Finding Maggie

Chapter Eight - The Vote

"I know. I'm sorry. I heard them start to panic and just wanted to help. I felt like they were calling to me, they needed me."

"Those horses don't need you, Margret. Now be quiet and lay down, you need to rest." Maggie nodded and obeyed, feeling her eyes close the moment her head touched the pillow. Mikhail rose from the bed and pushed the remaining women from the door before closing it and twisting a key into the lock. He didn't really want to lock Margret in, more so wanted to lock the others out. "Come." Mikhail growled to Tula, Ada, and Ira. The three women lowered their heads and followed behind him in silence as he stormed back down to the dining-room.

Once Mikhail was seated back into his chair at the head of the table, he waited for the eleven to all take their seats. The room was deathly silent as they all stared at him with either fear or sympathy. Mikhail felt the burning fire rise into his core, but pushed it away. Now was not the time for anger, now was the time for leadership.

"I have had enough with all of you." Mikhail spoke barely above a whisper as to not lose control of his temper. "I do not interfere with your duties and here I sit with one goal which must be achieved and all of you insist on making things as difficult for me as you possibly can. Which one of you was it?" Mikhail let his eyes move around the table, watching the women with a deadly glare. The men all leaned back into their chairs, knowing they were not part of this conversation. None of the women dared look back at Mikhail; instead they all looked at each other and began to whisper amongst themselves.

"Silence!" Mikhail roared. "I do not want another word from anyone unless it is to admit your guilt."

Finally, after several minutes of eerie silence, Vana slowly lifted her hand from her lap. Mikhail was on top of her in seconds, wrapping his hands around her neck and squeezing as hard as humanly possible. Everyone else in the room knew he wouldn't kill her so they let him have his moment of fury and kept their heads down to stare at the table. There were times when Mikhail could be a bit cruel and punishment was his specialty. It was simply wisest to try and stay out of the fray and let him have his tantrum.

Finally, Mikhail rose, hauling Vana up with him like a rag doll. The outlines of his large hands were painfully welted around her neck and it didn't take her long to pull her mirror from the pocket in her dress and scream from the sight that reflected back. "How dare you?" She wailed, stomping her foot on the tiled floor. "Look at me! I'm absolutely horrid looking!"

"Sit." Mikhail calmly said, as he himself took up his chair once more.

"But you don't understand. How can I-" The whine that came from her lips was enough to make Mikhail want to repeat the strangulation all over again.

"I said sit." Mikhail's voice came out like thunder, shaking the very table at which everyone sat. Hearing the tone in  his voice, Vana plopped herself down, pouting as she desperately tried to hide her red and purple welts behind her hands. "You all know this has to happen." Mikhail spoke again, returning his attention back to the entire room. "Now I have been searching for longer than I can remember and I'm honestly growing tired of it. Either give me Margret or find yourselves a new prince. Either way, I'm sure none of you will be happy."

"Sire, may I just make one point?" Colonel Connor chimed in as he sat back up into his chair. The other three men mimicked his movement and silently rejoined the conversation. Mikhail nodded his head once and allowed the colonel speak freely. "I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we do not intend to cause you undue hardship. However, my lord, I believe that many of us are concerned about her purity. She seems rather, how can one put this, angelic."

Mikhail sat back and mused for a moment over Maggie's demeanor. "She has her faults." Mikhail said, still envisioning himself half naked in her bedroom. "Believe me when I say that she is far from pure." Connor nodded his head, accepting his answer for what it was. The women seemed far less sure, but kept their mouths shut anyway. "Shall we vote?" Mikhail sat back up in his chair, eager to have this entire night over and done with.