Mike Dixon

scopes at night because they are warm-blooded but cold-
blooded animals, like turtles, are at ambient temperature so
they merge with their surroundings. It all sounded crap to
Noelene but she wasn‟t going to argue. The shell was protecting
her from the elements.
Lightning lit the scene. She could see the big man, standing
in ankle-deep water, making no attempt to hide. Janet
said he was trying to draw fire and get them to reveal their
position. They‟d already taken a couple of shots at him and
she wasn‟t prepared to risk another.
„Do crocs show up in infrared?‟ she asked.
‘Why?‟
„Because our mate, over there, is standing near a croc
nest.‟
„Are you sure?‟
„Yeah. It‟s one Daryl has been trying to raid for eggs but
the big bull always sees him off.‟
Janet thought for a while before replying.
„Crocs are cold-blooded. So they take the same temperature
as their surroundings – just like turtles. That means
they shouldn‟t stand out in infrared.‟ She started to giggle.
„With any luck he‟ll trip over big daddy and get eaten.‟
Noelene sank back laughing.
„That‟s what should happen to all bloody males that give
trouble – they should get eaten by crocs.‟
„Or, they should fall into a bloody great toilet and get
flushed away,‟ Janet added. „When I was a kid I had this
dream about my brother, Alan. Night after night I dreamt
he‟d fallen in and I‟d sneaked up and pulled the chain on
him.‟
Their giggles were interrupted by a role of thunder and
brilliant flashes. Noelene grabbed the turtle shell and peered
out over the mudflat. The wind blew in her face and a hail of
debris struck against the shell. The big man was fighting to