The Call of the High Country

by Tony Parsons

  The most significant of these visitors was Angus Campbell, who arrived unexpectedly with Catriona in tow. The Campbells, especially Angus, had been rather cool towards the MacLeods ever since they received word that Wilf White had sold them Poitrel. But Angus could never forget what David had done for Catriona in the past.

  ‘Is David home?’ Catriona asked as soon as she made her way up the front steps.

  ‘Yes, but he’s on the phone,’ Kate replied.

  A look of relief swept over Catriona’s face with the news that David was actually in the house. So many times he hadn’t been.

  ‘Will you come in?’ Kate asked. She noted the basket Catriona was carrying.

  Angus nodded. ‘Can’t stay too long. Just wanted to deliver this basket of things. Thought it might come in handy, what with Anne spending so much time at the hospital. And if there is anything at all we can do to help, please just let us know.’

  ‘How thoughtful of you, Angus,’ Kate said. She was still trying to come to terms with the extent of the goodwill flowing into High Peaks. It was quite incredible.

  At that moment, David came through to the lounge from the office. Kate noted the quick glance Catriona threw in his direction. If she had been expecting any special welcome, she would have been disappointed because David did not oblige.

  ‘Hello, Mr Campbell. How are you, Cat?’

  Catriona was surprised by the change in David’s appearance. He was now taller than her brother Stuart and he moved more athletically.

  ‘I’ve come to offer our help, if you need it,’ Angus said without preamble.

  ‘That’s very good of you, We’ve been overwhelmed with kindness. It really means a lot to us. I think we’ll be okay. Kate and Mum and I can manage things at the moment.’

  ‘How’s Andy?’ Angus asked.

  ‘It’s too early to say. The doctors say he could come out of the stroke with either marginal or permanent damage, and there is also the serious concern that he could have another stroke.’

  ‘Never thought Andy would go down like that,’ Angus said. ‘He seemed so indestructible. Makes a man think about things.’

  ‘When you’ve worked as hard and for as long as Andy has without a break, I would say that a stroke is not too unexpected. Now he’s paid the price.’

  ‘Quite so, Kate. Well, David, and how are things going with your animals?’

  ‘I’ve been too busy to do much competition work outside the local trials. I’m sorry to say I lost Lad and now I have a son of his called Nap. I think he’s the best dog I’ve handled. Quite the best. Very brainy. Some of the big kelpie studs have been trying to buy him. The money they’re offering is fairly staggering. We’ve also got a very good, young blue bitch, and she’s the best we’ve had for years. She has a short tail like a lot of Dad’s good old dogs of the past. Both these dogs could win good trials if I could just get the time to work on them. How are yours these days?’

  ‘Not too bad. I did breed a few fair dogs by the imported fellow. But if I ever decide to import another dog, I’ll go over and select it myself.’

  ‘Good idea,’ David agreed.

  ‘What about the horses? Did you do anything with Ajana?’

  ‘We mated her to an Abbey horse and got a very nice filly foal. She looks a beauty. We missed her the following year and then mated her to a Bobby Bruce horse. She’s carrying that foal now.’

  ‘Hmm, it’s a pity you haven’t mated her to a top thoroughbred, David. She’s too good a mare not to get a thoroughbred from.’

  ‘We aren’t racing people, Mr Campbell. Even if we were, the fee for a real top stallion would be out of our reach right now. We can sell all the good stock horses we can breed and handle on Dad’s name alone – and for far less outlay.’

  ‘Look here, David, I would be prepared to come to some agreement with you on Ajana. I’ll pay the service fee for a half-share in any foals. If they were good enough, I’d race them in Sydney.’

  ‘I’ll think about it. I know that Mr White would like to see Ajana bred to thoroughbreds. I wouldn’t mind trying to breed something that could run.’

  ‘Do you ever see Wilf these days?’

  ‘Once a year or so. He seems to be keeping quite well. Gertie watches him like a hawk and she’s got a fair bit of weight off him.’

