took place in a small community hall in Wickham instead of in the client’s site office – she’d hoped for a chance to check out the forbidden building. The unnatural need made her realise that the Pilbara was starting to get to her. Even so, her brain had not yet hit madness, like Gavin’s. His return to the office coincided with hers.
She saw him jump off the bus from the wharf, his face red with sweat and annoyance.
‘You’ll never believe what they’ve done now.’
‘Who?’
‘Who do you think?’
The client. ‘What have they done?’
‘They’ve erected a bloody flag on their front donga.’
‘A flag?’
‘Big blue thing with their emblem on it.’ Gavin wiped the sweat off his brow. ‘It’s giving my men the shits.’
She laughed. ‘It’s just a flag.’
‘It’s a bloody offence is what it is,’ Gavin said. ‘The boys reckon we should wait till nightfall, steal it and erect a Barnes Inc one in its place.’
Lena raised her eyebrows. ‘You’re kidding, right?’
He was silent.
‘Gavin,’ she began slowly. ‘You can’t do that.’
He hesitated. ‘You’re right. It’s not enough. We need a bigger flag if we’re going to make a statement.’
‘You’re not serious.’
‘I’ll need a 200 CHS for the pole at the very least.’ Gavin was already striding past her. ‘I’ll go see Tony.’ Tony was one of the yard foremen. He was in charge of all the fabricated steel that arrived on site, storing it and distributing it to the correct area of the job.
Lena watched Gavin head for the donga that housed Tony’s office and could tell he had already forgotten her presence. Shaking her head, she entered the main donga in search of Carl. She had to ask him about getting a ute for Sunday among a score of other things.
‘Good afternoon, Carl.’
He looked up from his computer screen as she walked into his office. ‘Since when?’
Lena smiled. ‘Bad day?’
‘The fuckin’ worst. How was your induction?’
‘Boring.’
Carl shrugged. ‘Bulldog likes ’em very thorough. What can I do for you?’
‘I’ve done my research. I just want to know where we’re at in terms of progress and how I take it from here.’
‘Best to talk to Mike about that.’
Lena’s heart sank. ‘Mike Hopkins?’
‘He’s in charge of the skid frame. He’ll be your site supervisor.’
Lena’s heart plummeted even further.
It couldn’t have been more unwelcome news. The first image that popped into her head was Mike’s contemptuous smirk as he handled her luggage at the airport.
The last thing she wanted was a subordinate who had zero faith in her. She needed an ally. Someone who was willing to work with her and respect her suggestions. Mike Hopkins wasn’t going to do that. If anything, he was going to make things as difficult for her as he could.
‘Listen, Carl,’ Lena began, but the phone rang and he picked it up instead.
‘What? Fuck! No! Who told you to let fuckin’ Eric drive the crane? You know he’s fuckin’ incompetent. Me? Get fucked. I didn’t tell you shit !’
He shook his head at Lena, waving his hand in dismissal. It was clear her questions weren’t a priority. She bit her lip and exited his office. The only thing left to do was meet trouble head on.
She looked at her watch. There was one last bus run for the day. Just enough time to get out to the skid and talk to Mike. Who knew? He might be reasonable.
So she donned her hard hat, safety glasses and reflector vest and caught the bus out to the wharf to find him. The skid frame was about five hundred metres down the jetty. Lena got a glimpse of it as soon as the bus left the land. It was a giant steel table-like structure that straddled the existing conveyor belt. She could see the men working on top of it while the conveyor operated normally beneath. They had a little five-tonne crane bolted to the deck and were lifting a beam over the side to attach to the main girders below the jetty deck. This was one of
She saw him jump off the bus from the wharf, his face red with sweat and annoyance.
‘You’ll never believe what they’ve done now.’
‘Who?’
‘Who do you think?’
The client. ‘What have they done?’
‘They’ve erected a bloody flag on their front donga.’
‘A flag?’
‘Big blue thing with their emblem on it.’ Gavin wiped the sweat off his brow. ‘It’s giving my men the shits.’
She laughed. ‘It’s just a flag.’
‘It’s a bloody offence is what it is,’ Gavin said. ‘The boys reckon we should wait till nightfall, steal it and erect a Barnes Inc one in its place.’
Lena raised her eyebrows. ‘You’re kidding, right?’
He was silent.
‘Gavin,’ she began slowly. ‘You can’t do that.’
He hesitated. ‘You’re right. It’s not enough. We need a bigger flag if we’re going to make a statement.’
‘You’re not serious.’
‘I’ll need a 200 CHS for the pole at the very least.’ Gavin was already striding past her. ‘I’ll go see Tony.’ Tony was one of the yard foremen. He was in charge of all the fabricated steel that arrived on site, storing it and distributing it to the correct area of the job.
Lena watched Gavin head for the donga that housed Tony’s office and could tell he had already forgotten her presence. Shaking her head, she entered the main donga in search of Carl. She had to ask him about getting a ute for Sunday among a score of other things.
‘Good afternoon, Carl.’
He looked up from his computer screen as she walked into his office. ‘Since when?’
Lena smiled. ‘Bad day?’
‘The fuckin’ worst. How was your induction?’
‘Boring.’
Carl shrugged. ‘Bulldog likes ’em very thorough. What can I do for you?’
‘I’ve done my research. I just want to know where we’re at in terms of progress and how I take it from here.’
‘Best to talk to Mike about that.’
Lena’s heart sank. ‘Mike Hopkins?’
‘He’s in charge of the skid frame. He’ll be your site supervisor.’
Lena’s heart plummeted even further.
It couldn’t have been more unwelcome news. The first image that popped into her head was Mike’s contemptuous smirk as he handled her luggage at the airport.
The last thing she wanted was a subordinate who had zero faith in her. She needed an ally. Someone who was willing to work with her and respect her suggestions. Mike Hopkins wasn’t going to do that. If anything, he was going to make things as difficult for her as he could.
‘Listen, Carl,’ Lena began, but the phone rang and he picked it up instead.
‘What? Fuck! No! Who told you to let fuckin’ Eric drive the crane? You know he’s fuckin’ incompetent. Me? Get fucked. I didn’t tell you shit !’
He shook his head at Lena, waving his hand in dismissal. It was clear her questions weren’t a priority. She bit her lip and exited his office. The only thing left to do was meet trouble head on.
She looked at her watch. There was one last bus run for the day. Just enough time to get out to the skid and talk to Mike. Who knew? He might be reasonable.
So she donned her hard hat, safety glasses and reflector vest and caught the bus out to the wharf to find him. The skid frame was about five hundred metres down the jetty. Lena got a glimpse of it as soon as the bus left the land. It was a giant steel table-like structure that straddled the existing conveyor belt. She could see the men working on top of it while the conveyor operated normally beneath. They had a little five-tonne crane bolted to the deck and were lifting a beam over the side to attach to the main girders below the jetty deck. This was one of
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