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| "Laura's Nightmare" Copyright Francis Blow, 1989. |
| CHAPTER 2 |
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| "What on earth are you doing, Laura?" |
| Laura turned to her mother from among the scattered brochures where the teenager sat on her bed. A breeze from the open door to the balcony stirred the papers. |
| "I'm working out a problem, and I think I've got the answer." Laura held up a handful of brochures. "Tourists mostly spend money on fares, food and accommodation. Right? But what they really want is to explore new places, cheaply and simply. Some can't afford much, while others can afford to have others take care of the problems." |
| "I'm with you so far," Carla nodded. "Is this part of your search for something to earn money?" |
| "I'm sure this is it, Mum. No one is offering exactly the kind of things tourists want. There are a few companies that come close, and there are plenty of things for tourists to see, but nobody has organised it into a practical system. Yet," Laura explained. |
| She picked out one of the colour brochures, then a one-page flyer. "Look. This is a retreat-style homestead offering country accommodation, horse riding and so on, but it's a long drive from anywhere. What it does have, is a private airstrip. Now this one is from a small charter air company, with two five-seater planes, based here on the Central Coast. They'll fly you anywhere you want. Both companies offer low prices. If somebody brought the two together, and let the tourists know about it, then that somebody could make a small profit." |
| "Needless to say, that Somebody is you?" Carla prompted. "It might work, I agree, if all these rich tourists wanted was to fly to a farm. What about the ones who want other things?" |
| "Not a problem!" Laura grinned. "That was one example. There are all sorts of other things, such as camping holidays, cultural tours, riverboat cruises, fishing trips. You name it!" |
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| Laura went over her idea later with her father. |
| He listened and asked questions, then pointed out things Laura had not considered. The work would be time intensive, and need a great deal of record keeping. Laura reached for a computer magazine from a stack on her desk. After leafing through a few pages, she pointed to an article. |
| "This is a computer programme which would handle most of the record keeping. I already have a word-processing and accounting package which will look after the rest. There is one thing more I'll need to buy, and that's a new printer, because the one I have is not a good enough standard." |
| "How much is this all going to cost, and where is the money coming from?" |
| "I haven't worked it out yet, since there are a few more things I need to work on, and I'll probably need some help," Laura shook her head. "The money can come from the bank." |
| They continued the discussion during and after dinner, with Carla offering suggestions. Laura rang Gran for her advice, too, on setting up the accounts side of the business; there would be some tax savings involved, if Laura started off on the right foot. |
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| The business, "L. Shell Concepts", started with Laura sending out several proposals to companies she selected from the local phone book. |
| Air and boat charter companies, resorts, amusement parks and small tour groups. Laura asked for interviews to discuss ways she could increase their business. She printed her own letterheads and business cards on the new printer, and designed sample advertising flyers, with help from her family and her economics teacher. |
| The money for setting up the business she borrowed, using her savings as security, on Gran's advice, so that she could build up a good credit rating early in life. She would make sure every payment was met on time. |
| While she waited for replies, Laura canvassed the local hotels and motels, leaving her business cards, and promising to supply tours tailored to suit any group. |
| On an impulse, Laura approached a backpackers hotel, and suggested she could offer a walking tour of little known trails. She was pleased when the manager agreed, and even more delighted when two couples wanted to pay for her as guide for a weekend trip. The best part was, the group was happy to use public transport instead of a mini bus, to start and finish the trip. Laura suggested a price, and they worked out a deal which pleased them all. |
| After two hours discussing what the four people wanted out of the weekend, Laura went home and poured over her maps, then drew up a list of what to get by way of supplies. |
| Both couples had all the camping equipment they needed, so Laura concentrated on an interesting location and the consumables. She would do the cooking, commentary and take the "official" photographs. Because she was the odd man out, Laura could use her three man tent to store all the extra gear, though it would mean a heavy pack. |
| By severely cutting back on her own requirements, Laura felt she could comfortably cope with the trip. Once she received her camping permit for the area, everything was ready. |
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| Laura got home from school early on Friday, having taken the bus, instead of running as she normally would. |
| Everything was packed, and all she had to do was shower and change, then ask her father to drop her off at the hotel, where she met the backpackers. One couple were newlyweds from Germany, who spoke enough English to get by, and the others were from Scotland. |
| "If you're all ready, we can go." Laura invited her group. |
| There was no need of introductions, since the four tourists were acquainted, and Laura led them to the bus stop. |