  Catriona wished her father would stop talking and let her speak with David. He had changed so much over the past few years. Apart from his size, he had a very confident manner. He was also extremely handsome, and she was frustrated that he didn’t show any interest in her. He was about the only boy she had met who didn’t. She was also concerned about Susan’s interest in him. Susan was very keen on him, and Catriona knew what some girls would do to get the boy they wanted. Catriona was really worried that Susan would ask David to take her to the next ball. Catriona had her heart set on David escorting her to the ball, but did not feel she could mention it while his father was so sick. But he was such a good catch, especially now he had two properties behind him. She knew what her father’s plans for her were, but Catriona knew that the boy of her choice was in the room with her right then.

  ‘Have you got the Ajana filly close by?’ Angus asked. ‘I’m looking for another horse for Catriona and she might fill the bill. Can I have a look at her?’

  ‘I haven’t broken her in yet. We were late getting Ajana bred the first year, so she isn’t two years old yet.’

  ‘That’s all right. I’d still like to see her. The cross of bloods sounds interesting, and if you say she is a beauty, she must be up to show type.’

  ‘The filly is with her mother in the paddock below where you drove in. It’s not far. Will you come, Kate?’

  ‘No, I think I’ll stay here, thanks. I’ll put the kettle on and have smoko ready for you when you get back,’ she said.

  Angus glanced across at Catriona, who nodded almost imperceptibly. ‘Thanks, Kate.’

  They walked past the shearing shed and down to what David called the foal paddock. It was fenced with wooden posts and split timber rails rather than barbed wire, and must have involved an enormous amount of hard work to build it.

  There were half a dozen mares and three younger horses running in the paddock. Ajana stood out for her colour and markings but there wasn’t much in it. Every mare was of a wonderful type. Perhaps the best of the lot was a bright bay filly with as sweet a head as Angus had ever seen on a horse.

  ‘Is that the Ajana filly?’ he asked, pointing towards the bay.

  David nodded. He slipped through the fence and walked towards the little mob of horses. Ajana and the filly came right up to him and he put his hand in the mane of the younger horse and led her back to where Angus and Catriona were sitting on the fence.

  ‘She won’t take much breaking-in. I can catch her anywhere. Mind you, I’ve handled her since she was foaled. And her mother is a great-natured thing.’

  Catriona stroked the filly’s silky neck while Ajana rubbed her head up and down David’s back.

  ‘These your shop-window lot?’ Angus queried in his peremptory way.

  ‘Not really. We don’t breed from many mares and only keep the very best. We picked a few mares from the lot Mr White left and mated them to stock-horse stallions. They were good types with nice natures and it seemed a pity to waste them. We can’t supply all the enquiries we get.’

  ‘Is that so?’

  ‘We could sell ten good broken-in horses right now and, frankly, I wish we had them to sell. The problem is getting the time to handle them. But dogs are my main interest. I’d like to spend more time on them. I’d like to have a spell at trialling, but it looks as if I’ll have to put that off for a while. If Dad doesn’t come good, I shall be tied here for some time.’

  Catriona had the perfect solution. In her mind, she fantasised that if she and David were married, she could handle the horses while he concentrated on the dogs. The only problem was that David didn’t appear to be the slightest bit interested.

  ‘Can
we come back and have a look at this filly when you break her in? And I’d be interested in looking at anything else you have for sale. I need a good horse myself,’ Angus said.

  David pondered this change in attitude. Angus had never before shown more than lukewarm interest in their horses. He wondered if Cat had had anything to do with it.

  ‘Sure. I don’t know that I’d be keen to sell this filly, and she’d need a fair bit of work before I could tell if she’d make a show horse. There are some others that are fairly good. I particularly like a black colt running over at Poitrel. He has the size to make a good show horse. He moves like a dream. There was a chap here from Moree who took a great liking to him. There’s also a liver chestnut which could be a likely type, but you really don’t know what a horse will be like until you’ve handled it.’

  ‘Will you let me know when you have the black colt handled?’ Angus asked. ‘And the chestnut?’

  ‘Certainly. I haven’t made a commitment to anyone, but the Moree chap did like him,’ David said.

