Chapter 12
Jamie
The snow’s made moving the herd difficult. It’s falling so fast I’ve had to move quickly. I could have left them there. There’s plenty of dead grass and forbs sticking up from the ground that they can nose away with their muzzles and eat, but I can’t afford to take the risk.
I guide them from the glen on foot, as I always have. The bad weather makes my vision blurred, but the fold moves easily from the high ground to where they will be much safer in the lower field. I check the water trough hasn’t frozen over before I leave. Satisfied they’re safe, I bolt the gate and head off down the track to one of the sheds that holds the hay.
I’m busy stacking the bales when Callum comes rushing in.
“Hey, bro,” I say, “I’m glad you’re back.” I hurry over and slap his shoulder. “’Tis guid to see ye. Did Maddie tell ye granda’s stable and the staff seem hopeful he’ll recover?”
I notice Callum’s hands are pushed deep inside his pockets and his mood is subdued.
“Hey, dinnae worry yir head. Ye can visit him anytime ye like.”
Callum opens his mouth just as Ally rushes in behind him. “I can’t find her any— Oh, Jamie. I didn’t realise you were back.”
My shoulders tense at the sight of her. “What are ye doing here?” I hiss.
“Ease off, bro,” Callum says, standing there with his hands now outstretched in a gesture of supplication. “Let’s calm down and I’ll explain.”
I pick up a pitchfork and head back towards the hay. “I’m not interested in anything ye have to say if it involves Ally.”
I hear Callum let out a sigh. “Jamie, I need you to listen to me. Maddie’s missing.”
I spin around and glare at him. “What are ye talkin’ about?”
Callum licks his lips.
“Maddie overheard me and Ally talking things over earlier and everything got out of hand.”
I feel my eyes narrow.
“What kind of things?”
I watch Callum closely as he struggles to swallow. “I don’t have time to explain, but I need you to know that Maddie found out that Ally and I…that we…”
I turn away, to stab the pitchfork into a bale of hay, little strands of gold falling to the floor.
“That you’re having an affair?” and my anger rises.
“No, well, not exactly.”
I throw the pitchfork to the floor and swing around to face him. “What then?”
Ally pushes her way towards me, her eyes wide, defiant.
“It’s time you also knew the truth. We have a child together, a son.”
I let out a bark of laughter. “Nice try. Quit foolin’ around.”
“It’s no joke,” she snaps, turning towards Callum. “Go on; tell him.”
I stare at my brother, a slight smirk resting upon my lips.
“She’s right,” he says, his eyes dark with shame. “Ally fell pregnant just months before I became infertile.”
My smile slides off my face. “And ye ne’er told Maddie any of this?”
He shakes his head. “No. How could I tell her something that would break her heart?”
I struggle to find the right words. “You’re an arsehole,” I eventually hiss. “All that talk about nae willing to adopt for Maddie’s sake. Aye, now I ken why.”
“I’m sorry I deceived you,” Callum whispers. “I wouldn’t have done it if I’d realised Ally was going to force my hand.”
“What are ye saying?”
Ally links her arm through Callum’s.
“I told him it’s time he came home to his son,” Ally states, flatly. “Isaac needs him more than Maddie does.”
Anger bubbles in my throat. “I see. So ye got yourself a job here, close to his family, and just waited for the right moment to destroy his marriage?”
“Don’t make me out to be the bad guy. I just want my child to grow up knowing his father.”
“Does Maddie know about Isaac?”
Callum nods. “Yes, she does now, and as soon as she found out, she ran off. We’ve looked everywhere, but she’s vanished.”
“Everywhere?”
“Pretty much. We’ve searched the whole farm, and most of the outbuildings, but there’s no sign of her. When she left, I tried to chase after her, but she seemed to disappear into thin air. I rushed to the main house, thinking she’d be there, then, when she wasn’t, I went back and tried to follow her tracks. But the snow’s falling so fast they’re gone in a matter of seconds.”
“Aye, well, it’s eased off for now.”
“That may be true, but that doesn’t help us.”
“Where were she headin’ when ye saw her last?”
“Towards the farmhouse.”
“And you’re certain she isnae there?”
Callum’s stare is one of anguish. “Yes; I checked upstairs and down. And she’s not in the garden house, either.”
“How long has she been missin’?”
“No more than thirty minutes tops, I’d say.”
“Then I think I ken where she’s gone.” I zip up my coat. “If I’m not back within the hour, get the Search and Rescue team out.”
“I’ll come with you.” Callum says.
I shake my head. “Nah, I move faster on my own, thanks.”
