Chapter 10

David�s home was a unit in a security block on the main street of Kings Cross, near the railway station. The Sebel Townhouse was almost opposite. Noise from the station constantly filtered through the walls and windows. Tonight, he was very happy as he turned the key to his front door.

As he entered his apartment, a fresh smell of brewed coffee filled his nostrils. Like clockwork, his coffee percolator had fresh brew waiting for him. It was a game Dave played. He guessed at about what time he would try and be home and set the timer on his coffee percolator. He always seemed to be on time and he laughed as he poured himself a coffee. He had specially ground twelve different varieties of coffee beans into various "Dave�s Specials" as he called them. To him no other coffee tasted as good.

Dave purchased fine coffee, fine china and delicious chocolates from around the globe. He also had a very large selection of port, for his visitors, which complimented his coffee. If you were to ever have a progressive dinner, Dave�s house would always be the one you should finish with. A special fridge kept certain cheeses at a temperature that was akin to the European countries of their origin. He enjoyed his food and at one stage of his working career had become a fully trained chef. Like most chefs, he�d dreamt of opening his own restaurant one-day in the future.

He poured his coffee and grabbing a couple of cubes of cheese, and a packet of Jatz biscuits, he went and took a seat on his verandah. Kings Cross was teaming with the usual weekend traffic. Girls from as young as twelve years, to women well into their forties were selling their bodies. Women were the prey, man was the hunter, and as each day the new talent was arriving. Drugs are being dealt, needles being filled with blood and heroin, as new stock kept the workers working, ladies began moving back to their places of work, men strolled window-shopping and the strip clubs began filling.

 

*******

 

With one fluid movement Sharon�s door opened and the lounge filled with the little family. With a flick of two remote controls the television and stereo burst into life. Sharon waited on the guests passing out two orange juices and two wines. And the four settled back to watch the Sunday night movie �Top Gun.�

As the movie commenced Sharon asked, "Do you want to stay the night Tracy?"

"That would be fun" Tracy replied, responding to Sharon�s smile.

"That�s good." Sharon said. Tony and Tracy seemed so natural together. On the sofa together Tracy had one of her legs lazily draped over Tony. It would have been a shame for them to part tonight.

"Where are you living Tracy?" Sharon asked.

"Oh in a squat. Yet I hope to get a unit. Say a one bedroom one."

"Really, there�s a one bedroom unit available a couple of numbers down the street. I think they want a hundred and ten a week." Tracy�s eyes lit up. She was so happy Sharon had taken to her.

"Do you think you could sign the papers for me? I�m not old enough."

"I can�t see a problem with that. You may need about seven hundred dollars though. That will be your biggest problem."

"No way!" Tracy exclaimed, "I have two hundred, but the rest is only five tricks away."

Joanne�s eyes turned. Did she hear what she thought she heard? Sharon was quick to respond. "What! Are you turning tricks?"

Tracy replied "Yes, I�ve got to eat."

"But you�re only fifteen or so aren�t you" Sharon pushed, her heart wrenching for this girl. How could she be a prostitute? She was so young, so pretty, and so refined.

"Yes"

"That�s not a job for a girl like you. We can�t have that, Sharon said. Why don�t I have a word with the McDonald�s owner or with a couple of business owners I know around here? Joey from Joey�s Diner is looking for a dishwasher. You could be a waitress come dishwasher. I can�t have you being a prostitute. It will ruin you. We�ll see if we can get both you and Tony a job. When you have a job finding a place to share won�t be too hard. Crash here, or...she looked at Joanne.

"Yes" Joanne, said. "You can stay at my place."

Tracy couldn�t believe her ears. She was awake, yet she just couldn�t fathom what she had just heard. She not only had a wonderful boyfriend, but because of him, she might be able to give prostitution the flick and get a normal job. "Thank you" is all she could manage to say, as she looked at the television.

Tony didn�t need to say anything. He looked up into both Joanne�s and Sharon�s eyes and his expression conveyed his thankfulness. He ran his hands through Tracy�s hair. It seemed everything was going to be okay.

 

*******

 

Her terrace house in Paddington showed signs of life within as Christine approached. The lights were still on and she could see the outline of a few bodies in front of the TV The front door opened just as she stepped up to it, as if it was automatic, and there, standing in the doorway to greet her was her husband Nathaniel.

"Hi Darling."

"Hi Honey" Christine replied as he let her in.

