"DANNY" |
Copyright Francis Blow, 1980. |
CHAPTER 1 |
"Bet you a dollar you can't!" |
"You're on." Danny told the other boy. |
"Let's see your dollar, then." |
Danny counted out silver and copper coins, leaving only a few cents in his pocket. The other boy flipped a golden dollar next to Danny's pile. |
"Five minutes, right? I'll time it." |
"No way." Danny said. "We'll get some one else to time me." |
One of the onlookers offered his services, and then Danny stood on his hands, upside down. Other kids began to bet amongst themselves on how long Danny could stay like that, and the crowd around the inverted boy began to get noisier. |
Minutes passed slowly, and calls of encouragement grew, until a teacher decided to find out what was happening. |
"What's going on here?" Mr. Quip demanded, as he pushed his way through the yelling boys and girls. |
"Four minutes!" The timekeeper called. |
"What are you doing, boy?" |
"Standing on my head, Sir." |
"Why?" |
"Because I'm better at it than anyone else around here, Sir, and someone said I couldn't do it." |
"Is that why you're acting like a clown, and having everyone laugh at you? Don't you have any self respect?" |
"I don't know, Sir, but even if they are laughing at me, it doesn't matter, because they can't do this as well as me." |
"Stand up, boy." |
"Yes, Sir. In less than a minute, Sir." |
"Right now!" |
"But I'm almost done. I wasn't doing anything wrong, Sir." |
"What's your name?" |
"Nock, Sir. Danny Nock." |
"Well, Mr. Danny Nock, if you do not get to your feet right now, I'm taking you to see the headmaster." Mr. Quip waited for Danny to respond, but it was the timekeeper who replied. |
"Ten seconds to go!" |
The crowd began a countdown to zero, while the teacher glared at the faces around him. |
Danny got up and scooped the coins into his pocket. |
"What's that money?" Mr. Quip demanded. |
"Mine, Sir. Things fall out of your pocket when you're up side down." |
"Come with me. The rest of you can go about your business. The show's over." |
Danny's interview with the headmaster went reasonably well, though he thought the headmaster suspected he had taken the dare for a bet. |
After school, Danny rode his ancient bike home; it had been Granny's bike until she gave it to him for Christmas, two years previously. It was a heavy, steel-framed monster, and even the new coat of paint could not hide the fact that it had three-speed hub gears and solid rubber pedals. Granny had told him it would last a hundred years, so Danny assumed she meant that it had about ten to go. Even though the bike belonged in a museum, it was Danny's only means of getting around, other than walking, and Granny knew how to keep it going, even if she had to borrow Danny's hands for the heavy work. |
"Mum! Is it okay if I go fishing? I've got some bait money." |
"Um. Make sure you're home by seven for dinner." |
Danny changed into faded, cut-off jeans and an old, stained T-shirt, threw his fishing sack on the back of the bike, and rode off to the water, stopping only to buy a small bag of bait prawns. |
He pedalled past the moorings slowly, to admire the yachts and cruisers; he wished that even the smallest boat was his. |
With the bike safely chained to a tree, Danny walked along a jetty, counting the pylons until he came to a certain one, then he emptied his fishing sack. A plastic reel held enough line to reach the bottom if the current was not too strong; a small container, that had once held film, was used to store Danny's precious hooks and sinkers; a rusty "stainless" knife completed Danny's inventory of fishing equipment. |
He checked the hook which was still on the line from last time, then he unfroze a prawn with sea water and his hands, cut it into three pieces, and put one section on the hook. |
Lowering the line into the water, Danny's sensitive fingers were ready to detect the tentative tugs which might mean a strike. |
A jerk of the line, and the bait was gone leaving a bare hook. He sighed. |
Even though Danny usually could get three pieces of bait from each prawn, it still took over a dozen prawns, before he pulled in the first leatherjacket. |
Despite it taking so long, Danny was happy with the result. By ten minutes to seven, all the prawns were gone, but Danny had five leatherjackets for the table, and several bait fish to freeze for next time. |
His mother was pleased to have the fish, and paid him twice the cost of the bait for his efforts. |
