When the Heather Blooms

by Gwen Kirkwood

  Victoria’s first thought was there’d been an accident when Peter telephoned long distance in the middle of the morning towards the end of May.

  ‘There’s nothing wrong!’ Peter laughed aloud. ‘I had to tell somebody. I’ve been offered the job at Croston Estate.’

  ‘Peter! Oh how wonderful!’ Victoria almost wept at the news. ‘We’ll phone you tonight so that Andrew can congratulate you too.’

  ‘All right. I shall not be coming back up to Scotland until I finish working for Mr Draper at the end of July.’

  Later that evening, after he had finished congratulating him, Andrew announced, ‘I have another bit of news for you, Peter. I’ve been down to see Josh since we heard your news. He’s willing to rent his fields to you if you want to keep your sheep. He says the rent will be the same as I pay now.’

  ‘B-but won’t you mind giving up the twenty acres, Uncle Andrew?’ Peter asked in astonishment.

  ‘Not now. Lachie has made up his mind to be a vet and I have plenty with Langmune and Throstlebrae. If it hadn’t been Josh who was renting out the two fields at Lintysmill I wouldn’t have bothered anyway.’

  ‘I can’t believe it!’ Peter said. ‘I long to keep my sheep and Lintysmill fields would be ideal. They’re not far from where I shall be living at Croston.’

  ‘There’s no shelter for the ewes for lambing,’ Andrew reminded him and I imagine your pedigree Suffolks are a lot softer than Willie’s Blackface ewes.’

  ‘We-ell Mr Draper pampers them a bit because they are quite valuable.’

  ‘Josh says he’ll help you erect a shelter in the field near his orchard if you like. It would have to be at weekends, though, and he doesn’t want to encourage you to neglect your work as manager.’

  ‘Oh no, that would never do. I must look after my bread and butter job first. Don’t worry Uncle Andrew, much as I enjoy having my few sheep I hope I shall never neglect my work.’

  Peter returned to Darlonachie in the summer of nineteen sixty-four. As soon as he crossed the Solway Firth and saw the four tall towers of Scotland’s first atomic energy plant a few miles from Annan he knew he was almost home. Home, yes, Darlonachie was his home now.

  Mimi was delighted when she knew she had passed all her ordinary level exams with excellent grades. Lachie had done exceptionally well in his higher grades. The results were good enough to gain an acceptance at university but he was still seventeen. His teachers advised him to spend another year at school but Lachie had other ideas. He decided he would work for a year at Langmune if his father would pay him a wage. He would go to Edinburgh University to study veterinary science when he was eighteen.

  Fraser thought they should have a celebration of all the good news but it was Peter who suggested Mimi should accompany them to the Saturday night dance. Willie was dismayed.

  ‘Mimi willna be able to dance. They’ll make a fool of her, and then she’ll be left sitting at the side. I can’t …’

  ‘Hush, Willie, don’t say that,’ Mary urged. ‘The boys wouldn’t offer to take her with them if they were going to abandon her. Anyway I don’t think the dancing is the same as it was when we used to go, and not all the boys are experts like you and George were. Mimi’s got to grow up …’

  ‘She’s still a bairn.’

  ‘Oh, Willie!’ Mary sighed with unusual exasperation. ‘She’s sixteen. She’s not your wee girl any longer. Haven’t you noticed she’s a pretty young woman, even if I do say it about my own daughter.’

  ‘I don’t care. She’s not going to the dancing.’ Willie declared and stomped out of the house. He and Mary seldom disagreed and when they did it was never more than a mild difference of opinion. Her heart ached for Mimi. She knew how much she wanted to dress up and go to dances like other girls. Unknown to either of them Mimi had heard their quarrel and she stole out of the house to hide her tears.

  She knew it was Peter’s idea to take her to the dance and she longed to go with him, but deep down she knew her father was right. Who would want to dance with a girl who limped all the time?

  She had walked further than she realised and she found herself near to Home Farm. Libby had always comforted her when she was little and Mimi sought her now. When she heard what had happened Libby was as annoyed with her beloved Uncle Willie as Mary.

  ‘Most of the dancing these days is doing your own thing. The girls don’t wait for a partner to ask them either. Anyway, Peter would never take you and then leave you alone. Shall I talk to Uncle Willie?’

  ‘N-no,’ Mimi shook her head and the tears swamped her blue eyes again. ‘H-he’s right. I’ll never be able to dance like everyone else. I’d better be going home now.’

