Coming Home (14 page)

‘
He has. He’ll be pleased to have your chat.’

Steven
reckoned it would snow before morning and he was glad to get into the warm kitchen as soon as he had taken care of all his animals for the night. After he had eaten his supper he settled himself beside the Aga with his writing pad and fountain pen to write to Megan. He didn’t try to hide his bitter disappointment. It was a relief to be able to confide in her.

‘
I
would
have
been
happier
with
one
cow
from
Willowburn
rather
than
these
four
ill
thriven
rats
.
I
can
only
pray
they
don’t
bring
any
disease
with
them
for
they
don’t
look
that
healthy
to
me
and
one
is
discharging
badly
.
’

Megan’s
heart sank when she read Steven’s letter. She longed for him to make a success of his little farm. She knew as well as anyone how easy it was to spread tuberculosis, mastitis and other diseases into a herd if cattle were introduced from a dubious source. Her father, and both sets of grandparents, had been dairymen all their lives and she had been brought up understanding about animals, especially cows. It was the main reason her mother had been so keen for her to go to college so that she would have an easier way of earning a decent living. Fred was sly as well as jealous. Megan had no doubts that he had deliberately done the cheapest, meanest deal possible but surely even Fred would not buy unhealthy animals? Maybe they just needed some good food. Her father often said some farmers half starved their animals in winter if they had had a poor hay crop.

Ten

Flurries
of snow accompanied the bitter wind but they all knew it was bound to come when it had been so bad in England in February with blocked roads and railways and even Buckingham Palace lit by candles.

Steven
spent a great deal of time breaking ice on the water bowls, even though they were in the relative warmth of the byre, but it was essential that the cows should have water if they were to produce any milk. He had to take a sledge hammer to the thick ice on the water trough in the yard before he could lead Daisy out to drink and he did the same for the Mc Guires, earning their gratitude yet again. Each morning it was the same all over again but none of this made Steven feel as sickened as the sight of the two scraggy blue-black mongrel heifers. He wouldn’t be able to pretend to be grateful when he saw his parents and he couldn’t bear to see Fred’s sly smirk. He went round to Mrs McGuire.

‘
Would you mind telephoning Willowburn please? Tell Mother I shall not be up for Sunday dinner tomorrow. There’s plenty to do here keeping the animals watered and fed and I reckon we could have more snow.’

‘
We could I suppose,’ Annie McGuire nodded, eying him shrewdly. ‘I’ll let her know.’

After
passing on Steven’s message she mentioned the new cattle.

‘
Tom Green, the haulier, is a relative o’ ours. He’s a bit concerned about the animals he was asked to deliver to your laddie from one o’ the dealers. He said Steven looked horrified when he saw them.’

‘
Surely they weren’t as bad as that, Annie?’ The two women were on first name terms now.

‘
I only know what Tom said and he’s a fair judge o’ men and animals. Steven hasn’t even mentioned them to us. He hasn’t invited McGuire round to see them like he did with the two he bought himself.’

‘
We haven’t seen them,’ Hannah said slowly. ‘Maybe we should come down to Schoirhead. I could cook the Sunday dinner there. It will make a change if Steven doesn’t want to cycle all this way. Will you tell him we’re coming down, if the snow holds off, please Annie?’

‘
That’s a grand idea, Hannah,’ Eddy said, pleased with her suggestion. ‘I can see his cows and how he’s getting on.’

Fred
was furious on Sunday morning when he heard their plans. His father would be sure to inspect Steven’s animals. He would know immediately they were nothing like the quality he would have bought himself. He would never have given them a glance. Hannah noticed the blaze of anger in his eyes and the tight lips.

‘
You can come with us if you like, Fred. Edna is spending today visiting friends so you’ll be on your own.’

‘
I can make my own dinner,’ he snarled ungraciously. ‘I don’t see why you have to waste petrol trailing down there. It could snow before night.’

‘
Your father wants to see the cattle he’s paid for,’ she said.

‘
We
paid for them. I’m a partner too,’ he reminded her sullenly.

‘
You’re a partner because your father has been so generous to you. Surely you must see Steven deserves something from his father too?’ she prompted gently.

‘
I’ve earned my share. He’s never earned anything for this place.’ Hannah’s blue eyes met his steadily, but she shook her head in despair. Does fighting for his country count for nothing with people like Fred? she wondered silently.

Steven
had received a letter from Megan on Saturday morning. She always cheered him up and helped him look on the bright side and she was right. He was still ashamed to own such scraggy animals but the two milking cows had settled in and were milking steadily, even if the yields were a bit low, and his own two cows were doing splendidly. He was proud to be sending away a morning and an evening churn on the milk lorry now, even though neither of them were full yet. He was looking forward eagerly to getting his first milk cheque at the end of the month.

He
hoped Shandy would not chew any more chair legs when his parents came to visit but he was sure they would love him. Mrs McGuire seemed to get on well with his mother and she had invited them all round for afternoon tea before they returned to Willowburn.

‘Well Steven I’m pleased to see you’re happier than I expected,’ Hannah greeted him with relief, thinking Annie McGuire must have exaggerated.

‘
Mmm.’ He grinned at her. ‘I had a letter from Megan yesterday and she always cheers me up.’

‘
How much longer has she to do at college?’

‘
Another year come the summer, then a year’s practical teaching. I can’t imagine Megan being strict enough to be a teacher.’