I shove a hand inside my coat and pull out a thick woollen hat, then rush out of the shed, leaving Ally and Callum standing there. Once in the farmhouse, I grab a rucksack from behind the door, one filled with medical supplies, a reflective heat blanket, maps, and flares. I delve inside to find a headband with a torch attached to it and put it over my hat, then hurry into the kitchen, where I grab a bowl and fill it with water. I bring it to the boil in the microwave and use some of it to fill a hot water bottle, making coffee for a metal flask with the rest.
Once outside, a security light flashes on, illuminating my way as I dash over to the gate, the pack already on my back. When I switch on the torch, the ground opens up in front of me and I jog down the track, scanning for any signs of movement. Inside, I’m afraid. It’s freezing out here and Maddie won’t last long, not if I don’t find her soon. But Callum was right: the blowing snow has certainly filled in her tracks.
I keep going until I reach the woodland, where the trees seem to bend together as though they’re whispering terrible secrets to one another. The wind blows gently through the trees, and as my head-light shines ahead, I see two small globes of white. For a split second I think I’ve found Maddie, but a back arches like a cat and the thing jerks its head, tearing at something small with its teeth. There’s blood on its muzzle, dripping onto the ground.
“Shoo,” I cry at the red fox. It glares at me for my unexpected intrusion, let’s out a high rasping bark and scurries away into the darkness. With my torch’s pool of light on the blood-stained snow, I make my way over. There, I find what’s left of the carcass of a baby rabbit, and a sigh escapes me as I continue my search.
“Maddie, where are ye, lassie?” I cry out, but only the fox’s solitary bark is returned.
I hunt for any obvious signs Maddie may have passed this way, like broken twigs or a tatter of her clothing, something she may have dropped or been caught on a sharp branch, but my despair grows with every step I take. No matter how hard I scour the ground and the foliage, it all appears undisturbed.
But then I hear a noise, a moan in the bushes, and I quickly dive further into the trees.
“Maddie, I’ve heard what’s happened. Come home and we’ll talk about it more there,” and now I’m creeping through the darkness, careful where I tread. I’m off the beaten track, but I know every inch of woodland for miles around, so when I come across a strange bulge in the ground, I’m quick to investigate. It’s covered in a light smattering of snow, but I can see blond hair there, streaked with dried blood.
“Maddie!” I cry in horror and dive onto my knees, snow flicking into my face. I wipe it away with a gloved hand before reaching out and gently turning her over, her face revealed in the light of the torch. I catch my breath. There’s a cut across her forehead, but I’m damned if I can tell how bad it is.
I press my ear to her lips, around which her skin is like blue glass, but am relieved to hear her breathing. Taking off and ripping open the bag, I take out the thermal blanket and quickly wrap it around her, pressing the hot water bottle in between her coat and thin blouse.
“Maddie, wake up,” I beg, shaking her roughly. There’s a noise from her, a low groan, and she slowly opens her eyes.
“Jamie,” she whispers. “Am I dead?”
“Nah. Not today, lassie. Not on my watch.”
She lifts her fingers to my face and gently strokes my cheek. A single tear trickles down her pale face.
“Did he tell you he has a child with Ally?” she rasps.
“Aye, that he did, and I also told him what I thought of him.”
Her hand drops, then she gives a weak smile. “I knew I could count on you.”
Once again, I reach inside the rucksack, but this time I take out the coffee.
“Here, sit up and drink this,” I urge, and Maddie coughs and splutters when the hot liquid hits the back of her throat.
“Are ye able to stand?” I ask, and Maddie nods.
“Yes, I think so.”
“Guid. Now we need to get ye checked over at the hospital.”
“No. Take me back to the house.”
“Nah, I cannae do that. Ye need medical attention.”
“I’m fine; just take me home, please.”
I’m torn, but it’s her call. She’s coherent and I can see the colour coming back to her cheeks.
“All right, but if I see any signs of hypothermia or frost bite, you’re going straight to A&E.”
I help her to her feet and she clutches the blanket closer. All I want is to keep her safe. I guide her through the trees: a slow process, the torch not giving much light for two.
“How did ye end up off the trail?” I ask.
“I thought Callum was chasing me so I tried to hide. What about you?”
“I saw something moving in the shadows, probably a deer, but I wasnae takin’ any chances.”
We eventually reach the path and she stumbles. I grab her tighter.
“You’re weak from yir ordeal,” I say, and when she lets out a whimper, I bend slightly and sweep her off her feet and into my arms.
“Thanks for saving me from myself,” she whispers into my ear.
I pull her closer. “Perhaps I was saving ye for myself.”
She snuggles into my chest as I head back to the farm. Maddie’s as light as a feather and easy to carry, the snow my only hinderance, but she’s shivering from the cold. The farm soon looms ahead in the darkness, and when the security light flashes on, Callum comes rushing out and towards us. I’m relieved to see Ally is nowhere in sight.
