giving it to him, like all gins,’ Wildman sniped.
Though still dazed, Colin felt some sort of strength begin to quietly settle over him. He was young and out of his depth, not yet initiated into his Gija law but he knew he possessed a power far greater than this ignorant kartiya. He knew the truth.
‘When ya talk to other girls,’ he said tonelessly, ‘Mullett was cheeky with lots of ’em. ’E killed my sister. Fisher’s lyin’. You’re the cop, find out.’
Wildman leaned across the table and slapped Fox’s head heavily.
‘You’re a smart arse, kid. You know that? You can spend the night in the cells here and we’ll see what happens tomorrow.’ He rose and left the room.
Caroline Connors, the policewoman said, ‘Are you alright? He had no right to hit you.’
‘You ’ave to be jokin’. Fox laughed at her. ‘You ’eard ’im, I’m black. We don’t have no rights. If you wanna help, speak to Miss Brigitte … the Anglican Mission. You’ll see then.’
By Monday afternoon it was clear that Wildman could not shift the blame from Mullett to Colin for Lucy’s death. Too many things didn’t fit. Mullett’s semen was inside Lucy and bruises on her neck matched his hands and finger spacing. Apart from Fisher’s disparaging comments about Lucy’s alleged behaviour, Wildman had no factual or corroborative evidence of her promiscuity. And if other girls had been victims, they were too intimidated to speak out. Brigitte Murphy would say nothing in support of Colin or anything derogatory about Mullett. And while he wouldn’t openly admit it, Wildman knew Murphy’s position was important and she wanted to keep a lid on things. He would help her do so. Colin had never denied hitting Mullett and was vehement about protecting Lucy. Many within the force were sympathetic towards the boy. Given Lucy’s age and the nature of her injuries prior to death, consent was irrelevant. Wildman had run into a brick wall and could not lay a charge.
On the following Friday, Colin Fox was transferred into the Catholic system and conveyed to Mount Barker, a mission with the harshest of reputations.
CHAPTER 4
1966
At thirteen, Fox stood five feet seven inches tall in a body as lean and hard as whipstick mallee. Daily shovelling shit in the vegetable gardens and stables, baling hay and grooming horses had toughened him. His reputation for gentleness with horses and ability to quieten even the most intractable steed extended well beyond the mission. And, when he could, he was in the mission pool swimming — lap after lap after lap. It was a peaceful and beautiful means of escape. Without any conscious effort and through his own intrinsic qualities, Colin Fox had changed incrementally to become an informal leader.
It had not been so when he arrived. The Brothers had been ruthless. On the first day his head was shaved and his few possessions burned. To all and sundry he was labelled a “white” killer and his little sister a slut. Henceforth, he was to be known only as Fox.
That same afternoon he encountered the viciousness of Brother John, a hulking man with thick black hair. His frequent slandering of Lucy prompted Fox to glare at him and mutter, ‘Ya wrong.’ Brother John had grabbed Fox by the shirtfront and dragged him to the meeting hall where, in no time flat, a “line” was assembled. Sixty boys formed two rows facing each other about a pace apart and, while Fox did not know what was coming, he experienced deep fear. The atmosphere was electric — suppressed excitement, resentment, apprehension and resignation. It swirled around him like a poisonous cloud. Suddenly, with a mighty shove, Brother John sent Fox sprawling into the maw of “the line.” A fury of ugliness erupted as the terrified boy picked himself up and struggled between the two rows of boys — punched, knuckled, slapped, kicked and jeered from both sides. Anyone failing to deliver this treatment was subjected to the same experience. Several times Fox fell, dazed by the blows. Tears flowed, pain mushroomed but not one sound escaped his lips. By the end of the line his nose was bloodied, his teeth chipped, chunks of skin were missing and one eye was rapidly swelling shut. His silence infuriated the Brothers. Afterwards, his dogged determination to seek no help won support from several of the older boys. It was Fox’s second act of defiance in one day.
Two months after arriving at Mount Barker he appeared before the Children’s Court in Perth for stealing the bike he used to reach Lucy. Being his first court appearance, he received a warning. Back at the Mount, he was treated to a whipping for thieving. Brother John delighted in vigorously wielding the belt in the name of Christ. After that, Fox spent a week in the Tower. Four small, barred rooms above the granary were used to imprison boys deemed in need of discipline. There, Fox began dreaming at nights. At first, his dreams were nothing more than images of country presented in striking colours of rich ochre. But gradually, they presented messages. One night he was visited by a powerful ancestor from his mother’s family. By the time he left the Tower he felt able to focus upon achieving right outcomes from any adversity.
Seven months later, Fox attended the Coroner’s Court; this time as a witness regarding Mullett’s death. Mullett’s rape and murder of Lucy was indisputable and the body of evidence fell in Fox’s favour — he had been trying to save his sister. In that respect, the Reverend McManus was at least supportive. Eventually too, Brigitte Murphy broke her silence concerning Mullet’s behaviour towards Lucy and other children at Turkey Creek. No charges would be levelled against Fox.
After this hearing, Fox was deemed wild and uncontrollable and sent to the Tower for three months. This, the Brothers believed, was appropriate given the Court’s failure to exact justice. The truth, more likely, was their abhorrence of his regular incantations for illness to befall Brother John, a practice not unnoticed by the boys. And later, when Brother John experienced a paralysing stroke that halted his delivery of brutal beatings, Fox was regarded as someone special. Brother John’s replacement on the belt, Brother Mark, was much less vitriolic and a mere shadow of the former’s fury.
Over time, the Tower became a place of retreat, growth and nourishment for Fox. It was no longer a place to be feared. He exercised and dreamed expansively and vividly. His dreams revealed knowledge, brought comfort and enabled profound spiritual connection to his Gija family. In the Tower he recalled stories and experiences involving his mother, his country and his family. Slowly he devised and mastered a form of meditation which facilitated his entry to this realm of dreaming at will. Above all, time in the Tower began sharpening his desire for escape.
Over the next two years he worked hard, immersed himself in the available schooling and extended his already proficient use of code-switching (the transfer of linguistic items from one dialect to another). Fox discovered that he was naturally curious and thirsted for knowledge. He learned patience, kept his counsel and scoured the library for stories about the first and second world wars, particularly those of escape. One day he chanced across a battered paperback by Lobsang Rampa called The Third Eye. It contained a phrase that resonated deeply and would become central to his life: “the strong can afford to be gentle, the weak and unsure brag and boast.” Every day he found some way to make the phrase work for him. He despised bullies and befriended the smaller, younger boys set upon by sexual predators at the mission: some of them Brothers, some of them older Aboriginal boys. He talked to the young kids, listened to them, shared their fears, reassured them, told them his story and encouraged them not to lose hope. And never did Fox stop believing he would return home.
Over the months and years at Mount Barker, life became a treadmill of hard labour, privation, prayer and joylessness made bearable only by Fox’s personal quest for survival. The one hypocrisy that always made him laugh was the six monthly welfare inspection. On this day the boys dressed in white shirts, clean trousers and black shoes without socks. Unruly locks were trimmed and every dormitory was neatened and straightened. The day after inspection,