  ‘Stay for tea,’ Libby urged. ‘I’ll phone and tell them you’re here. You can help me bathe Joe and Kirsty and I’ll run you home later.’

  ‘All right.’ Mimi brightened a little. She loved helping with the children. A while later Libby left Mimi having fun with her two boisterous offspring while she telephoned her mother.

  ‘The trouble is, Willie will not accept that his wee girl is growing up,’ Victoria said. ‘Maybe he’s right about her not being able to dance as well as other girls but I’m sure she would manage and she has to find out for herself. Mimi’s never lacked courage.’

  ‘How can we persuade him to let her go then, Mum?’

  ‘I doubt if anyone can make Willie change his mind when he gets an idea in his head – except perhaps …’

  ‘Perhaps what?’ Libby asked.

  ‘Peter might be able to persuade him. He could take our car and tell Willie he will bring Mimi home if she isn’t enjoying it. Fraser has his own wee car now.’

  ‘Will you be seeing Peter?’

  ‘Of course. He’s coming up tomorrow for his lunch. There’s plenty of time before Saturday.’

  Peter was dismayed to hear Mimi had been upset. He went over to High Bowie as soon as lunch was over. He had to get Willie on his own. It would never do if Mimi heard them discussing her again.

  He and Willie walked to the very top of High Bowie hill and still Peter hadn’t managed to broach the subject that was uppermost in his mind.

  ‘Come on, laddie, get it off your chest, whatever it is that’s bothering you. You have a frown like my old granny. Is there something the matter with your sheep?’

  ‘No, no, they’re fine. Mr Draper arranged the transport and they travelled without any bother. They had a compartment of the lorry to themselves. You’ll have to come and inspect them soon and give me your opinion.’

  ‘Opinion!’ Willie echoed with a bitter laugh. ‘Nobody wants my opinion on anything else it seems. Not even Mary …’

  ‘Oh? Have you had a disagreement?’ Peter pretended ignorance.

  ‘We had a wee difference of opinion over Mimi.’

  ‘Speaking of Mimi,’ Peter seized his chance, ‘we’re hoping she’ll agree to come to the dance with us to celebrate her success in her exams. Aunt Victoria says I can borrow their car so I can bring her home when she’s had enough, or if she doesn’t enjoy dancing.’ He hurried on allowing Willie no chance to argue or interrupt. ‘She told me a while ago she’s never been at a proper dance so we thought it was a good chance to take her when we’re all going to be there to look after her.’

  ‘Och, I dinna think it’s a good idea,’ Willie scowled. ‘I told Mary that. She’s only sixteen. Anyway, I ken what young fellows are like. You’ll forget you’ve taken her and leave her sitting on her own at the side of the dance floor. I’ve seen many a miserable lassie …’

  ‘You must have a very poor opinion of me.’ Peter pretended to be hurt and angry; he was disappointed Willie didn’t trust him to take care of Mimi. ‘Can you believe I’d take Mimi then forget about her? When I first came to Darlonachie Mimi was like a ray of sunshine. I was so bloody miserable and she cheered me up every time I saw her smile. I owe her for that.’

  Willie looked at him sideways. He knew Peter never used even mild swear words as a rule. He frowned
.

  ‘Er … we-ell, laddie, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but I know what young fellows are like when you get together …’

  ‘You’re forgetting I’ve been away for most of the last four years. I shall be like a stranger. Mimi and I will be good for each other. We’ll stick together. Tell her I’ll pick her up about eight o’ clock. I don’t know whether Lachie is coming with me or if he’s going with Fraser. Oh, and tell Mimi it’s an ordinary dance so most of the girls will be wearing trousers and a fancy top.’ Willie opened his mouth to protest but no words came and Peter hurried on to another topic.

  ‘I’d like you to come and see my ram lamb. I’d like to have kept him when he’s so well bred but he’s too closely related to my three ewe lambs.’ Willie knew he was being deliberately side-tracked but he liked Peter. If anyone could be trusted with Mimi it was him. He sighed. He loved her so much but he couldn’t visualise her ever enjoying life like other young women and having boyfriends.

  ‘Don’t worry if you can’t dance all of the time,’ Mary said, ‘we often sat out, but it is a good place to meet other young people and to chat. Your father and Uncle George were mad about the dancing when they were young so your father thinks that’s the way it is for everybody, but they’re not all like that. Would you like to go into Dumfries on Saturday morning and buy some new trousers and a pretty blouse?’