  Angus and Catriona found it hard to believe that David was still only a boy. He certainly didn’t look it any longer and he didn’t speak like it either. What he said always made very good sense.

  ‘So are you actively breeding horses to sell?’ Angus asked.

  ‘Yes, we are. We need the money. Some day I’d like to keep my own stallion, but a top entire costs big money.’

  ‘Have you got one in mind?’ Angus asked.

  ‘There’s a really good stallion up Rockhampton way. Tim Sparkes owns him. The horse is a legend up there. He’s a freak sire,’ David explained.

  ‘Very interesting. Please don’t forget that I’m interested in the black colt, and what I said about breeding Ajana to a thoroughbred.’

  ‘I won’t forget. What are you riding these days, Cat?’ David asked.

  ‘I’ve outgrown all my ponies and have been riding a polo mare of Stuart’s. Dad’s always said I should leave getting a new horse until I finish school. I wouldn’t mind having a go at dressage but it takes up a lot of time and you need a really good-tempered horse.’

  ‘Yes, dressage is time-consuming,’ David agreed. ‘I would never have time for it. Any time I get goes into the dogs. Kate’s doing more horse work, and she loves it. We can’t afford to employ anyone full-time at the moment,’ he added, as they walked back up to the house. ‘Dad used to break in all our horses. We’re all putting in as much as we can right now.’

  Inside, Catriona took up her usual position at the table next to David, a place she had reserved ever since she’d first started coming to High Peaks. David was polite enough but not overly friendly. It seemed to Kate that he was keeping Catriona at arm’s length. Still, he was only a young man and maybe in a year or two it would be a different story. She couldn’t bear to watch him neglecting Catriona. A girl like that wouldn’t wait around forever.

  Kate often wondered about David. He was a lot deeper than he appeared on the surface. Most people regarded him as the dead spit of his father because of his quiet demeanour, hard work and talent, but Kate knew that David was deeper than Andrew; she knew that he studied books on animal breeding and read bush poetry in his room late at night, even if he didn’t talk about it. The stable upbringing that Andy had been deprived of was evident in David’s character.

  Catriona was furious with David. Her feelings for him were fluctuating almost daily. His seeming indifference to her presence brought tears to her eyes, and she was extremely frustrated to be ignored. She knew that she could bring most adoring young men to heel by ignoring them for a period, but how could she handle a young man who ignored her?

  There had been a time when Catriona was able to confide her innermost thoughts to Susan Cartwright, but this was no longer the case since Susan had become a competitor for David’s affections. Catriona had another close friend from Cassilis, Amanda Nelson. The two often came together at social gatherings, especially because Amanda had her eye on Catriona’s brother, Stuart.

  ‘Amanda, I must say that David MacLeod is the most maddening person I have ever met,’ Catriona told her last time they met. ‘He walks around like some kind of guru instead of a sixteen-year-old boy. Even Daddy thinks he is simply wonderful. Can you imagine him talking man-to-man with any other boy David’s age? Well, he may be a genius with animals but he is a dumbcluck when it comes to girls. But the thing is, I just can’t seem to forget him. I have always had this feeling for David. He has always been there for me.’

  ‘I wonder what your parents would have to say about all this,’ Amanda said.

  ‘I wouldn’t let them stop me. I know what I feel for him, and nothing is going to change my mind.’

  ‘Catriona! Do you know what you’re saying?’ Amanda asked, shocked.

  ‘Of course I do. And I happen to know that Susan Cartwright has the same idea. Oh, Daddy would kick and fight right to the end, but if he saw that he couldn’t win, I’m sure he would give in and make the best of it.’

  ‘You really think so?’ Amanda doubted that Angus Campbell would ever give in.

  ‘I know Daddy very well. If I made him see that I would much rather be with David than any other boy I have met so far, I’m sure he would come around. David is such a divinely genuine person. I am sure he would never play around. Not like some of the boys I know. David and his father are one-woman men. That is what I want, a man who is going to be for me and me alone. It’s no good me thinking I can simply forget David. I tell you, Amanda, one way or another, I mean to have him. Oh, he makes me so mad. He talks to me as if I’m his sister. I was going to ask him if he would take me to the ball, but I can’t very well do that now with his father so sick.’

