False Bottom by Hazel Edwards

needles..There was a ball of wool on top. Underneath were two more salami sausages covered in red wool.
    â€˜Are you knitting a salami jumper next?’ asked Gloria.
    The woman muttered something rude.
    â€˜That salami might have the foot and mouth virus. And it spreads very rapidly. The virus can be brought into Australia in any untreated life stock product like salami because it is not cooked .’
    The woman shrugged and muttered as Gloria tried to explain. Until the salami in the knitting bag was found, Amy had been feeling sorry for the woman. Now she felt differently. The woman was led away by the other officers.
    â€˜How do YOU feel about people like the salami stealer?’ Christopher asked Gloria.
    â€˜It’s my job. I like to catch them. Smugglers try to outwit quarantine. Or they try to trick customs. They smuggle prohibited goods or avoid paying duty. If they’re caught, they may be fined or go to court.’
    â€˜Do you catch many?’
    â€˜We’re not sure how much contraband,that’s the name for smuggled goods, gets through our net. ‘
    â€˜Is it like a game?’ asked Christopher.
    â€˜Not really. If we don’t catch them, lots of animals might die.’
    â€˜The smuggled ones?’
    â€˜And the others. Quarantine rules stop imported diseases killing our native birds and animals. And we try to stop our rare or endangered species being taken away.’
    Amy remembered the newspaper report.
    â€˜And what about drug smugglers?’
    â€˜If we don’t catch them, then people die. Drug couriers don’t think about the people affected by the drugs they smuggle. They only think about the big money they get for carrying the drugs.’
    â€˜That’s not fair,’ said Christopher.
    â€˜Sometimes people buy silly things without thinking. For instance, one time, deadly stuffed cobras were on sale in a Melbourne shop. An off-duty customs officer reported them. They’d been shipped illegally from Thailand. The cobras still had poison glands and fangs. A person could die from the poison.’
    Amy shuddered. She touched the band aid on her finger.
    If cobra poison went in that cut, she’d be dead. Yuk!
    Christopher listened carefully.’What if the poison and fangs had been taken out?’
    â€˜Then the cobras could have been imported.’ Gloria said.
    Gloria handed them visitor tags.
    â€˜If there’s a call from transit, I’ll rush you back. Meanwhile, wear these ID tags. And have a quick look in here.’ Gloria pointed to the door marked Detained Goods Room. ‘We empty this each Wednesday. So it’s not full today. We keep some of the seized goods here.’
    â€˜Ace.’
    The duty officer opened the door. Inside were rows of packed shelves. It was like an untidy shop. Amy recognised a snakeskin bag. Some unusual ornaments filled another shelf.
    â€˜That’s a martial arts blow- pipe.’ The duty officer said. ‘One traveller called it breathing equipment.’ He gave a short laugh. ‘We’ve got a long list of forbidden animal import export attempts.’
    Import export reminded Amy of the Smarts’ business card. She felt the cardboardy edges in her pocket. What was Mrs Smart really doing in Melbourne?
    â€˜Know anything about pythons?’ asked the duty officer.
    Amy shook her head.
    â€˜A Tasmanian student said he bought a python in Bangkok because he felt sorry for it. . Somehow he curled it inside his windcheater. But we noticed it. ‘
    â€˜What happens to people who smuggle things?’ asked Christopher.
    â€˜Making a false declaration is an offence. Customs can take people to court. Other times, they give a fine and seize the goods.’
    â€˜Which things aren’t allowed?’
    â€˜Coral is one example. It’s on the international list of endangered species. Another time, we found a small, warm, furry object in a traveller’s