Highland Fling

by Anna Larner

  It was becoming clear to Eve that, effortlessly and without a hint of arrogance, Moira Burns could likely identify each flower, fern, shrub, and tree that blanketed Newland. Eve felt certain that the landscape of Newland was as familiar to Moira as the face of her dearest friend.

  Eve enthused, “It’s so beautiful here, Moira, really, so beautiful.”

  Moira blushed in response.

  “Refill?” Eve held out her hand for Moira’s mug. The Eddisons’ car could be heard pulling into the drive.

  Moira looked towards the driveway. “Best get back to my beans.” Seeing a fleeting look of disappointment on Eve’s face, Moira added, “I’m leading a walk tomorrow afternoon, if you, and your family, of course, want to join in. It’s just through the woods. It starts at two, if you can make it, that is.”

  “What starts at two?” Henry stood smiling broadly at Moira.

  Moira held out her hand. “Hello again, Mr. Eddison.”

  Henry shook Moira’s hand firmly. “Henry, please. Thank you for your hospitality yesterday. Much appreciated by all. So, what’s happening at two tomorrow?”

  Eve said, smiling admiringly at Moira, “Moira’s leading a woodland walk.”

  “Yes, from the centre,” Moira said, smiling back at Eve. “Just sturdy shoes will be fine. Unless, of course, it rains, then walking boots would be better.” Moira looked at Henry’s sandals.

  “Well, that sounds great—count me in.” Henry beamed at Moira.

  “Great, well, I’ll see you then.” Moira turned to Eve, and said softly, “Thank you for the tea and the chat.”

  Eve blushed. “See you tomorrow.”

  Chapter Five

  Eve arrived fifteen minutes late for the woodland tour. She had missed the introductory talk, which had helpfully included orientation, and caught up with the group at a collection of wooden totem poles. Eve stood partially hidden behind the small gathering of two couples, listening to Moira’s instructions.

  “The wildlife here in Newland is quite used to us humans.” Moira addressed her walking group with a relaxed, open, and confident demeanour. “That said, remember to take care to stay on the designated paths as we walk. We will stop regularly to take a break. Ask any questions that occur to you as we go along.”

  One couple, German and well suited to the outdoors, had explained at the start that they could sadly only stay with the tour for a short while, as they were completing the West Highland Way to Inverness. The other couple, young, from Surrey and on their honeymoon, kept looking furtively for lovemaking spots. The group soon lost them by a grassy mound.

  “Right, shall we carry on?” Moira cast her eye over her walking group, her gaze briefly resting on Eve.

  Eve felt herself blush and raised her hand to wave hello.

  Moira simply looked away without acknowledging their brief exchange.

  Eve looked quickly down. She felt mortified and leapt to the conclusion that Moira had only invited her on the walk to be polite. Just the sight of her had obviously made Moira instantly regret her offer.

  “Are these willows?” The German husband squinted into the canopy above.

  Moira nodded. “Yes, that’s right, Otto, these willows are part of our diversity plan, along with the Scotch pine and downy birch.” Moira then pointed to the forest floor. “The brash piles between the trees provide excellent habitats for invertebrates.”

  Moira’s voice was smooth and lyrical. Eve could have listened to her all day.

  “Everything is really vibrant,” Eve chipped in, “really green, almost fluorescent.”

  “Yes. I agree with that statement.” Otto’s wife, Gertrud, held Eve’s forearm tightly, in a gesture of physical and intellectual togetherness. “Nourishing. Yes, it’s all very nourishing.”

  Moira made no comment as she guided the group further into the woods.

  Eve pulled up the hood of her raincoat, stuffed her hands into her pockets, and gave a sharp sniff. She regretted talking so much yesterday, certain that Moira was thinking, Better not encourage that loon to start talking—never shut her up.

  Looking up into the trees, Moira pointed above her. “You will see that we have been working hard to thin out the denser pinewood, to allow more light onto the forest floor. We have already seen that this method is producing a better diversity and quality of forest flora.”

  Eve tipped her head back and squinted into the canopy of soft hazy green. The sunlight shone through the trees, dissolving their definition, breaking them down into shining, intense colour. Eve held her hand over her eyes, shielding them from the sunlight, and watched as the space between her fingers glowed orange.

