Free Evergreen Falls by Kimberley Freeman

wandered off, biting into the juicy orange, down towards the escarpment.
    Violet stopped under a swaying gum tree and caught her breath. The view that unfolded before her was spectacular. The ancient valley, carved into sedimentary rock faces of gray, red, and brown, bristling with leaves of every shade of green, stretched in front of her for miles and miles and miles. Clouds made dark shape-shifting shadows in the distance, and she could see the flash of sun off the famous Falls. It would be far too cold to swim. Wouldn’t it? She had hours before her next shift.
    A gentle slope led down into the valley. Myrtle had told her that if she took any path, she would eventually come to a sign that showed which direction to take: to the Falls; to the farms at the bottom of the mountain that sent their fresh produce straight up on a flying fox; or to the next towns along the range.
    “You mustn’t be late for your first proper shift, Violet,” she said to herself as she started down the path.
    Because so many guests at the Evergreen Spa came for the health-giving benefits of spa water, fresh air, and physical activity, good money had been spent making the paths clear and wide. She followed the way down until she came to the painted wooden fingerpost that showed her where to go next. As she finished her orange, she studied the sign. Then she wiped her sticky fingers on the grass and headed off towards the Falls.
    Violet found herself mostly in the shade, and wished she’d broughta jacket. Under the long sleeves of her dress she could feel goose bumps rising on her arms. She hugged herself and rubbed her upper arms, hoping that the path would turn her into the sun shortly.
    The path wound down, up, and around—through eucalypts and ferns—and she was glad she was wearing her low-heeled work shoes. Bellbirds and kookaburras called from the shadowy growth on either side of her. The day grew very quiet, apart from her footfalls. The activity warmed her, and then the path turned into the sun and she could see the Falls in the distance, gleaming.
    She stopped, eyes wide. A man was standing very still in the sunshine on a large flat rock beside the Falls and, unless she was very much mistaken, he was completely naked.
    Violet hung back in the trees, heart thudding. Was he some kind of madman? Was he dangerous?
    She peeked again. He was still a long way away. He looked young but old enough to know better, and, yes, he hadn’t a stitch on.
    Deciding she was well hidden by trees, she moved forwards, in and around until she came out on the next bend, with a clearer view.
    There he was, about three hundred yards away across the valley, arms up above his head. He had very dark hair, pale skin, a well-shaped body, a pleasing symmetry about his face, though she couldn’t see any detail in it. She imagined his eyes must be closed, and he was simply enjoying the feel of sun on his bare skin. She envied him his freedom, his lack of care.
    But she certainly couldn’t go down to the Falls while a naked man stood there, so, with more than a little disappointment, she made her way back to work.
    *  *  *
    Flora dressed carefully in a cream wool dress and fur stole. She very much wanted the doctor to think well of her. The shameof being related to an opium addict was not something she wore lightly.
    She fixed her fair hair in the mirror. So many pins. Flora didn’t have a single friend with long hair anymore. They’d all had it cut short, into sharp bobs or chin-length finger waves. Perhaps she was old-fashioned.
    Flora laid down her brush and leaned close to the mirror, so close her breath fogged it. Please let today go well . She had approached Karl, the Swiss health expert who ran the program here at the Evergreen Spa, and politely inquired as to the whereabouts of a good, discreet doctor in the area. He had recommended Dr. Dalloway, about five minutes away by motorcar, on the other side of the train line, and had duly made her an