Callum opens the gate. “Thank God you’ve found her,” he says. “Is she okay?”
“What do you think?” I snap and head straight for the main house, pushing the front door wide open with the tip of my boot and hurrying through to the kitchen. There’s a small fire now burning in the hearth and I place her gently in one of the fireside chairs. Callum’s swift to follow.
“Run her a bath, not too hot, and then find her some warm clothes,” I instruct.
“Anything in particular?”
“Aye, woolly socks and anything thermal.”
Callum nods then heads upstairs as I take off Maddie’s boots and pull off her socks. I hear the abrupt gush of water coming from the bathroom as I feel Maddie’s feet; they’re as cold as ice. Then, when I’m filling the washing up bowl from the sink with lukewarm water, the sound of the bath filling stops and Callum’s boots clatter down the stairs. The front door bangs shut as he dashes off to find suitable clothes from the cottage.
She’s staring right at me when I come to place her feet inside the bowl. She closes her eyes and sighs as my fingers massage life back into her toes and the soles of her feet.
“You don’t have to do all this,” she says, “but it sure feels good.” I get up and put the kettle on, soon making two mugs of steaming hot tea before grabbing a bar of chocolate from the fridge.
“Eat this; it’ll give ye energy,” I say.
She opens her eyes and reaches out for the Galaxy bar. “I’d have to be dead to ever turn down chocolate,” she says with a smile.
I’m relieved to find her in such good spirits. There’s no serious signs of hypothermia and her shivering has ceased. A few more minutes lying unconscious in such extreme conditions and it could have been a different story. I next clean the blood from the wound on her forehead to find it’s superficial. I shake my head in amazement, she’s one lucky lady.
The front door opens and Callum enters the kitchen.
“I’ve brought what I could find,” he says as he lays the clothes neatly onto the kitchen table. “There’s a set of thick PJ’s and a dressing gown. And I’ve brought a pair of hiking socks that are double-knit.”
I glance at Maddie who’s now wearing a grave expression.
Callum goes over and places a hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t touch me,” she hisses and shrugs his hand away.
Callum looks startled. “Maddie, please. I understand you’re upset.”
“Just leave me alone,” and she stares into the fire. “What you’ve done is unforgivable.”
“Please, don’t say anything rash. Let’s talk this through.”
Slowly, she turns in the chair, her eyes dark and serious. “There’s nothing to say. You’re five years too late.”
Callum grimaces, his chin dipping towards the floor.
“I tried, really I did,” he whispers.
Maddie shakes her head. “Don’t stand there and lie. You had ample opportunity to tell me about your son. If you’d just told me from the very beginning, it wouldn’t have been a big deal. But no; you didn’t want your perfect life to have a blemish, did you? I bet you didn’t even want him until you realised Isaac would be the only child you’d ever father.”
A flush creeps across Callum’s cheeks, and Maddie looks away. “You should be ashamed of yourself. You’ve betrayed us all.”
I stare at my brother, his eyes now shining like glass. His Adam’s apple bobs up and down as he tries to speak. “I’ll go and pack the rest of my things, then,” he finally manages. “There’s a hotel just down the road. I’ll stay there for the time being.”
Maddie continues to stare into the flames. “Why? Isn’t Ally accommodating you anymore?”
The silence that follows is deafening. Only the fire crackles with life as Callum turns and walks away.
The front door bangs shut and Maddie bursts into tears.
I reach out to comfort her, my arms pulling her close, and she wraps her own around my neck.
“It’ll be okay,” I sooth, and as she lifts her head, I wipe the tears from her cheek. I stare into her eyes. Even upset she’s still beautiful. My breath catches in my throat, then a desperate need wells up in my chest, threatening to overwhelm me. This woman is all I want, right down to the bones of my soul.
I hold her gaze as her dark lashes flicker, and to my surprise, she leans forwards and her mouth crushes against mine. I shudder with delight when I feel her cool lips upon mine, a sudden and intimate gesture that sparks a jolt of desire. I can’t help myself; I pull her closer and we both rise. The ferocity of her kiss is overwhelming; hard, passionate, yet controlled. I lift her up into my arms, crushing her body against mine and the blanket falls away. I carry her up the stairs and into the bathroom. The room is hot and steamy, and I place her feet gently onto the floor, but then she’s taking off my jacket and unbuttoning my shirt.
I grab her hand and hold it tight. “Are ye sure ye wannae do this?” I barely breathe.
She looks up into my eyes and sweeps her finger across my brow then down my cheek.
“Yes. I am,” she whispers.