  The sting of Moira’s rejection smarted in her chest. Eve closed her eyes, the impression of the trees imprinted on her closed lids, and for the briefest of moments she was sixteen again, zipped up in a sleeping bag, blinking into a bright light, and trying her best not to care.

  “No—not yet, Evie Eds. Okay, I’m dressed. You can look now.”

  Eve dropped her hands from her face and looked straight into the blinding light of Roxanne’s torch.

  “You’re sooo easy to play pranks on, Evie.” Roxanne tucked herself into her sleeping bag as Eve blinked until her vision became less green.

  “You’re sooo dead.” Eve shoved her pillow onto Roxanne’s face, smothering her briefly. She stopped, let Roxanne take a breath, and then smothered her again before she could speak. Eve could hear a muffled sorry through the cotton and feathers. “What’s that? I can’t hear you.” Eve removed the pillow and grinned mischievously at her best mate.

  “Sorry.” Roxanne spat out a feather with her words.

  Eve lay on her back in her sleeping bag, looking up into the triangles of stitched canvas. The tent roof, propped perilously off the groundsheet with large sticks, still with the odd leaf attached, was, well, more droop than roof.

  Eve mumbled apologetically, “Sorry I forgot the tent poles.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “I thought Mr. Pugh was going to burst something. Did you see that vein on his temple throbbing?” Eve attempted to deepen her voice, sounding less like Mr. Pugh and more like Scooby-Doo. “Eve Eddison. You are sixteen. How on earth are you going to get through life, let alone through your Duke of Edinburgh? I mean, that’s not very encouraging is it?”

  Roxanne said, matter-of-factly, “He’s a prick.”

  “Not a fan of pricks then?” Eve giggled, pulling her sleeping bag up under her chin.

  Roxanne said flatly, “No.”

  Eve rolled on her side, to face Roxanne. “I’m now lying on the zip. Yeah, I’m not very keen on camp—”

  “I like girls. Not boys. Girls.” Roxanne turned her head to Eve, who gave a short series of blinks in reply. “It’s okay, you’re quite safe. I don’t fancy you. I mean, God, no.” Eve blinked again. “Look, just forget about it. I’m knackered. Goodnight.” Roxanne turned over, away from Eve.

  Eve lay on her back looking at the silhouette of branches casting their eerie shadow on the canvas roof. She flicked the torch off. Why wouldn’t you fancy me? I mean—what’s wrong with me?

  “Shall we?” Moira pointed to a series of small steps which meandered down a slope dotted with clusters of clover.

  Eve blinked into Moira’s smiling eyes. She pulled down her hood and looked around, feeling slightly startled, like a person woken suddenly from sleep.

  “It’s just us,” Moira said, gently. “I’m afraid we’ve lost our walking companions. And it seems we lost a few before we began.”

  Confused, Eve said, “I’m not sure, you see I missed the beginning of your talk and then—”

  Moira clarified, “Your family?”

  “Oh, yeah. Esther was ill in the night. Dodgy sausage. We had a barbecue last night. We may have overdone it with the firelighters. Everything was overdone before it was done.” Eve shrugged.

  Moira nodded, biting her lip, no doubt to stop herself from laughing. Eve wondered whether Moira had seen the billowin
g barbecue smoke from her croft.

  “So, well, my parents have stayed with her.” Eve folded and unfolded her arms as she spoke, before settling on shoving her hands in her pockets.

  “Right. Well I hope Esther feels better soon. Have you enjoyed this afternoon?” Moira asked, with an uncertain tone.

  Eve had found being ignored by Moira anything but enjoyable. Eve said cheerily, “Yeah, great. Thanks.”

  “I would normally carry on my tour for a bit longer but as it’s just us you probably want to go home.” Moira dropped her rucksack from her shoulders. She bent down, reaching for her water bottle.

  Eve watched as Moira took a long drink. Her gaze fell to Moira’s lips pressed tightly against the rim of the bottle, then to her throat, her neck, the curls of her hair brushing against her collar. Eve’s eyes trespassed their way down to Moira’s shirt, her buttons stretching the cotton against her chest.

