run more tests on the remaining sample like a DNA test to identify what type of blood it is. That will allow me to narrow it down even further and hopefully identify the species.”
We are all fairly confident that it is dingo blood, but how do you explain the big clots in it? Nicola said that it is going to take about three days for her to run the tests and get the results. She added that she would be working in a secure lab with protective gear until the unknown substance is identified.
Derrick and I decide to check into a hotel for the night and get cleaned up. We get Dane a room right next to ours. It is probably about 12:00 noon when we get to our rooms, and to be honest, I am exhausted, and so is Derrick. We call Dane to give him a heads up that we are planning to sleep for a couple of hours, and he doesn’t seem to mind; in fact, he thinks napping is an excellent idea. So we will meet up with him later on this evening for dinner and figure out what to do.
The shower is fantastic! Who knew I was this dirty? Derrick comes in right after me and has the same reaction as he steps in the shower. We are clean now and just getting in the bed when there is a knock on the door. Derrick looks through the peephole to see who it is, but sees no one. He starts back toward me when there is a knock again. This time when he looks, he sees Dane. Derrick opens the door and asks him if he just knocked, he said, “No, I thought you just knocked on my door. When I went to look, no one was there.”
“That’s funny, the same thing just happened to me,” Derrick replied. Dane turns around and goes back to his room. Derrick comes back to the bed. We manage a quick kiss and let our heads drop to the pillow. I had no trouble falling asleep. We get up around 5:00 p.m. feeling very rested and starving. We call Dane’s room to see if he is awake, but there is no answer.
Derrick and I decide to head downstairs to the hotel restaurant for some dinner and are relieved to see Dane down there already eating.
“Hey, there you are. Did you sleep well?” Dane asks with a mouthful of steak.
“Yeah, we slept great,” Derrick answers. “How’s the steak?”
“Great!” Dane says convincingly. When the waitress comes over, Derrick and I both tell her, “We want whatever he is having.”
“Can you bring us a couple of beers too, please?” I say.
“So, Kobi, you seemed very interested in what was going on at the lab today. What is your background?” Dane inquires.
“Oh, you noticed. I am a Medical Lab Technician for the St. Louis County’s Medical Examiner’s Office. I am not the boss or anything, just a technician. But, I do know my way around a lab.”
“Very Nice! Do you eventually want to be the Medical Examiner?”
“Yeah, eventually.”
“Hat’s off to you, my lady,” as he takes his hat off and tips it in a respectful gesture. Nicola says we have to wait three days for the results so we might as well do some more sightseeing while we are waiting. Are you game?”
“I agree. It doesn’t make much sense just to sit in this hotel. So what do you have in mind, Dane?”
“I recommend we go to Litchfield National Park, which is just south of here on the way to my house,” Dane suggests.
“Sounds like a good idea. We’ll spend the night here and check out of the hotel first thing in the morning,” Derrick replies.
Day 9
Morning comes a lot sooner than I want it to. The drive can’t be more than 45 minutes, and we arrive at Litchfield National Park by 10:00 a.m. When picking out a camp site this time, we are just a little more deliberate with the area than before. I would like to get a spot that is near a large rock or a hill so the tents aren’t sitting out there in the wide open space. If we can set up next to some type of landform, that will make me feel more secure.
Dane wants to take us to Florence Falls campgrounds where only 4WD vehicles are allowed. It will be a little more secluded and less commercial than the other campgrounds in the park. It’s probably going to be a lot prettier too. In the back of my mind I realize that Dane’s house is only 30 minutes from here and staying at his place would be a lot more convenient, but part of the experience of Australia is camping out under the stars. The incident at Katherine Gorge was probably just an isolated incident anyway. I should stop worrying about it. Finally, after a slow, tedious drive we pull out of the thick brush and witness the spectacular sight of Florence Falls. It is just as majestic and even more breathtaking than the pictures on the internet. It is a rare, year-roud waterfall that cascades down into two waterfalls.
The falls are not very large, only about 50 yards from the top, but they surely are pretty. The campground is not too far away from the falls, so we decide to head there first and get everything set up. This park is extremely busy this time of year, so finding just the right spot proves to be a challenge. There is a small group of trees in the campground that looks like a good place to park the SUV and set up the tents for a few days. We make a bee line for the spot and start unloading the car.
Finally everything is set up at the camp, so Derrick and I decide to take a jaunt down to Florence Falls. The hike is scenic and physically demanding. The mist from the immense waterfall feels refreshing hitting my face, because I got a little overheated on the hike. Derrick and I are sitting on a rock just soaking up the sun and the scenery when we are startled by a young couple running out of a wooded area. They look terrified. We try to get their attention by yelling, “Hey are you guys OK?” No response from the young couple at all. I don’t think they even saw us.
Of course Derrick and I are waiting for a T-Rex to emerge from the woods or something, but there is nothing. Quite puzzling--their behavior. Derrick and I decide after an hour or so, to head back to the campsite and give Dane a hand with dinner. No beef stew! Tonight we are having Spam cut up into thick slices served over a bed of rice. Yummy…