Free The Blind Eye by Georgia Blain Page B

take too much of his time.
    You are in the same field?
Rudi asked.
    Silas saw him reach for his keys.
I am interested in plants
.
    It is not just plants we use
. Rudi was at the gate now, fumbling with the lock.
It is anything and everything. That is the wonder of it
.
    Silas agreed eagerly, knowing that Constance was listening, her eyes on him, not seeing him, but assessing him, judging him. He turned to her, the gate clanging shut behind him.
    You’ve grown all this?
he asked, taking one step closer to her and then, stunned by a rich sweet perfume that seemed to cling to her, he pulled back.
    Somehow she was aware that it was her, and not her father, he had been addressing and she smiled, amused.
They are the ones that do the growing
. Her eyes held his.
    I had heard how extraordinary this place was
, his words came out in a rush as he attempted to keep her attention,
but I never expected anything like this
.
    Her smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and it was Rudi who spoke.
You have read my articles?
    Silas could not take his eyes from Constance as he lied.
Some
.
    And you write for?
    Different publications
. He was aware that Constance was still facing him, and he remembered, with some relief, that she would not be able to see the rush of crimson across his cheeks.
    He turned to her;
I have never seen you in town
.
    I don’t go there
. Her tone was dismissive, and then she touched her father’s arm gently as she said that she would leave them to talk.
    Come
, Rudi beckoned.
    The path that led to the shack was shaded by trees. The light fell in dancing pools at Silas’s feet as he followed, reluctantly. He had never seen such a place: the gentle sway of the branches against the clear blue sky, the soft rustle of the leaves, the sweetness of the flowers that clung to him as he passed, the damp velvet of their petals smooth against his skin; it was intoxicating.
    Everything I built myself
, Rudi told him proudly.
Everything I found, nothing was bought. This stove
, and he pointed to an old Kooka that took up most of the kitchen annex,
just thrown out
.
    Imbeciles
, and he waved his hand impatiently to indicate the outside world.
New, new, new, that is all they want. They are killing this land with their greed for new. It is dying on them. But do they listen? Pah
, and he shrugged his shoulders in exasperation.
    Through the window, Silas could see her. She was adjusting a temporary shade rigged over one of the garden beds, long tassels of brilliant pink flowers falling around her (
love-lies-bleeding
, she was to tell him later), pausing for a moment to feel the direction of the sun before turning back to the task.
    This
, and Rudi pointed to the garden,
shows what can be done. When we came here, after the others left, it was all sick, diseased, but now it grows
.
    As Silas stepped away from the window, he noticed that smell once again, the fullness of the perfume that had clung to Constance also pervading the closeness of the shack. He looked for flowers, but there were none.
    There was only one room, two single beds, a table and two chairs, but despite the lack of furniture, the place was cluttered. There were books everywhere, Silas had never seen so many: piled high on the stove, the floor, stacked into the few shelves that had been rigged along the walls, they filled the place.
    We will talk
, and Rudi pulled out the chair, clearing a small space at the table for him.
    Has she always been blind?
Silas turned back to where Constance worked, the pale blue of her shirt shining soft against the brilliance of the day.
    She sees. More than you or I will ever see
.
    Unaware that they were watching her, she stood, slowly stretching herself in the shade, her face turned up towardsthe clear arc of the sky, and Silas was certain he could see her smile.
    She has the art
. Rudi wrapped his fingers around Silas’s arm.
All of my knowledge I have given to her. But she has more than that
. He looked out to her, his eyes