‘
I hear she’s grown into an attractive young woman. I saw Mrs Andrews yesterday when I was delivering my eggs. Her daughter Maryanne is at college with Megan. She says she’s very popular with the students who come to the dances from the agricultural college. Her own laddie, Rufus, has a fancy for her himself.’

‘
Does he?’ Steven muttered. His mother bit back a smile. The Oliphants were a decent hard working family and she would welcome Megan as a daughter-in-law if Steven got around to seeing her in that light before it was too late but it would be a while before either of them could think of marriage by the sound of things.

‘
Shall we go and see what you’ve been doing, Steven?’ his father asked, ‘while your mother gets on with cooking the dinner. I’d like to see the cattle Fred bought. He says he’s forgotten the name of the farmer who was selling them.’

Steven
chewed his lower lip. He was sure his father would be as disappointed as he had been but even he was unprepared for the shock which awaited them.

‘
Good gracious! Surely these are not the animals Fred bought? The haulier must have made a mistake.’

‘
I’m afraid there’s no mistake,’ Steven said unhappily.

‘
How could he waste good money, any money, on such rubbish?’ Eddy’s face paled with anger as he moved along the byre to take a closer look. ‘Oh my God…’ he breathed. Steven knew his father never blasphemed.

‘
What’s wrong?’ he asked tensely, hurrying to his side. ‘Oh no!’ He could have wept. There, lying in the channel was the hairless foetus of a calf. ‘She’s aborted! They were all right at milking time. This is one of the things I feared when I saw them.’

‘
You’ve reason to be afraid with a bunch like this,’ his father almost spat the words. ‘This is a dealer’s rubbish or my name’s not Eddy Caraford.’

‘
I admit I was disappointed when I saw them,’ Steven said, ‘but I thought they might grow when they got out to grass. I-I hadna bargained for this though.’ He stared at the lifeless foetus with despair in his eyes.

‘
Have you a spare shed, Steven? I’ll help you get these two blue grey heifers into it. Keep them away from the rest and pray they haven’t spread any disease already.’

‘
But what good is that now?’

‘
You can see this one aborted well before her time. The heifer has no udder yet and she’ll have no milk. Take my advice and get them out of here. Keep them away from the rest and fatten them up if you can. They’re half Galloways anyway by the look of them. They would probably kick all the way through milking. You’re better without them.’ He rubbed his forehead and shook his head. ‘I can’t believe Fred would spend all that money on animals like these.’

Steven
frowned, gnawing the inside of his cheek, his jaw clenched.

‘
I wish I’d never seen them. It will take months to get them fit for sale, even as store beasts.’

‘
We’ll put them into one of the sheds you’ve mucked out and give them some bedding,’ his father said decisively, his own jaw clenched. ‘I’ll go to Annan market myself and see whether I can persuade the seller to take them back.’

‘
Even if you find him he’ll never do that!’ Steven gave a hollow laugh.

‘
I can always ask. Fred reckoned he couldn’t remember the man’s name and now I know he didn’t want to remember. This lot are the tail end of a cheap dealer’s gatherings,’ he muttered in disgust.

They
untied the two young heifers and chased them into one of the newly cleaned sheds. Steven had never seen his father so tight lipped and his face was worryingly grey and pinched.

‘
If you’ve any Jeyes’ Fluid we’ll disinfect the byre where these two have been,’ Eddy said grimly. ‘Can you lend me a pair of wellingtons? Make sure you don’t walk through any discharge and spread it to the rest.’

‘
You really think it’s serious then, Dad, not just due to the heifer being shunted about in lorries?’

‘
I hope I’m wrong lad, but you can’t afford to risk it,’ his father said, shaking his head slowly. ‘Nobody could, let alone somebody just beginning in farming. If it is contagious abortion it can ruin a man if it spreads through the herd. You end up with calves born early, usually dead, and then the dam doesna milk. It’s a vicious circle.’

***

Before he went to bed that evening Steven wrote to Megan, telling her about his parents’ visit.

‘
I
don’t
know
whether
I’m
more
worried
about
the
possibility
of
these
beasts
bringing
disease
to
the
place
before
I
even
get
started
farming
,
or
about
Dad
.
I’ve
never
seen
him
look
so
disillusioned
and
disgusted
.
When
he
saw
the
foetus
lying
in
the
channel
I
thought
he
was
going
to
have
a
heart
attack
.
He
looked
so
drawn
and
pale
,
as
though
his
very
soul
had
been
torn
out
of
him
.
We
were
invited
round
to
the
McGuires
but
he
refused
to
go
.
All
he
wanted
was
to
get
home
as
soon
as
they
had
eaten
their
dinner
.
It
spoiled
our
day
.
I
saw
Mother
giving
him
anxious
looks
.
I
expect
he
would
tell
her
everything
on
the
way
home
.
It’s
never
easy
to
keep
anything
from
Mother
.
She
has
a
way
of
worming
things
out
of
us
–
well
not
out
of
Fred
apparently
.
He’s
too
sly
,
even
for
Mother
.
’

He
told her about Shandy’s antics and his neighbours. He read the letter through but before he sealed it he added a postscript.

‘
I
know
it’s
a
while
until
Easter
but
I
wondered
if
you
would
come
to
a
dance
with
me
when
you
come
home
for
the
holidays
?
I
could
cycle
up
to
your
house
but
I’m
afraid
we’d
have
to
walk
to
the
village
hall
and
back
.
I’ve
no
hope
of
affording
any
sort
of
vehicle
for
a
long
while
at
this
rate
so
I
shall
understand
if
you
choose
to
go
with
your
young
doctor
friend
,
Megan
.’