Page 58 of A Highland Family Affair

Olivia lurched at the dog. ‘Oh my God, Marley, are you okay? Come on in.’ She pulled the dog in by his harness, he was limping, and he collapsed to the floor. Mirren ran to the kitchen and returned with a huge towel and Olivia proceeded to rub the dog down to dry him off as much as she could. Her eyes stung with tears. ‘You poor love. What’s happened?’ She looked at his front paw and his pad was cut. ‘We’ll get that cleaned up for you, lad,’ she told him in a soft voice. She glanced up at the others. ‘Something must have happened to Brodie. There’s no way Marley would make his way back here alone if he didn’t have to. And Wilf must still be out there somewhere too.’

Another bright flash of lightning was accompanied simultaneously by a loud crack of thunder which caused Sir Lancelot to bark in panic and lurch behind Kerr’s legs.

‘Here, let me carry Marley to the drawing room and put him in front of the fire to get warm.’ Kerr scooped up the hefty dog and Olivia and Dougie followed him.

‘I’ll get some ointment and some warm water to bathe his paw,’ Mirren said as she headed for the kitchen once again. She returned quickly and crouched by the exhausted dog to attend to his injured paw by the light of the fire.

Kerr and Dougie disappeared out into the night and before too long the roar of the chainsaw could be heard. Olivia paced back and forth, checking her phone for signs of contact from Brodie, but still nothing.

Eventually Kerr and Dougie returned, both drenched and panting with exhaustion. ‘We’ve cleared a space through the middle to get the car through,’ Kerr told them. ‘We’re going to go look for Brodie.’

‘I have to come with you, Kerr,’ Olivia said, her heart gripped by panic. ‘I can’t stay here worrying. Mirren, would you stay here with the dogs? In case Wilf comes home?’

Mirren glanced up and nodded. ‘Of course… but please, please be careful and stick together.’

Thankfully Dougie didn’t argue with Olivia’s decision to accompany them. ‘Aye, we’ll stick together, love,’ he assured her. ‘Come on, lassie, get your waterproofs on, you’ll need them. Kerr, can you ring the polis and ask for Mountain Rescue, son?’ Kerr nodded and took out his phone to dial.

Back in the foyer, Olivia pulled on her large waterproof coat and old walking boots that had never let her down. Outside it was eerily dark without the illumination of the uplighters that usually shone on the stonework highlighting the dents and striations of the stonemason’s tools. As they reached Dougie’s old Land Rover Defender 110, parked just outside the front, Kerr made contact with the police.

‘They’re contacting Mountain Rescue now and a squad car is on its way to Ben Blair,’ he told them when the call had ended.

21

There was no let-up in the storm by the time they reached the base of Ben Blair, and with the exception of the headlights and the periodic lightning flashes it was pitch-black outside. As Dougie pulled his vehicle to a stop, a Mountain Rescue four-by-four vehicle pulled up alongside them, followed by a police car and an ambulance.

Olivia’s breathing became erratic, and she felt the colour drain from her face. ‘Oh, God, I can’t believe this is happening.’

Dougie reached and took her hand. ‘It’s okay, hen, my lad is a tough cookie after all he’s been through. He’ll get out of this. I know he will. Now take deep breaths. You’re getting married next weekend, remember? He won’t be missing his own wedding to the love of his life.’

His words made Olivia’s eyes well with tears. She couldn’t speak, she simply nodded.

Dougie clenched his jaw, clearly fighting his own emotions. ‘Now come on, let’s get out and find Brodie, eh?’

They got out of the Land Rover as the Mountain Rescue did the same and a woman in a bright red jacket and white crash helmet approached them. There was an insignia of a mountain on the sleeve of her coat. ‘Hi, I’m Morven McKenna, I’m going to be heading up the search.’ She reached out her hand and Olivia shook it.

‘Olivia MacBain. Thank you so much for coming.’ Her voice wavered as she spoke, and her stomach churned.

Kerr slipped his arm around Olivia’s shoulders. ‘I’m Kerr, Olivia’s brother. We appreciate you getting here so fast.’

Morven smiled. ‘No problem. It’s what we’re here for. What can you tell me about where Brodie might be and his reason for being on the mountain?’

Olivia took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. ‘He… he left the castle this morning with the intention of mapping one of the trails on Ben Blair. He’s writing a hiking guide, you see. But I’ve no idea where he went or which trail.’ Olivia’s heart thumped as her lack of knowledge sank in. ‘I should have asked for exact details. I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I didn’t ask for more information… an… an exact location,’ she said, more to herself than anyone else. ‘It was stupid of me.’

Morven smiled reassuringly. ‘Don’t worry, we’re very experienced in search and rescue, Olivia. And you couldn’t have known what was going to happen with the storm. That’s the one predictable thing about Scottish weather, it’s unpredictable.’

‘Hi, Dougie MacLeod, Brodie’s dad. Just to let you know, he may have a golden retriever with him or somewhere nearby. His name’s Wilf. The other dog who was with them today arrived home a short while ago absolutely drenched and crying. Looked quite shaken, poor wee thing.’

Morven nodded. ‘Thanks for that, Mr MacLeod. We’ll look out for the dog too. It may be that Brodie is injured and the intention of the returning dog was to try and get help or at least alert you that something was wrong. It worked. They have amazing instincts. The other dog – Wilf, was it? If it’s his own dog, it may not want to leave his side. We’ve seen that happen before. They have a very protective nature too.’

Another Mountain Rescue vehicle arrived, and the crew jumped out, dressed in the same gear.

‘Where should we start looking?’ Olivia asked, her heart in her mouth but her legs trembling and weak.

Morven reached out and touched her arm. ‘The best thing you can do is wait here by the vehicle and let us do our job. Wilf may turn up and a friendly face will be good for him. The last thing we need is for more people to end up in difficulty on the mountain. It’s a vast place and can be treacherous in this weather. I know you want to be out there looking but you can be more help staying down here where you can get signal. Just in case. Okay?’

PC Sherburn arrived at her side. ‘It’s okay, Lady Olivia, we’ve got this,’ she told her in that inimitable broad Yorkshire accent. ‘His rescue, if that’s what it needs to be, is in the best possible hands.’ It was good to see a friendly, familiar face under the circumstances.

Olivia’s eyes stung and her chin trembled. ‘We’re getting married next weekend. I just want him home safe.’