Thatcher awoke abruptly as Ruataupare kicked her bedroom door in.
"Jesus fuck, Ruataupare!", Thatcher shot upright and rubbed her eyes.
It was at least eleven in the morning.
"What the fuck did you do with Magnus!?", Ruataupare barreled down on Thatcher.
"You know I haven't slept in almost two days, right?".
"I could give a flying fuck about your lack of sleep, Thatcher! You're taking Magnus?!".
"I offered her a job, yeah".
"And you know she won't go without Rena. So, I'm losing both of them!", Ruataupare stood at the end of Thatchers' bed and hissed.
"It's their life!", Thatcher shot back, scowling intensely.
Ruataupare pulled her tattooed lips into her mouth, frowning - "you knew what you were doing", her tone tamped down slightly.
"What's that? Giving Magnus a blank slate with which she can create the world she always wanted?", Thatcher chucked down the bed.
"You're taking the people I've had by my side for the last two years, Thatcher", Ruataupares' voice cracked, "the two people who helped me through everything that's happened".
"Yeah, well, you took the person I needed the most away from me when I needed her the most", Thatcher looked down at the blanket.
Ruataupare gulped.
"I'm not going through this again, I'm not standing here and justifying why I didn't come and see you".
"I'm not asking you to. I'm asking you to tell me it won't happen again", Thatcher looked back up, staring stoically.
Ruataupare sighed.
"I...", Ruataupare trailed off.
"Tell me you're not leaving me again", Thatcher demanded.
"Where can I go? Motueka is gone. All I've got is you", Ruataupare sounded fairly bitter.
"Fuck that", Thatcher waved her off, "I mean it. Tell me you're my friend. Tell me you aren't going to leave me again. Tell me you're by my side".
Ruataupare trembled delicately, "what about Magnus and Rena?".
"I'm not in control. I made an offer. Magnus took it. Tell me you're by my side", Thatcher refused to divert the conversation elsewhere.
Ruataupare kept her eyes held on Thatcher.
"I'm by your side".
"Then Magnus and Rena leaving shouldn't bother you. They're working for us. Not for me. Gossfordshire will always be open for them as a through road", Thatcher cocked her head.
A sigh from Ruataupare, "yeah", she nodded, acquiescing, "you're right. Us, not me. Not you. Both of us".
"Good. I'll meet you downstairs shortly, we've got a day of it", Thatcher announced, swinging her bare legs from under the covers.
Grayson awoke in his Domus in Little Motueka, the sounds of shouting rousing him.
An immediate sense of dread flooded Grayson as he rose.
Throwing the blanket to a side, he hopped out of bed clad in only his underwear.
From a pile on the floor, he jumped into his black burlap pants, tossed on his robe, tied his sheath around his waist, and left the bedroom.
His sword lay on his bed, a mistake he would quickly come to regret.
Turning into the hall, Grayson approached the front door and left the Domus.
Out on the street, he caught a glimpse of Ikime bolting from his own house, shooting towards the smelting shack.
Grayson took chase, following tightly behind Ikime as they turned onto the main strip in the village square where the smelting shack resided.
Once the smelting shack was in view, it became immediately apparent what was going on.
The five Gossfordshire Guardsmen (lead by Elton) had corralled the smelters in a circle, the Guards holding them at swordpoint.
Grayson, Ikime, and Asper headed towards the shouty mass from opposing directions.
"ELTON!", Grayson shouted at the man heading the bullying charge, "STAND DOWN".
In the center of the mass, Poe held his family close. Elena, his wife, protected the two young children; Heron and Nick.
The other smelting house workers surrounded the children, shielding them from the roaring guardsman.
"What the fuck's going on?!", Asper cried out.
"You", he swung the sword haphazardly towards Ikime, "here, now!", he beckoned Ikime towards him.
"No!", Grayson yelled between Ikime and Grayson.
Shouts and murmurs filled the air, making it nearly impossible to speak without shouting.
Upwards of forty people stood huddled in the middle of the street, shuffling nervously, watching sword tips.
"NOW!", Elton shouted, spraying Elena with spit.
Ikime moved unsurely towards Elton, hands raised.
"ELTON STAND DOWN!", Grayson shouted once more.
"YOU TOO!", Eltron beckoned Grayson forward.
"LET THEM GO!", Grayson put back.
"YOU COME, THEY GO!", Elton returned.
Grayson surveyed the scene.
"Move off the road, go towards the house - ALL OF YOU!", Grayson shouted at the five armed Guardsmen, "And I'll do what you want".
Elton looked at Grayson with disdain, before relenting.
"I want you, and you, too", Elton pointed first at Asper, and then to Poe, respectively.
Both Poe and Asper took a step forward.
Elton nodded to the Guardsmen, non-verbally instructing them to move towards the smelting house.
As they moved away from the group of people in the road, the group themselves shared a collective sigh of relief.
Once Elton and the four Guards were at the doorstep, Poe, Grayson, Ikime, and Asper followed them.
Elton pushed the door open allowing the others inside.
On the road, the group fanned out - not one of them seemed to notice Wolesley watching from the opposite side of the road.
YOU ARE READING
The Toils (Book Two)
Historical Fiction"Magnus gave a brief thought to Thatcher, somewhere in the deep south, surely over the Cold Country border by now" Thatcher has a lot on her plate. The skies have grown black, the ground is shaking, crops are dying and aquifers are drying up. Her op...