"Thanks, Mum. I'll catch some more tomorrow, if you like." |
"What about those nice shell fish you brought the other day? Where did you say you got them?" |
Danny promised to get enough for everyone, though he knew he would have trouble reaching the particular bed that produced the best tasting mussels. |
What he needed was a boat, but there was not enough money to buy one. He would have to swim over with the old inner tube to carry a net full of shell fish. |
After dinner, Danny went to the garage and dug out the inner tube and the foot pump. Fortunately there were no new leaks when he checked the tube, so he left it inflated for the following day. |
As he re-entered the house to do his homework, Danny heard his mother and Granny arguing over their cups of tea. |
"A bag of flour will make more than a bag of rice, young lady. I've been looking after that son of mine for years before you married him." |
"But we can afford a few better meals than vegetable pies, or dough balls in soup. Danny brings in lots of fish now..." |
"Danny's a good boy, but he should spend time enjoying his childhood, not fishing for our supper." |
Danny passed through the lounge room and saw his father half listening to the two women. David Nock winked at his son. "Those two in there have been arguing over food ever since they met." |
Danny smiled at his father. "It's their hobby, Dad. They'd have nothing else to talk about." |
Mr. Nock laughed. "That's a good one, Son. How was school today?" |
"Okay. I've got heaps of homework." Danny was half hoping that his father would suggest he stay and watch the football, but apparently Mr. Nock had forgotten already. |
Reluctantly, Danny went to the laundry where he hung up his clothes, which smelled of fish, then went and had a shower. |
Half an hour of geography later, Granny rescued him with a call to dinner, so he pulled some clothes on over his underwear, and joined the rest of the family at the table. |
"Great!" His eyes lit up when he saw sausages, rice, carrots and peas on every plate. The three grownups smiled at his enthusiasm. Mr. Nock led a short prayer, and everyone made sure nothing went to waste. |
"That was delicious." Mr. Nock announced, as he finished the last slice of bread. "We should eat like this every day." |
Mrs. Nock smiled at her husband. "Danny brought us fish for tomorrow. How does fish head soup with dumplings, followed by battered fish sound?" |
"I'll do the dumplings!" Granny volunteered. |
Later, Danny kissed everyone goodnight, leaving Granny until last. |
"I need to know something." He began, when he was alone with her. "Will we always be as poor as we are now?" |
"Not at all. It's just for a while, till we can get over all those doctors' bills." |
"It's all my fault. If I hadn't been born, then Mum wouldn't have gotten so sick." |
"Nonsense Daniel! Your mother would not change a thing if it meant losing you. Certainly there were complications when you were born, but that was because she was ill with something else. Your birth was not the cause. Just look at your father. He was always a little slow in some things, but he's never had a cross word about what happened, and he was there, holding your mother's hand when you came into the world. Sure, he's belted your behind when you've been naughty, but so have I. When you were younger, not so long ago, he would creep into your room at night and watch you sleeping. Sometimes I'd find him asleep next to you, just like when his own dad..." She choked on the last word, then kissed Danny again. "Forget all that nonsense about whose fault it was and off to bed with you." |
"Goodnight, Granny." |
Danny woke up to the sound of his father leaving for work. The bicycle wheels crunched down the path next to the house, on the beginning of Mr. Nock's ten kilometre ride. |
The sun was just breaking over the houses and breakfast was hours away. |
Danny changed into his fishing clothes from the day before, fetched the still inflated inner tube with its attached net, and set off on his own bike. He pedalled economically to the shore nearest his shell fish bed. |
Had he ridden quickly, he would have been tired and overheated on arrival. As it was, the cold water was a shock to his body when he slipped into the bay. |
Dragging the inner tube, he swam out to the submerged bar where the mussels were. It was shallow enough to stand there, even at high tide, and he used his toes to feel for the buried shells. |
