Someone appeared beside her and she looked up to see Kendric banging his hands together above his head. He whistled and then bent to speak to Juliette. ‘I hear this is all thanks to you. It’s clear you’ve made a massive impression on the lad in the short space of time you’ve been here.’ She turned to smile at him but found his expression quite serious as he continued, ‘It’s nice that he’s taken to you, but I’m worried about what will happen when you leave. Just be careful, eh?’
Tears pricked her eyes as she watched the boy leaving the stage to countless pats on the back and scratches behind Chewie’s ears. If this hadn’t boosted his confidence and popularity, then nothing would. But she totally understood Kendric’s concerns, her own heart would suffer too when it was time to leave the boy behind. She had become very fond of him.
‘Look at that boy’s face,’ Kendric said, and Juliette was about to reply when she realised he wasn’t addressing her. Much to her relief, she saw Reid, pale-faced and unshaven, looking more unkempt than normal, applauding proudly beside his brother. He glanced at her briefly and a ghost of a smile played on his lips before his concentration returned to his son.
* * *
Once the talent show was over, all the acts were asked to return to the stage for the announcement of the winner to be made. Caitlin, Grace, Morag and Reid and Kendric were now standing beside Juliette as they anxiously waited for the results.
‘Now, the panel have had a very tricky job, as you can imagine. Choosing a single winner from twelve incredible acts was nigh on impossible,’ Kenneth told the crowd. ‘And we had to have a deciding vote due to a tie between two of the contenders, so I’d like to thank Gregor Edmunds for doing the honours. So, in third place… we have wee Esther Douglas with her angelic performance of “Blooming Heather”.’
The audience applauded and Kenneth handed the young girl a white envelope.
‘In second place… and you must understand how difficult this decision was, folks, with so many talented youngsters here today… anyway, as I was saying, in second place we have Evin MacKinnon and his amazing dog, Chewie!’
Cheers and whistles filled the room as Kenneth handed the ruddy-faced boy a white envelope. Evin searched the crowd with his gaze. When he found his dad, his face brightened and his grin spoke a thousand words without him needing to make a sound. Loud whistles pierced the air from where Reid stood, and Juliette was so happy to see the man radiating admiration and love.
‘And finally, the winner of the Glentorrin talent contest this year, I have to say it was a wonderful performance, considering this is all new to him and I think that’s what gave it the edge. So, our winner is… Euan Dalgetty on his bagpipes!’
Juliette applauded along with everyone else but equally fought the urge to shout, ‘Fix!’
As the contestants left the stage, Juliette watched once again as Evin was surrounded by people congratulating him. He wasn’t in the least bit disappointed to have not come first. And she was delighted to see that Grace had joined him too. Some of the boys from Evin’s school year were fussing over the dog and chatting animatedly about how Evin managed to train him to do such brilliant tricks.
She glanced to the side and caught Reid watching her. She smiled and he nodded at her, as if admitting she’d been right, at least about this one small thing. The shared moment was fleeting, and his attention once again returned to Evin, who, she hoped, could bask in his newfound glory for as long as possible.
* * *
The stalls were all packed away, and the cash counted in readiness for the evening’s entertainment. But first it was the turn of the main event of the day.
The Highland games!
Caitlin took the cash to put in her safe at the bakery and, when she returned, she brought a couple of deckchairs, which she unfolded for herself and Juliette; a rug was laid at their feet for Grace, Evin and Chewie. Many people had the same idea, and as Kenneth announced the first event, more people gathered.
Hamish arrived and placed his chair beside her. ‘Now then, Jules, how are you enjoying your stay?’
‘Hamish! Lovely to see you. I’m having a great time. I haven’t seen you in the museum lately.’
‘No, I went to visit my daughter for a few days. And my grandson and his new husband have arrived to stay as part of their honeymoon.’
‘Be sure to bring him to the museum to say hello,’ she said.
He smiled. ‘Don’t you worry, lassie, it’s on my list of priorities.’
Once again, there was no sign of Reid and Juliette couldn’t stop thinking about him. But her attention was pulled back by a nudge from Caitlin.
Huge, muscular, kilted men waved as they marched into the cordoned-off arena to Kenneth’s call of their names, and each audience member cheered for their favourite. The caber toss was up first, and it turned out that the hulking men were able to lob the giant piece of tree trunk a lot further than Juliette ever anticipated. She watched in awe as the hefty poles were tossed into the air, landing metres away, with a vibrating thud. She wondered how on earth someone came up with the idea for the event. Were a bunch of lumberjacks, perhaps, standing around one lunch time trying to keep warm, when one suddenly chimed in, ‘I know, let’s see which one of us can throw a sawn tree trunk the farthest!’? It was bewildering but great fun to watch. The crowd were enraptured, and the volume of cheers rose exponentially as each toss was completed.
In between the caber toss and the hammer throw, there was a musical interlude. A pipe band from a neighbouring village marched into the arena; the spectacle was wonderful and so vibrantly colourful. Tartan kilts and sashes were worn by each band member, along with a little black hat adorned with feathers at one side. The vividly coloured socks matched the smart waistcoats and each band member had a sporran attached to a chain belt around their waist. ‘The little wooden blowpipes are called Chanters,’ Caitlin had told her when she’d asked, and each piper looked a little like a hamster storing food as they blew.
The marching stopped and a lone piper played the opening bars to ‘Amazing Grace’. A lump of emotion lodged itself in Juliette’s throat. It had been Laurie’s favourite hymn, and Judy Collins’ version had been played at his funeral. She closed her eyes briefly as she let the memory swirl around her mind.
‘Hey, are you okay?’ Caitlin asked with a squeeze of her hand.
Juliette opened her eyes and nodded through a fog of tears. ‘I am. I just have such mixed emotions about this song as it reminds me of Laurie.’
Caitlin rubbed her arm. ‘It has the same effect on me, for obvious reasons.’ She nodded towards her daughter, Grace, where she sat and gave a warm smile just as the gathered crowd spontaneously began to sing the hymn. Shivers travelled Juliette’s spine at the sound of myriad people singing a song that was so special to her, even though they were completely unaware. But that was it for her; tears fell unabashedly down her cheeks, although she smiled through them and joined in as best she could. Caitlin gripped her hand and her eyes welled too as she leaned her head on Juliette’s shoulder in a show of support for her new friend.
Once the song was over, the applause and cheers were almost deafening, and Juliette’s spirit was strangely lifted. It was as if Laurie had arranged the whole thing especially for her, to let her know he was still with her. Through this clarity and with the momentary absence of the guilt she’d been carrying, she thought about Reid and silently asked if she should try once again to make amends with the man.