As Christine passed by her husband he drew her to him and held her close. The tensions of the day seemed to evaporate, replaced instead with the love and appreciation of her husband. Nathaniel began to kiss her, and soon after looked down at her tenderly. Silence stole a few seconds.

"I love it when you get home"

"I love to be home."

She met Nathaniel�s lips again and their mouths played softly and tenderly. For a few moments she clung to him. Nathaniel started slowly kissing the sides of her neck and she just let it happen, smiling to herself. She rather liked this greeting tonight; it made her feel special, with the weight of hassle in her life at the moment.

This greeting at the door wasn�t out of the ordinary. Nathaniel quite often opened the door for her, met her with a kiss and took her to sit down and enjoy a dinner. It wasn�t that he had nothing better to do, Nathaniel was a busy man. Rather it was just how he chose to do things and nothing gave him more pleasure. It seemed natural for him to fill in when Christine wasn�t around. Over the years he had become a proficient cook, showing flair in the dishes he created. The house seemed to be under control, the children comfortable, in their father�s company. He had never complained with his lot in life, instead he was always supported Christine with praise and encouragement. He was also a great listener. And as he hugged Christine tonight he could feel the need for him in that area tonight.

"Thanks for that. I really needed a hug tonight. Are the children still up?"

"Yes, they are, you know school holidays and all."

"That�s good," Christine said as she took her husband�s hand as he led her into the lounge room. Their children were watching Top Gun on television. The lounge room erupted in laughter, and it wasn�t until the ad break that Christine received any attention from them.

"Hi Mum," "Hi Mum" came their echo of greeting as their eyes left the screen. She leant down to greet them as they came to her.

"We�ve been waiting up for you" Daniel announced. "Dad let us stay and watch Top Gun. We were hoping you would come home while it was still on."

"Thanks mate" she said as she gave him a big hug.

"Is it a good movie Daniel?"

"Awesome!" was the reply as he turned back to the television when the movie started again.

"Did you have a hard day mum?" Lisa her eight-year-old daughter asked.

"Yes honey, it was pretty rough. Tonight was nice though; I had dinner with Dave. How has your day been sweetie?"

"Great! Lisa replied. "We had a good time playing at the beach today. The church had a picnic lunch at Manly. It was fun and the water was so nice and cool."

Did many people go?" Chris asked.

"Heaps"

"Yes, it was a surprising turnout" Nathaniel added. "Twice as many people came as normal. It must have been the heat."

"Tell me about it." Christine agreed.

"You want a cuppa?" Nathaniel asked, walking to the kitchen.

"That would be great." Christine confided, following him and sitting down in the dining room adjoining the kitchen. Her legs gave way, as her physical exhaustion caught up with her.

"It looks like your day was pretty tough."

That was all it took for tears to fill Christine�s eyes. Her hands came up to wipe them away as they started a trek down her face. Christine rested her head on her arms and quietly said, "It�s too hard!"

"What is honey?"

"Work. The Cross is just too depressing. I don�t seem to be even making a difference."

"I can understand, it may appear that way to you honey, but you can�t see all the ramifications of your effort. You�re a light in a very dark town. You give hope, in a hopeless situation. Look at the transformation in Dave�s life since you first met him." Nathaniel encouraged.

"I know. He�s the only one. I need help down there. I can�t seem to win. The more I take on, the more tired I become and the less effect I have. I get so drained at times."

"You are too hard on yourself. You don�t know how many lives you have saved with your attitude. You just have to switch off. Not take too much on."

"Well, Dave said I should take some time in my holidays to go out and find a church to support the work. He suggested speaking to his church about our ideas. What do you think?"

"I think that�d be good. I�m having some time off too, so maybe we could work on it together."

They talked for a while and, with time, Christine�s mood lightened. The movie finished and the children came out to the dining room to say goodnight. They all sat at the table and Nathaniel mischievously suggested they have some ice cream. It was 11.00pm on a Sunday night when their little family dug into ice cream with chocolate topping.

They put the children to bed shortly after and retired for a nightcap. Both of them were mature Christians, and as they considered together the problems of the Cross, Christine confessed that she�d been trying too hard. Leaning on her own strength, she hadn�t included God in her scheme of things of late. They had a time of prayer together, acknowledging their need for strength and guidance. Once finished, they turned off the lights downstairs and went to bed, checking on the children as they did so. As they lay together, Christine snuggled into her husband�s arms, and secure in his love, drifted off to sleep.