Page 22 of The High Island

Erling hadn’t told his father about the locket bearing the inscription ‘William’, nor its contents and the engraved date. But staring at the family tree, he could see how the story of Stella and her baby might fit into it.

Moving now to contemplate the next generation, he said, ‘D’you know what happened to Betty’s parents?’

‘Her father, James, was a fisherman. He went down with his boat in a storm in Scapa Flow, aged forty. His wife, Anne, had died eightyears earlier,’ he added, his tone one of sadness. ‘Betty was seventeen when she left Hoy. I don’t know if she’s still alive.’

‘And Kris’s father?’

Tommy shook his head. ‘No idea. Maybe a seasonal worker or someone from the oil terminal. You could ask Hugh if he can fill in the blanks?’

Erling wasn’t sure whether Hugh would welcome such a request.

‘I met with Hugh Mowat today,’ he told Tommy. ‘He said the family are challenging the sale of the croft. He also said Ivor had lost his wits at the end.’

‘How convenient,’ Tommy said. ‘Although I doubt it’s true.’

‘This story of Ivor favouring Kris,’ Erling said. ‘In terms of the will?’

‘That strikes me as a distinct possibility,’ Tommy offered. ‘James was his youngest, and Betty, losing both parents and having Kris . . .’ He tailed off, avoiding Erling’s look.

In that moment, Erling realized that his father not only missed his wife, but also knew he would never have a grandchild of his own, never mind a great-grandchild. This branch of the Fletts would end with him.

Families and how to survive them, Jo had said. Erling found the realization that he would be the last of the Fletts here in Orphir to be a sudden and troubling thought.

‘Right, son,’ Tommy said, rising. ‘Time I headed for bed.’

‘Me too,’ Erling said, glad for the change of topic. Rolling up the chart, he suddenly realized that the wallpaper was from his former bedroom. ‘Thanks for putting this together, Dad,’ he offered.

‘No bother,’ Tommy said. ‘You’ll take it over now and fill in the blanks?’

‘I will.’

‘Maybe show it to Mackie in the first instance. Funny how theolder we get, the more we can remember of the distant past, rather than the present.’ He gave a little laugh. ‘Anyway, good luck with identifying the lass and the peedie bairn.’

The moon was still big in a clear sky as he headed homeward.

Exiting the farmhouse, he’d registered that the wind had risen since his arrival and waves were already breaking on the nearby shore.

On reaching Langwell, he sat in the car for a moment to survey the view of the now white-tipped Flow and the distant hills of Hoy, its outline enhanced in the moonlight.

It was then he spotted a far-off but bright light. Was there a boat out there with a beam on its bow? Interested, Erling retrieved the hi-res binoculars from the glove compartment and took a proper look.

His heart skipped a beat as he suddenly realized what he was in fact looking at. It wasn’t a ship’s beam. It was more than likely a hill fire. And by his line of sight, he suspected it was the hill above Lyrawa Bay.

10

His call to the station was answered immediately byPCAlexander. Erling explained his reason for phoning and was told that the alarm had already been raised and the fire crew at Longhope called out.

‘They’re on their way to Lyrawa as we speak, sir.’

‘Keep me informed of any news that comes in,’ Erling said, already wondering about the area of the grave.

‘Will do, sir,’ the constable promised.

Attempting to open the car door, he found it almost whipped from his hand. If Langwell, standing on a much lower hill, was being buffeted like this, then the higher hills of Hoy were facing much worse.

Erling conjured up an image of the fire team trying to douse the blaze, even as the sparks were propelled by the wind. There were few trees on Hoy, and none at Lyrawa Bay, but the heather would burn regardless of any rain that had fallen during yesterday’s trip out there.

Head bowed against the wind, he descended the steps to the flagstone path that led to the front porch. Here was some shelter, and soon enough he’d unlocked the door and was immediately cradled inside the thick stone walls, the howl of the wind no longer obvious.