  ‘Oh Mum, could we?’ Mimi’s eyes shone with excitement. ‘Will Dad mind?’

  ‘Of course not. You deserve some new clothes when you’ve done so well in your exams. I’ll tell you what, I’ll leave the dinner ready for your father and we’ll have ours in Binns. It will be a treat for me too.’

  Mimi knew she would always remember that day. It was so rare for the two of them to go shopping together, or for her mother to enjoy herself away from High Bowie. It was a happy day. She persuaded her mother to buy herself a new skirt and she helped to choose it. Her mother seemed to want her opinion and she treated her as a companion. She began to feel she had left her childhood behind at last.

  ‘It seems strange to see girls dressing up in trousers for a dance but I’m glad you didn’t choose one of those miniskirts that are in fashion, Mimi,’ Mary remarked, her eye fixed on a tall girl with the shortest of miniskirts.

  Peter arrived in Andrew’s Volvo. Mimi was ready.

  ‘How will you get back to Croston when you return Uncle Andrew’s car?’ Mimi asked.

  ‘Don’t worry about that,’ Peter patted her knee. ‘I cycled up to Langmune but Uncle Andrew suggests I take the car home tonight and come for Sunday lunch. I’ll cycle home in daylight tomorrow. I’m thinking of buying myself a second-hand car if I get a good price for my ram lamb. I’ve got my eye on a Morris Minor.’ As they drew nearer the dance hall Peter sensed Mimi’s nervousness.

  ‘You’re looking lovely tonight, Mimi,’ he said. ‘Your blouse is the same deep blue as your eyes. I can see I shall have to fight off half the fellows there.’

  ‘Oh Peter, you know very well no one else will want to dance with me so don’t pretend,’ Mimi said. ‘And don’t think I expect you to be my nursemaid all evening. I know you haven’t had many evenings for pleasure.’

  ‘Listen to me, Mimi, you pay too much attention to your father’s opinion on dancing. It’s different now. Even if we do get an odd slow waltz or a Scottish dance or two you’ll manage fine, but everybody does their own thing for the dances these days. You must have seen them on the television dancing to The Beatles. You can do what suits you, so don’t worry. Quite often the girls dance with each other if the lads are slow to join in. Some of the lads get very energetic of course and swing their partners over their shoulder. Just promise me you’ll tell me when you’ve had enough, or if you’re tired. Promise?’

  ‘All right, I promise, but I don’t want to ruin your evening.’

  ‘The only way you’ll do that is if you desert me for a young handsome fellow.’

  ‘You do talk rubbish,’ Mimi laughed but when she looked at him he seemed serious. She was surprised and warmed when he met her glance and nodded. ‘I mean it, Mimi. I wouldn’t have asked you to come if I hadn’t wanted you for my partner.’ Peter had said the words intending to reassure her but he realised they were true. He was looking forward to taking Mimi to her first dance. He loved to see her smile and the way her eyes lit up when she was happy. It always made his spirits rise.

  Fraser, Lachie, and his friend Tom Adamson were already there. Close behind them was Tom’s older sister, Jade Adamson. Mimi’s heart sank. Jade had been a prefect at the Academy when Mimi first started there. She was bossy and spiteful, quite unlike her younger sister, Iona, who was the same age as Mimi, although she was in a lower class. Jade Adamson was tall and sophisticated, dressed in a bright red miniskirt and a low-cut black top which clung to her slender curves. She was wearing a lot of make-up round her eyes and Mimi felt young and gauche in comparison. She wanted to turn round and go home. Peter sensed her uneasiness though he had no idea of the cause.

  ‘Don’t be nervous, Mimi,’ he said in a low voice, bending close to her ear so that she felt his breath caressing her cheek. ‘Come on …’ He drew her onto the floor and moments later Jade Adamson was forgotten as she became absorbed in the rhythm, the beat, the noise, following Peter’s manoeuvres and improvising with her own. He grinned down at her, tugged at her hand and drew her around him with a twirl. Mimi grinned back. She was beginning to discover a whole new world.

  Sometimes Lachie drew her onto the floor, sometimes Fraser, but she always knew Peter was never far away.

