by Payton Hart
Highland
Whisper
Payton Hart
Copyright 2015 by Payton Hart - All rights reserved.
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CHAPTER 1
His feet were sore. He could feel a bruise forming on his heel and a thick callus forming on the pad of his foot. His legs felt numb and shaky as if he might collapse at any moment. He shoulders and head felt heavy and his hips were making a funny clicking noise. He pushed on.
Gavin was lost again. It was not unusual for him to be lost, but today was a particularly bad day. He was supposed to have been back by now because today was the day that his father was selling one of the cows. They needed the money. He looked to the right and saw nothing but hills. The left was not much different.
“Are you lost?” A sweet voice called out from behind a haze of fog. Gavin didn’t want to admit that he was lost. “No,” he called back, “I know where I’m going. I just want to take a break.” There was no answer.
And then she appeared. She had fair skin, beautiful green eyes and long black hair. She had thin wrists and frail arms but something about her seemed strong and steady. She smiled a little half smile and walked closer. She wore extravagant clothing in rich plum and ruby red, but her expression was simple and sweet.
“Do you often make it a habit to take a break this early in the day?” She asked him, jokingly. “I’m Malina.” She smiled that little half smile again and Gavin felt his heart leap out of his chest.
It was a moment he had never forgotten. Gavin had not been born into a family of wealth and he had spent most of his life working in the Highlands taking care of his family’s cattle. He had never dreamed of another life, of an escape to a new future…that is, until he met Malina. Malina had changed everything.
“Don’t move, you.” Gavin chided one of his cows. He would call out to them affectionately as they walked through the highlands and though he would not admit it, Gavin felt a connection to these creatures that he did not feel with other people. The cows communicated in a simple way without all of the excessive flattery and syllables that people used.
Last month Gavin’s father had said that it was time for him to set off on his own, that he had been plenty of help. Gavin knew what that meant. It meant finding someone to marry and have children with. It also meant taking over the cattle full-time, as Gavin’s father was ill. The problem with this mandate was that Gavin had eyes for only one girl. A sweet, sly smiling girl he met on the moors at the tender age of sixteen. Still at thirty, he could not forget her.
“Where do you live?” Malina inquired. Gavin nearly forgot where he lived as he tried to stammer out words.
“I live in the moors. Here, in the moors.” That was all he said. He did not understand this strange spell that Malina had him under but he knew that he wanted to be with her, protect her, provide for her, and be with her always. Her green eyes lit up with curiosity.
“Do you tend the cattle all day?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Can I pet one?”
Gavin decided that this girl was different from the other girls he knew and maybe that was why he liked her. H then showed Malina how to gently pet the cow without startling it and he watched as she showered it with affection just as he always did.
Gavin was a handsome man with broad shoulders, brown curled hair and bright blue eyes. He had defined muscles and very little body fat from his life tending to the cattle. He was tall at 6’3” and he was kind to everyone who lived in his village. There was no shortage of women who were interested in him and tried to get his attention only to find that Gavin wasn’t really paying attention. Gavin wanted one girl and one girl only.
When his father told Gavin that it was time to move on, he immediately thought of how he might find Malina after all this time. He had thought of her every day for the past fourteen years and he desperately wanted to see her again. He knew that she lived in a different part of the world; a wealthy, extravagant kingdom whirlwind of a world. He didn’t know whether or not she would even want to go with him or if her parents would let her. He knew she was not royalty, but pretty darn close and as a man of the highlands, Gavin would not be seen as worthy of her hand in marriage.
Worse yet, he wondered if she would even remember him. The two had spent the rest of the day together but then they had gone their separate ways. It was so long ago. Gavin thought she might have found someone else, she might have fallen in love with another man. Gavin thought about his predicament. He couldn’t forget her but he didn’t know how to find her or if he could even find her. He decided it didn’t matter and made plans to set off to find her.
“Father, I’m going to be unable to tend to the cattle for a couple of days.” Gavin’s father only stared. He had been in bed for months and he did not know who would take care of the cattle if his son could not.
