Family Farm by Fiona Palmer

them closer, and Gumlea had prospered as a result.
    No longer did Will cruise the local pubs looking for a good time every weekend. Instead he preferred to share a few beers with Bill in the dying afternoon light. Claire would have called him soft if she’d been around. But Will preferred to think he’d just mellowed and realised what was important.
    The smell of smoke wafted through the cab. He was getting close now. Will glanced at his mobile and prayed he wouldn’t have to use it. He could see the fierce flames and Izzy with the hose trying to keep them at bay. The header was a goner for sure.
    When he was about ten metres away Will turned the big wheel and swung the truck around to give his dad a better vantage point with their hose. It was time for action.
    A faint rumbling sound distracted Izzy and a blue truck braked suddenly beside her. Will and his old man, Brian, had arrived with their water truck.
    ‘Oh, thank God!’ Their presence gave her more willpower. Brian was on the back of his truck with the pump going, already hosing down the header near Bill. Will had jumped out from behind the steering wheel, opening his mobile and dialling for help as he did. He too had noticed the state of Bill’s burnt legs.
    Izzy watched anxiously as Bill slowly descended the narrow blackened steps. He was just about at the last step when she saw him slip on the white foam. His arms flailed above his head, and he collapsed backwards, falling into the smoke and flames that were running riot from the core of the header. They seemed to suck him in, engulf him completely, and he vanished completely from Izzy’s sight.
    ‘
Daaad!
’ Izzy screamed out in horror, before choking on the smoke. Her heart leapt against her chest and a wave of sickness washed over her. A blurry figure passed her and she realised it had to be Will. He disappeared into the thick black smoke and licking red flames, calling for her dad. Desperately, she tried to pinpoint them in the inferno. Precious seconds ticked by. She worried that they would be burnt to a crisp and shuddered at the thought. Wave upon wave of choking black smoke puffed out from around the old header, screening off her view.
    Izzy and Brian kept two powerful streams of water on the smoke where the men had disappeared, hoping to keep them from the intense heat. Their faces seemed to appear, then disappear amid the smoke as if it was playing tricks on her, taunting her at this vulnerable moment. Then Will emerged from the smoke like an illusion, dragging a large blackened body along with him. Turning off the hose, Izzy ran towards them. Her heart pounded. Was he dead? At that moment she saw Bill struggle to move one leg, then slowly the other one. Feeling light and dizzy, she gasped for air, not realising she’d been holding her breath all this time. ‘He’s alive.’
    Will easily supported Bill’s weight as they stood. Their faces were blackened, and drenched in a mixture of sweat and water. Small reddish burns scarred the top of Will’s hands, and his hair looked singed in a few places.
    ‘Isabelle,’ her dad said hoarsely as his bloodshot eyes found hers. She reached up and touched his face, wiping off some black soot. Tears started to gather in the corner of her eyes. She’d never felt so overcome with emotion. Her father was okay. Izzy turned to Will and was struck with a powerful feeling of astonishment and deep admiration. It had been the most heroic thing she’d ever seen.
    ‘Look, there’s more help coming. Let’s leave the firefighting to them. We’d better get Bill back to the house,’ Will shouted over the roar of the fire and the churning of the pumps.
    Izzy glanced behind her and witnessed the spirit of the bush at its best. A convoy of utes and water trucks carrying firefighters were coming up the track and into the paddock to help another farmer in need. It was a heart-warming sight amid such chaos. Even though they’d been harvesting a few minutes ago,