He had learned to pick up each prize with his toes, instead of having to dive to the bottom as he had originally done. |
An hour passed, during which time, his skin was turning blue, but he had collected enough big mussels for all of the family, so he threw the smaller ones back to grow some more. |
Danny was shivering so hard, he could hardly pull on his shirt and cardigan, let alone ride, so he pushed the bike until he could feel the handle bars properly. |
Once home, he had a steaming shower, then dressed for school. |
Granny had tea and toast ready for him when he left his bedroom. "I saw you come in. I wish you wouldn't do this sort of thing, Danny. It's too dangerous." |
Danny shrugged. "We have to eat." |
The old lady sighed, and sat next to him. "Yes we do, but what if you get sick? Who pays for the doctor, and who catches the fish?" |
"I didn't think of that." He replied. "I'll be more careful." |
"Good boy. Now, what have we got for your lunch?" |
When Danny rode to school, he parked his bike near all the others, and went looking for his friends. |
"Hey Danny! Boy, are you in trouble. Mr. Quip is looking for you. Someone dobbed you in about the bet yesterday." |
When he heard his mate, Tom, call, Danny scowled. "Oh, great. Who was the bludger?" |
"Haven't a clue. What're you going to do?" |
Danny shrugged. "What can I do? If I lie, it can only get worse. He can't do too much to me, I hope. And the money's gone." |
"I guess you're right. Still, I reckon I'd be packing it if it was me. How come you're so cool?" |
"I'm not. I can't change it, so I'll try not to think about it. Do you want a game of handball?" |
They played until it was time to go in. Mr. Quip still had not come for Danny, though the teacher had passed close enough to recognise him. |
By the time they went for their morning break, Danny was more anxious. |
Then Mr. Quip found him. |
"Join me in room 5A Mr. Nock." |
Danny followed, his apprehension growing with each step. |
"As I understand it, you lied to me yesterday about the money you had." The teacher accused him. |
"Well, Sir, I did mislead you, but it wasn't an actual lie." |
"Would you like to explain that?" The teacher scowled. |
Danny was even more nervous, since Mr. Quip seemed to be leading up to something. "When you asked who owned the money, I said it was mine. I won it by proving I could stand on my hands for five minutes." |
"Oh? Doesn't this school have rules about gambling?" |
"Yes, Sir." Danny knew that Mr. Quip was about to pounce. |
"So you admit to breaking the rules?" |
Danny nodded. "I guess so, Sir." |
"What will I do with you?" |
There was nothing Danny could say, so he waited. |
"Why were you gambling? What did you hope to gain from it?" |
"A dollar, Sir." |
"You went through all this for a dollar? Was it worth it?" |
Danny thought of the fish he had caught with the bait the money had bought, and of his parents' comments about their meal. |
"I'm sorry, Mr. Quip, but if I could do it over, I would do it just the same." |
"Why, boy? Are you buying drugs?" |
"No Sir... If you must know, I used it to get bait, so that my family could have fish tonight." |
The man looked at Danny for a long time, then the bell went. |
"I will let it pass this time, young man. In future you had better find a more acceptable way of earning money." |
"Thanks, Sir. I promise." |
As soon as he was dismissed, Danny hurried to join the rest of his class. Not even the prospect of facing Maths and Economics, one after the other, bothered him, thanks to Mr. Quip. All through the rest of the school day, Danny tried to think of other ways of making money. |
He had attempted many ways in the past, yet none had worked out for various reasons; there were not enough aluminium cans lying around to make collecting them worthwhile; all the good daily paper routes were already taken by older kids, while delivering the local papers would have required a car. |
Perhaps there would be something near the wharves. Danny decided to try there after his classes were over. His mother would not mind if he was a little late. |
He was on his way to get his bike, when one of his mates called. Danny returned Mel's greeting and waited for the other boy to catch up. |
"Going fishing again?" Mel asked. |
"Maybe later. I'm going to try and get a job." |
"Yeah? What kind?" |
"I don't know. I was only going to see what's available. Want to come?" |
"May as well. Did you hear about the latest robberies?" |