“Why son, you know that I cannot take care of them in my current condition. Your mother is too busy to watch over them with my absence. I don’t know who would take care of them if you cannot.” Gavin felt as though the blood was being rushed out of his body and his bones were splintering. He felt stuck, but he had to try to find her.
“Never mind, father, I apologize.” Gavin left the room and desp
erately tried to think of a way to care for the cattle while searching for Malina. He could not get her out of his mind and he couldn’t just let her go. Despite racking his brain for what felt like days (truly only hours), he couldn’t think of anything. So Gavin decided to take the cattle with him.
To prepare for his journey, Gavin found a large sack that had been sewn together by his mother. It was strong and sturdy with plenty of room for food and cattle supplies. He went into the kitchen and took loaves of bread out and placed them into his sack one by one. Gavin looked for firewood and added it. He would travel light but he would make it. He left one cow behind for his mother to use.
“Marcus, are you in there?” Gavin called out. Marcus was Gavin’s best friend and had been his only friend for most of his youth. As a shy boy, Gavin had mostly kept to himself until Marcus started following him and asking him questions about his life. Marcus was the opposite of Gavin in almost every way with his talkative loud voice and his robust laugh. Marcus had a great sense of humor and spent all day trying to use it with his friends, with endless numbers of ladies and with his family. Marcus was also clumsy, lanky and somewhat weak although what he lacked in might he made up for in speed. Marcus had always been the fastest kid in the highlands.
“Marcus?” Gavin called out again. It was important that he spoke with Marcus before he left. As anxious as he was to leave, Gavin knew that he needed someone to watch over his mother and his father while he was gone. He also needed someone to care for the single cow that he would leave with his mother. She was more than capable of taking care of the cow by herself, but she had so many other things to do. Gavin didn’t want to burden her.
“Marcus? It’s really important. Where are you?”
“Why didn’t you just say so?” Marcus called out as he jumped down from the roof.
“What are you—“
“Don’t be worried. Nothing to be worried about. Just having a climb.”
“A climb on the roof?”
“Of course.” Marcus grinned. “So what is new with you? What do you need?”
Gavin hesitated.
“Oh, spit it out,” Marcus said encouragingly.
“I have to leave the highlands for a little while and I need to leave a cow behind with my mother. Can you tend to it?” Gavin looked at Marcus eagerly, waiting for his response. Marcus didn’t lose a beat.
“Of course I can do that. Where are you headed to?”
Gavin hesitated again. Should he tell Marcus? Would Marcus understand why he needed to travel so far to find a girl that he barely knew and met sixteen years ago? He didn’t think so. As much as he loved Marcus, he was much more superficial when it came to women and he had never fallen in love with anyone in the way that Gavin had with Malina. Even her name sounded so beautiful to him. He liked to whisper it to himself sometimes just to hear the way it sounded and feel the tip of his tongue touch his teeth as he said it.
“Gavin, you have to tell me why you need me. I’m happy to do it but now I’m so curious. I have to know. You’re going off on an adventure without me and you won’t even tell me where or why?” Marcus grinned mischievously. He knew he would crack. It was only a matter of time.
“I’m off to find someone Marcus.”
“Oh no. Who would you want to find? Did Old Drummond get lost again?”
“No. It’s not him.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s this girl, Marcus.”
“No way.” Marcus started to laugh. “A girl?”
“It’s not funny Marcus. I want to marry this girl.” Marcus froze, his face contorted in to a look of pure confusion.
“You want to marry her as in live with her forever and have children and build your own home and then –“
“Yes. I want all of that with her. With Malina.”
“Oh no,” Marcus responded. “Malina? The girl that you met when we were teenagers? For one day? Gavin, you don’t even know that girl. You can’t just marry her.” Marcus did not understand what had come over his friend. What was this?
