Silence Farm

Excerpt from Silence Farm

A few rooks, flying low in scattered return, passed like blown leaves. But there was no wind. Across the seemingly breathless moors not a sound crept into the brooding still ness, except the wearisomely incessant croak ing of frogs. Near, Margaret Gray could hear nothing save the heavy breathing of the kye, the sudden scratching of rats, the dull rest less noise of shifting hoofs, the soft scrunch ing of silky ?anks against smooth wood. When there was nothing left of all the broken wreck Of flame but a single blood  red splatch, like a windy pennon over a lost field, Margaret abruptly moved. A loud, stertorous breathing within the byre had caught her ear. She had already finished the milking the dung, too, had been swept into the byre gutter. There was no more to see to than Whiteleaf, the new southland cow that was heavy with calf.