Mel told Danny that the people who were stealing things from boats were taking even more. The thieves were no longer content with just taking life jackets and oars, they were stealing radios and even outboards, from anywhere on the Broadwater. Woy Woy and Gosford police did not have enough men to watch all the wharves and moorings, so whoever the thieves were, they were getting away with it. |
The boys speculated on the type of person who might be involved, and whether there was a reward. Danny's thoughts instantly turned towards a boat of his own. |
"If only I had the money, I could get a yacht and sail around the world. America, the islands, Europe, Africa... Boy, that would be really excellent." He said with a sigh. "What would you do if you had money?" |
"I'd get a Ferrari, or a Lamborghini." |
"But you're not old enough to have a car license." |
"Well, can't I dream? Have you got a boat license, huh?" |
Danny was caught out, he also was too young. "Not yet, but I am studying all the rules." |
At Woy Woy, Danny asked about work at several shops which looked promising; unfortunately there was nothing available. He had doubted that he would have any success, yet Danny kept hoping. One day there would be a job for him, he knew. |
In the meantime, he had to keep bringing fish home. |
After dinner, Danny returned to the wharves with his fishing bag and most of his frozen bait. It was dark, with no moon, and he had no torch to work by. |
Not for the first time, Danny was glad he had taught himself to tie his hooks, and bait them, by touch alone. Hours passed without a bite, and at about ten o'clock, Danny heard low voices on one of the nearby boats. |
It was a surprise, since he had not noticed anyone else around earlier. When a weak light went on only ten or twelve metres away, he sat still and watched three men struggling with an outboard motor; they carried it off the boat and into a yellow van, which was parked nearby. Danny was sure the van had been there since before he arrived. |
He was suspicious, but unsure of what to do, so he kept fishing. Almost an hour later, Danny's patience was rewarded by a small jewfish, weighing about three kilos; Danny was pleased, since jewfish were usually elusive and rarely took dead bait. |
The next morning, Danny showed his family the cleaned fish in the fridge, and told them what he had seen while fishing. |
"I think I'll go see the police before school." He announced. |
"Good on you, Son." His father said. "The police might catch those bludgers." |
"But David," His mother protested, "What if those men come here? I think that Danny should just go to the phone box, but not tell the police his name." |
Danny was surprised at his mother's worries. "Do you really think that they'll come here?" |
"They might." |
Before Mrs. Nock could say more, Granny interrupted. "All nonsense. If they came here it would be stupid, and would get them into more trouble. I say let the boy go to the police, have his say and then it's over." |
"Right." Mr. Nock agreed. "As soon as you've finished your breakfast, off you go." |
"Teeth and hair first." Granny reminded him. |
Once he reached the police station at Woy Woy, Danny went to the desk sergeant. "Excuse me. I think I may have seen three men stealing an outboard motor last night." |
"That right, lad? Hang on and I'll get a detective. Won't keep you long." |
Detective Styles was a heavyset man in a beige suit. He asked Danny several questions about himself, then about what Danny saw, all the while taking notes. |
"Thanks for your information, Danny. If you think of anything else, call me." |
Much later, when Danny rode home from school, he saw a strange car parked in front of his house, and two men waiting in the living room with his mother and Granny. |
"Danny." Mrs. Nock began. "These two men are from the newspaper. They want to talk to you about last night." |
"I told the police all I knew." |
One of the men leaned forward. "We want everyone to know as much about these thieves as we can. Too many people are being ripped off. Will you help?" |
So Danny told his story again; there had been plenty of opportunity to rehearse it when he had told his friends at school. |
A photo was taken of him with his mother and Granny, then the reporters were gone. |
Two days later, the paper was delivered and the story with his photo were on the third page. |
That night, two windows on their house were smashed with rocks. |