| While they waited for the bus, Laura told them about what they could expect to see on the tour; the animals and plants. |
| "Since the weather is still hot, and you may not be used to the temperature and humidity, we're going to a place where there is a lot of shade and plenty of swimming holes." |
| Laura took a photo of the five of them at the bus stop, before the bus arrived. An hour and a half later, they were walking into the bush, with nightfall not long off. Laura had picked the first camp for the trip in a place close enough to reach before it was too dark to set up the three tents. |
| While her four charges explored their surroundings, Laura prepared their meal over the two lightweight stoves she carried. Two stoves were necessary, in case one went faulty, and, also, two would make food preparation faster. |
| Later, over coffee and biscuits, Laura told stories of the aboriginal people who once lived near where they were camped. |
| "We can spend a few hours, in the morning, looking at the paintings they left behind. Since we have to come back this way from the painting sites, we can leave everything here, and just take cameras and morning tea." |
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| The morning went according to plan, at first: breakfast of sausages, eggs and toast met with approval, and, during the walk to the aboriginal paintings, Laura's group met another, larger party. |
| The seven other teenagers were mostly locals, members of a church social group. There was pleasant conversation when they travelled together, and Laura did not mind the newcomers listening in on her commentary. |
| Once they were near the sites, Laura suggested they separate, so as not to have too many people around each site at a time. |
| "And be careful. This area is dangerous, if you don't pay attention to the terrain. Use common sense, and you'll all see some marvelous examples of aboriginal art." |
| Laura threw in the warning, because some of the younger teenagers were so busy talking, they did not watch where they were going, and the leader did not bother issuing any cautions of his own. |
| There was another young man there, about the leader's age of eighteen, whose handsome features caught Laura's eye, though she forced herself to ignore him. She had a job to do. |
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| The four backpackers were clustered close around Laura, as she pointed out particular features of one of the paintings. Yells and screams cut through the tranquil forest sounds, and Laura led her group at a run, in the direction of the shouting. Five of the church group were crowded around the handsome man, who was holding the leg of a prone and groaning youth. |
| "His leg's broken," the eighteen year old announced. He looked around, then issued instructions to some of the others, before his eyes settled on Laura. "Do you have a radio or mobile phone?" |
| "No," Laura shook her head. "But I can get back to a phone in less than an hour." |
| His face displayed a doubtful expression, so Laura told him she was a marathon runner, and knew the trails well. |
| Leaving brief instructions with her four to stay put, Laura started running, wishing she had left her camera behind, and thought to put on shorts instead of trousers. As it turned out, Laura was five minutes behind the time she estimated in reaching a phone. |
| After listening to Laura's description of the terrain, the ambulance dispatcher sent a helicopter to pick her up, so she could guide the pilot to the accident site. As the aircraft hovered to a landing, Laura remembered her camera, and took some quick snapshots. |
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| The injured teenager was quickly on his way to hospital, accompanied by his brother, and the rest of the boy's party was preparing to walk out. |
| Laura took the opportunity to get the handsome man's name and phone number. |
| "So I can find out how the boy is", she explained. |
| He smiled, eyes twinkling. "I'm Marcus Bradley." |
| "Laura Shell. I've got to go. I think I've used up all the spare time I programmed for this tour. 'Bye, Marcus." |
| He nodded. "See you later. And by the way, thanks. That was one hell of a run." |
| Laura continued the tour, getting back within schedule, and without further surprises. Her four tourists were very happy with the walk, and praised her for her part in the rescue of the injured hiker. |
| Laura felt drained by the time her father picked her up from the hotel. Laura hugged John tiredly, and let him carry her backpack to the car. |
| "Up to your old tricks again?" He said. "It was on the news, about how you single-handedly dragged yourself through treacherous jungle, then all but flew the rescue chopper back." |
| "Oh, no! They didn't, did they? It wasn't anything like that. Why do the newspapers always have to exaggerate so much?" Laura wailed. |
| "It was the TV, this time. And the papers. And the radio," he smiled at her. "Let's get you home, Baby. You look like you could use a hot shower." |
| "A deep, hot bath is what I want. Without any interruptions. What a pain!" Laura was referring to the media attention, not any of her aches. |
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| Laura's wish came through, or enough of it to satisfy her. No one from the media tried to contact her, that night, though her friend, Jem, knocked on the bathroom door, then sat on the edge of the bath, where she pried the true story out of Laura. |
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| The next afternoon, after school, Laura rang Marcus Bradley, to see if the injured boy was still in hospital. Before she put the phone down, Marcus had set a date with her, to see a movie. |