  “I don’t mind. I mean whatever you…whatever you…think.” Eve knew she was talking, just not what she was saying.

  Eve looked up from Moira’s chest straight into Moira’s quizzical expression. Oh my God, caught looking at her boobs. Eve quickly looked at her boots.

  Moira asked, “No wellies today then?”

  “Nope. I borrowed these boots from Esther. They’re a bit big. I’m wearing two pairs of socks.”

  Eve bent down to show Moira as if showing her would be the only way Moira would believe her. When Eve glanced up, she saw that Moira quickly looked away down the path to watch the German couple disappear into the distance.

  “I think it’s best if I walk you to the main road, Eve, and then it will be easier for you to make your way back home.”

  “Great, thanks, Moira.” Eve felt her heart sink with disappointment.

  The path to the main road was just wide enough for two people to walk side by side, and every now and then, Moira and Eve would rub shoulders to avoid a rock or tree trunk. When this happened, Eve felt Moira’s body intensely. Eve could not tell whether Moira felt this too—she appeared to be focused on the path ahead.

  The air was heady, sweet, intoxicating almost. Now and then, Moira would comment on a flower, or mention an interesting fact.

  “I love that you know so much about the natural world,” Eve said.

  Moira shrugged. “You get to know over the years.”

  “You’ve lived in Newland long?”

  “Born and bred. I studied horticulture in Ayrshire for a few years and then lived and taught in Inverness in my twenties, but really I’m happiest when I’m here.”

  “Yeah, I bet.” As Eve said this, she was looking around her, at the trees, the glimpses of views of distant hills, and the mountains. “The air’s so sweet, so fresh.” Eve caught a smell of coconut again. “This is going to sound odd, but now and then, I can smell, I don’t know, coconut?”

  Moira pointed to a yellow spiky bush. “Gorse flower.”

  Eve walked over to the bush and breathed in the familiar fragrance. “Wow, that’s so cool—weird, but cool.”

  “And this?” Moira reached into her coat pocket and held out a thin branch with delicate yellow flowers.

  Tentatively, Eve leant forward and half recognized the smell. “Okay. I know it, let me think.”

  Moira watched Eve frown.

  “Leave it with me,” Eve said, with a nod. “I shan’t be beaten. Challenge on.” Eve took the flower from Moira and tucked it into her pocket. “I really like cut flowers. I buy them from our local market in the city. I love tulips—yellow ones are my favourite, although they’ve got such a short life. I put a two pence piece in the water, it seems to make them last longer but…”

  Moira watched Eve as she walked beside her, happily chatting, turning now and then to Moira and smiling. It seemed as if Eve brought with her warmth and light, thawing the coldness, banishing the darkness by her presence.

  “Yeah, I’m not keen on carnations. I mean they last like weirdly ages but I don’t know. The Queen hates them apparently so, well, enough said. So yeah. Do you have a favourite flower?”

  Moira tilted her head in thought. “I suppose the flowers remind me of the seasons. I find I notice the first snowdrops and I like to see the bluebells in the woods.”

  “I bet it’s really beautiful here all year round.” Eve stopped to look into the woodland, staring silently into the many shades of sun-misted green.

  Speaking towards the woods, Moira said, “It constantly changes. I don’t think, even after all these years, I’ve seen the same view from one hour to another.”

  “Yeah, I can see that. Oh, my lace. I’ll just…there.” Eve sat down to tie her bootlace. Immediately, she spotted an ant scooting across her shoe. “Oh my God, ant.” She flicked it away.

  “Eve, you need to stand up,” Moira said, with an urgent tone.

  “I’m sorry?”

  Moira grabbed Eve’s arms and pulled her up.

  Moira saw that Eve was blushing. She felt Eve’s hands at the sides of her shirt as Eve steadied herself. She could feel Eve’s body pressing against her. She struggled to find her breath with the intense sensation that rushed through her body in response.

  “Eve”—Moira swallowed hard—“you appear to have disturbed a termite nest.”

  Moira might just as well have said, There’s a bomb strapped to your trousers, given the speed at which Eve, having spotted a rash of ants at her crotch, took her trousers down.

