Red Hawk Rising

talked of his interest in mountaineering. For keeping fit, Alice said that she and Anne attended judo classes in Hexham. She asked if Andy had any interest in those sports. He said he had a little experience through the RAF but didn’t give any details. They chatted on, in between listening politely to John and Judith describing the ruins and talking of events, like the disappearance of the Ninth Legion when it went north of the Wall and never returned. Lance and Anne were similarly interested in all the history and suggested a quick visit to Vindolanda, not far away. Sensibly, John and Judith suggested that afterwards they go to Bardon Mill for afternoon tea and then a walk along the Tyne before returning to their home. The others agreed and they piled into the cars and headed to Bardon Mill. Being Sunday, the local pub was not open for business, having closed at 2.00 p.m., but a tea-room next door was open. Andy found himself being drawn to this young woman, Alice, and the feeling seemed to be mutual. Was it the rural atmosphere that he loved or was there something more? He felt it was the latter. To him, this was no ordinary young woman. The afternoon tea over, they headed down to the river bank. John and Judith excused themselves to go and visit a plant nursery, leaving the young people to their own devices. Dan and Margaret decided to go and look at the old church instead of a river walk. Soon Andy and Alice found themselves alone as Lance and Anne dallied by the bank to watch some ducks, an excuse to be alone. They came across some hazel trees and stopped to see if there were any nuts on it. Andy noticed some near the top of one of the trees and climbed up to get them. As he reached them and pulled them free of the branch, Anne yelled to him to throw them down. She jumped to catch them, full of laughter. Andy climbed down and went to look for a stone to crack the nuts open. They found a flat one and then a rock on the river bank. Sitting down they proceeded to break the shells and get the kernels to eat. Handing one to her, she took it and seemed to hold onto his hand, a look on her face that said something more than friendship. He found himself responding, wanting to hold her but refrained. To break the disturbing moment Andy turned and threw the shells into the River Tyne, watching them slowly sink, drifting downstream with the current. They ate the nuts, Andy thinking, ‘This is more than nuts, it’s crazy!’ He had known her only a few hours. As they looked at each other, Andy caught a movement in the tree and, turning, saw a red squirrel looking for nuts. He touched Anne’s arm and pointed toward the tree, putting his finger to his lips for her to be quiet. They grew still and as they watched the squirrel, Alice put her hand on his arm, entranced by the moment. He felt as though an electric current was running through his arm. The moment was broken by shouting. It was Lance calling to them to return. The squirrel disappeared, disturbed by the noise, and the tension broke. Andy helped Alice to her feet and as they started back, she put her hand in his and held it tight. He returned the pressure and looked at her. She smiled as she returned the look, happiness on her face and in her walk. When they neared the others, Alice let go of his hand and put her arm through his. Anne looked at her sister with a questioning look but received no response. The four of them walked back up to where the cars were parked. Dan and Margaret were nearby discussing church architecture while they saw John and Judith walking back with a couple of plants in pots. After a few words of greeting, they got into their respective cars and headed back to Corbridge, Judith using the Roman name of Corstopitum. Sensing something different about her daughter, Judith nudged her husband. John took the cue. “Andy, I used to know a solicitor in Newcastle years ago by the name of Hill. Any relation of yours?”
 “It may have been my father,” Andy replied. Questions and answers established that John and Andy’s father had known each other in their younger years of practice. John said that he would like to renew the contact and Andy said he would give the details when they got back to the house. In the back seat, Andy felt Alice squeezing his hand. Clearly, she was happy at the news. For Andy, it was all happening too quickly. In one sense he was elated but in another he wanted to get out of the car and disappear.
Back at the house, John opened the drinks cabinet and the men opted for a beer while the ladies opted for sherry. The ladies headed to the kitchen to prepare dinner while the men talked. John asked them about shooting and they all replied that they knew how to. “Good,” he said, and took them through to his study and showed them his gun rack. John said that he went out after rabbits and pigeons mainly. Occasionally he had been invited to a “shoot” for grouse but preferred the local wildlife. The rack contained a single and a double-barrelled shotgun, as well as a .22 rifle and an old Lee-Enfield .303. The young men were all familiar with the .303, it being a service rifle. John suggested that they come back one day and they’d go out looking for rabbits and pigeons. He said that Judith did a brilliant job of cooking them and they were good eating. There was a discussion on the different ways they had each tried to catch rabbits, with varying