“I have to marry her. She is the only person that I want to marry.” Gavin looked at Marcus with pure determination. The more he thought of finally finding Malina, the more he thought about finally being with her and how much he wanted to be married to her. It could not be anyone else. Malina was the one for him. Marcus saw the look in Gavin’s eye and the way his expression melted when he spoke about her.
For the first time Marcus hesitated before asking, “Gavin, what if she doesn’t want to marry you?”
“Hold your hand out,” Gavin told Malina. Let the cow lick it first if it wants to do that. The cows like to feel like they are in control.” Malina watched Gavin with awe. He was so kind to the cows and he knew so much about them. “Then you can pet the back of its head and it’s back gently. If it likes you, then you can pet the front of its head, in-between its eyes, and scratch around its ears.”
“What’s your name?” Malina asked him innocently. Gavin still had not properly introduced himself. Gavin stammered out his name and then added “from the moors about ten miles east.”
“Are you sure? You might be lost.” Malina smiled her little half smile again and Gavin held his breath. He loved her eyes. They sparkled and shimmered.
“Maybe a little bit,” he conceded.
Marcus brought Gavin back to the real world with a pat on the back. “Best of luck Gavin.”
“Thank you Marcus.”
“And don’t take the cows with you.”
“What? I can’t leave them—“
“I’ve got them. Go.” It was impossible to argue with Marcus and Gavin was grateful so he left his cows with Marcus to begin his journey to find Malina.
***
Gavin was not sure where Malina lived specifically, but he knew that she had lived near the royal court, as her father had been a member of the royal court. That meant that Gavin needed to head towards the center of the kingdom before he could really inquire as to her whereabouts. Gavin set off through the winding mountains that obstructed his view. He prayed that he was going in the right direction and paid close attention to the rise and fall of the sun to help him steer a straight path.
In no time at all, night fell and Gavin had to rest. He didn’t want to fall asleep knowing that Malina was still out there. He felt as though every second spent away from her was a second that she could be closer to finding someone else. He had to show her that he wanted to be with her, that he remembered her, and that he had never forgotten her. Gavin settled down to fall asleep and quickly dozed off into a dream about a new life with Malina.
In the morning when Gavin awoke, he felt something on his leg. It wasn’t too heavy but the weight was constricting his movement. The sun created streaks of light on the wet grass and soon Gavin saw what it was that was on his leg. It was an adder. The adder was the only venomous snake in the highlands and it was dangerous. It could kill with its venom and this one on his leg was at least two feet long. Gavin held his body as still as he could. He didn’t want to startle it in case it felt threatened.
He wanted to get up and continue on his journey towards the royal court but he could not move until the adder did. He was cold, hungry, and wet from the damp morning dew. A small part of him wanted to go home already as he pondered spending more than a week fighting his way to Malina’s home not knowing whether or not she would even be interested, but his love was too strong. He waited for the snake to move, praying it didn’t bite. After a few hours though, the adder slowly untangled itself away from his leg as Gavin held his breath. It finally slithered completely off and moved west. Gavin rose slowly and quietly before continuing east.
It would take Gavin nearly two weeks before he reached the royal court. Once there, Gavin felt shy once again. He was not sure how to approach the people of the court and ask where he might find Malina. What if there were multiple women with the name Malina? And what if Malina’s parents did not want her to marry him? He didn’t have
much to offer her other than his humble good looks and kind nature. Would her parents think that was enough? Perhaps not.
“Excuse me, sir.” Gavin approached a man sitting in a corner of the bustling market. “Have you ever heard of a woman named Malina?” The man in the corner just stared at Gavin. “She would be about my age.”
“No. She hasn’t been here in almost a year.”
Gavin felt his breath leave him and he felt his knees weaken. His Malina had not been here in almost a year. What could that mean? Had she found someone else? The girl with the shimmering green eyes could belong to another man. Gavin hung his head. The man in the corner continued to stare and said nothing else.
“What are you doing here?” asked a man approaching Gavin. “You don’t look like you belong here.”