  “Really? I’m not at all keen on ants, or for that matter anything that wriggles, you know spiders, snakes, and things.”

  Moira bent down to untie Eve’s laces.

  With one hand resting on Moira’s shoulder for balance and the other wrestling with her boots, Eve managed to wriggle out of her jeans. She shook them frantically.

  “Is that all of them?” Eve was spinning around and desperately looking over her shoulder. “Please tell me it is!”

  Moira slowly turned Eve around. “Yes, all gone.”

  Without warning, Eve dumped her rucksack on the floor and lifted her raincoat, revealing her shirt, and then bare torso. Moira wasn’t sure where to look.

  Eve gasped. “Really? It feels like they’re all over me.”

  With a reassuring tone, Moira said, “No, they’re all gone, don’t worry.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Moira nodded and smiled.

  “Thank you.” Eve looked down.

  Moira rested her hand on Eve’s right shoulder, as she asked, tenderly, “Did you want to put your trousers back on?”

  “Hmm?” Eve looked into Moira’s eyes.

  “Your trousers—did you want to put them on, before you get a chill?”

  But before Eve had a chance to react or reply, Angus McAlister appeared over the horizon of the path ahead, waving his walking stick in the air to announce his arrival. “Good afternoon, ladies.”

  Moira panicked, exposed by his sudden presence. Her heart raced and she quickly stepped away from Eve.

  “Everything okay?” Angus was clearly trying not to look at Eve, who was scrambling back into her jeans.

  “I sat on ants.” Eve pointed towards the log seat. “Thank God, Moira rescued me. Hello. I’m Eve Eddison. I’m on holiday. Here. In Newland. I’m on Moira’s woodland tour.”

  “Oh, I see. Hello, Eve. I’m Angus McAlister. I’m from here. Newland, that is.”

  To compose herself, Moira went over to the log bench and closely inspected the infestation, lifting leaves and twigs around the log. “I’ll need to spray the area, best do it now. I’ll collect some solution from the centre. The log will need to be removed for burning.”

  “I’ll give you a lift to the centre—I’ve borrowed Margaret’s ride. In fact, I can give you a hand.” Angus nodded towards a wooded path.

  Moira looked at Eve, who, every now and then, suddenly startled and slapped a part of her body. She couldn’t help but smile.

  “Can we drop Eve off on our way back here?” Moira gestured her chin towards a patientl
y waiting Eve.

  “No, it’s okay. I can make my own way home. Yes, I think it’s that way to the main road?” Eve looked at Moira for confirmation.

  The main road was in the opposite direction. “Yes, that’s one way out, Eve, although perhaps you’d like to come with Angus and me.”

  “Well, yes, if you’re sure.” Eve smiled broadly at Moira.

  “Right. Follow me.” Angus saluted in the direction of a path that led out to a clearing. “Here we are. Now, where did I put the keys?”

  “This isn’t yours?” Eve stared at the red Land Rover in front of them.

  Moira looked quizzically at Eve. “Mine? No, it belongs to Margaret, my neighbour a few doors down. Well, it’s her late husband’s. She lends it out to the centre now and then.”

  “Right,” Eve said, somewhat forlornly.

  Moira wasn’t sure why Eve seemed so disappointed.

  *

  The road Angus took that led to the centre was less of a road and more of a woodland track. Where by rights there should have been tarmac, there were fallen pine branches, ferns, and flora. Where there should have been road signs there were bird boxes and what Eve deduced were education symbols. Every now and then the sun would haze its way through the woodland canopy illuminating the route and the trackside flowers that guided them. It was the most beautiful road Eve had ever driven on.

  “So, how was your first Land Rover experience?” Moira held the door for Eve as she clambered down, on their arrival at the centre.

  “How do you know it was my first?” Eve smiled.

  “Ah, just guessing.”

  Eve suspected that not much guesswork had been required, as every time Angus had driven over anything a normal car couldn’t cope with, she had gripped the dashboard with both hands.

  Angus jumped down from the vehicle and disappeared into an adjacent shed. Eve followed Moira into the centre.

  “Hello, Moira. Is that Angus? I was just shutting up. I wasn’t entirely sure what your plans were,” Alice said, looking at Eve.