  ‘And after that you will be back at school,’ Amanda reminded her.

  ‘Yes, another year away from David. I have thought about getting him to write to me. If I write first, surely he’d reply. That might help keep his mind on me.’

  Amanda considered Catriona’s suggestion. ‘That might be a very good idea. You could write and ask David about the horses you looked at. If he answers, you could keep the correspondence going.’

  ‘Quite so. And, you know, his mother, Anne, likes me very much. I think I’d have her support. I can’t wait to have my licence and a car of my own so I can drive up to High Peaks without Daddy. All I hope is that while I’m away some other girl doesn’t grab David.’

  ‘What other girl would want to live in the hills and take second place to dogs and horses?’ Amanda said with a laugh.

  ‘Amanda, I don’t think David would be like that. I would be quite happy to forego the social merry-go-round to be Mrs David MacLeod.’

  If David was aware of Catriona’s interest in him, he said nothing of it. But Kate was aware of exactly what was going on in Catriona’s mind. She thought that an outing or two for David would do him the world of good.

  But David continued on his way, oblivious to what was going on around him. When Catriona wrote to him from school some weeks later, he replied: The horses are going well, as I am. Your father saw the black colt and liked him a lot. David.

  Catriona read the two sparse sentences and burst into tears. It was as if David was deliberately going out of his way to be indifferent to her. He had even delayed contacting Angus about the horses until Catriona was back at school. It was Stuart who accompanied his father up to High Peaks to inspect them.

  Anne had come home for the day, although Andy was still in hospital and far from out of danger. He had passed through another period of crisis following a second, though less severe, stroke just as they were preparing to take him home. He was now being held in hospital with no news of his homecoming confirmed.

  David had the two colts in separate yards when Angus and Stuart arrived. David thought that the black colt gave promise of being something exceptional, but he was quick to point out that it was too soon to assess his full potential.

  ‘He moves very well and has a nice nature, but he needs more time to develop. I
reckon he needs another year here.’

  ‘Would you sell him, David?’ Angus asked.

  ‘You mean now?’

  ‘Either now or I’ll make a down payment on him as a deposit and pay the balance when you reckon he’s right,’ Angus said.

  David shook his head. ‘I won’t sell him now. It wouldn’t be the right thing to do. I’ll finish breaking him in and then let him go for a while before I start on him again. Maybe by next Christmas I’ll be able to tell you what’s in him.’

  ‘Does the same apply to the other colt?’

  ‘I’d say so. Right now we’re only guessing what’s in them. They’re just not ready for you to take away.’

  Angus was disappointed that he had not been able to close the deal, but he was respectful of David’s decision. He knew that David could use the money, but he wouldn’t sell the horse until he really believed it was ready. Angus appreciated that if David gave him the offer of either horse, it would be an offer too good to refuse.

  Angus had been right in thinking that the MacLeods’ money problems were far from over. They had put virtually every penny they’d made on High Peaks and Poitrel over the past three years into paying off the money they owed Wilf White. The only money they had taken out was for taxation purposes. All of Andy’s earnings from shearing before his stroke had also been used to help pay Wilf. The two families depended a great deal on Kate’s nursing salary and Anne’s occasional teaching. It had been three years of tough, unrelenting grind, during which money was only outlayed for real necessities.

  Meanwhile, Andy had come home to High Peaks. He had been weeks and weeks in hospital and was now but a shadow of what he was. It tore at Anne’s heart to see him. He was on medication, and always would be, and although the doctors had told her he would improve, Andy would never be able to do some of the things he had taken for granted. Anne felt like crying when she saw him sitting quietly beside the fire in the lounge room or, if the day was sunny, out in one of the easy chairs on the verandah. At first Andy seemed very tired, but gradually his old spirit reasserted itself and he looked to Anne and David to keep him informed about what was happening on the place. Within a fortnight he was taking short walks, mostly to and from the horse yards where he could watch David working. Anne watched him like a hawk and never allowed him to overexert himself.