  ‘Come on, you must join in this, Mimi,’ he chuckled. ‘It’s just a bit of fun.’ He clasped her round the waist and she saw him looking around the dance floor. He caught Fraser’s eye and jerked his head. They exchanged a grin and Fraser beckoned Lachie. They both came to join in, with Fraser on her other side. She was imprisoned by two strong arms at her back. Other lines were forming across the hall now. A young man came up to Fraser, hoping to join their line. ‘So you’ve shaken Jade off at last, have you, Frase? Who’s the new chick?’ His eyes were on Mimi and she blushed. ‘She’s a real looker. Haven’t seen her before …’ Fraser glanced at Mimi, his eyes filled with laughter. He was just about to introduce her, but the light died from his face as Jade Adamson pushed herself into the line between him and Lachie. The other fellow raised his eyebrows. ‘What’s her name?’ He yelled over the increasing volume of the music.

  ‘She’s his cousin. She’s a cripple, that’s why you haven’t seen her around,’ Jade Adamson shrugged. Mimi heard the words. She felt Fraser tense. He scowled. Peter had heard too. He met Fraser’s angry glare.

  ‘We’ll show the lot of ’em,’ he said.

  ‘Aye, we will that.’ Fraser nodded, his jaw clenched, then he relaxed and grinned. ‘Just follow our steps, Mimi.’ He nodded to Peter and they lifted their arms. She was a foot above the floor. ‘You’re light as a feather.’ He ignored Jade and her expression grew sullen. The lines of dancers began, step to the right, step to the left, so many steps forward, half as many back. She recognised the old nursery rhyme “Horsey, Horsey,” as one of the tunes. Mimi was lost in no time when Fraser and Peter delighted in swinging her off her feet. When the dance finished Fraser moved away, determined to lose Jade, but Peter retained his hold around Mimi’s waist. She fitted so snugly beneath his arm; her head just reached his shoulder.

  ‘We’ll have one more dance and then we’ll leave?’ he said above the noise. She nodded, trying to glance at her watch. ‘It’ll be ending soon and there’s always a rabble to get out. I don’t want anybody to bump Uncle Andrew’s car,’ Peter explained. She nodded. ‘I can’t believe the time had flown so fast.’

  Outside the air was crisp and cool after the heat of the dance hall, and it was quiet and peaceful with just the two of them. Peter settled her into the car but he didn’t drive away. He turned towards her.

  ‘How did you enjoy your first dance, Mimi?’ He wondered if the Adams
on girl’s remark had spoiled her evening. He need not have worried.

  ‘I loved it!’ she said, smiling, her eyes shining. ‘Thank you for taking me, Peter.’

  ‘It was my pleasure. Maybe we’ll be able to do it again. I know your father thinks you’re a bit young yet so he’ll not want you to go too often, and you’ll be busy studying for your higher grades this year and I shall have to earn my salary as a manager, but maybe we could go to the Christmas dances, if you’d like that?’

  ‘I’d love it.’ Mimi said, her young heart soaring, little dreaming of the changes which could turn a life upside down in a few short weeks.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Mimi was working hard towards her higher grade exams. She often went down to Lintysmill to practice her French conversation with Charlotte on Sunday afternoons. She enjoyed amusing Lucy and the other foster children Charlotte often seemed to have around. Rory and Robin considered it their second home.

  ‘What do you want to do when you’ve got your Higher Grades?’ Josh asked one Sunday over tea. ‘You’re very patient with the children, Mimi. Would you like to be a teacher?’

  ‘I don’t know. I don’t want to go away to training college.’ She caught Peter’s eyes and he smiled at her across the table.

  ‘Two years soon passes if it’s what you want to do.’ Most Sundays Peter spent time tending his sheep in Lintysmill fields and Josh often went with him. He had bought a second-hand maroon Morris Minor although he had not sold his prized ram lamb. Instead he had followed Willie’s advice and bought some more pedigree Suffolk ewes to run with the well-bred ram and he had accepted Mr Stacey’s offer to run the three related ewes with the Croston flock. They were commercial ewes but the Suffolk rams were pedigree and it was the best arrangement Peter could afford.

  The days were short and dark as November drew to a close and Uncle Josh often strapped Mimi’s cycle to the back of his car and ran her home to High Bowie. On this particular Sunday Peter offered to take her home instead.

  ‘You haven’t forgotten you promised to come to the Christmas dances with me, have you, Mimi?’ he asked when they were almost back to High Bowie. Mimi had dreamed of little else since he first mentioned the dances but she smiled and said of course she remembered.