Mr. Chambers paced his office, both hands tightly clutched behind his back. He couldn't remember the last time he had been separated from his beloved daughter, much less for such a period of time. Never did he imagine such a string of events. Never did he imagine his own daughter being made a slave by that-that beast!
He could only imagine what that man was doing to his poor defenseless daughter. The entire reputation was ruined by this point. He wouldn't be able to find her a good husband unless he searched far, far away from Mabelle. After all that's transpired, he wasn't sure if he wanted his daughter to be so far away from him.
"Sir?" One of the younger workers stuck her head in, her brows creased in worry. "I-I knocked but..."
Mr. Chambers nodded his head, ignorant of the scowl on his lips. The girl shuffled awkwardly, opening the door wider for his second-oldest son, Lysander. He was tall and slender, just broad enough in his shoulders to tell his past as a boxer during his school days. His green eyes were similar to Juliet's, but his dark hair was nothing close to her blonde locks.
"Ah, Ly my boy! What took you so long?" The two men shook hands and embraced, trying to shake off the tension in the room. Lysander was supposed to show up months ago now, but he had a duty to protect his wife and daughter first. He loved his father and his sister, truly he did, but his role as a husband and a father came first.
"Louisa was feeling under the weather. Her mother refused to let me leave until she was feeling better. You know how Lottie is, always worrying." Lysander smiled as he spaced himself out from his father, shaking his head as he remembered his wife's pleas for his delay in travel. Even after little Louisa was better his wife forced him to stay, worried about a relapse, and having to face the worst outcome alone.
"Yes, I remember when Lottie was younger. She was always one to worry over the smallest of things," the elder of the two men took a seat at his desk, waiting for the younger to follow suit. He was stressed enough as it was, but he could not hold it against his son or his daughter-in-law. "But I have my own daughter to worry about. I'm afraid for her safety."
Lysander nodded his head as he pulled his briefcase out from under him and onto the desk. He unlocked the case and began to shuffle through several papers, finally settling on a stack. He began to straighten them before he spoke once more.
"You reached out to me because a Mister Vincent McCoy took a Miss Juliet Chambers as collateral for a loan made by a Mister Joshua Hayes, whose only relation to Miss Chambers is through his wife, Mrs. Ophelia Chambers Hayes, correct?" Mr. Chambers nodded his head, eagerly awaiting his son to finally get into the gritty details behind it all. He knew everything else, he knew his son could handle this, but he needed to be sure that his daughter would be safe and under his care sooner rather than later.
"I'm only a lawyer, but I think we have a case. A good case." Lysander turned the stack of papers around, pointing his pen around a circled section on the top of the first page. The older man leaned closer, squinting his eyes to read the print carefully.
"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."
"Juliet did nothing wrong and was not convicted even if she did. The punishment she was given goes against both the thirteenth and eighth amendments. I can get her out of there easily, but the debt Joshua owes... That's another story." Lysander leaned back into the leather chair, not taking his eyes off his father. He studied the man, not liking the ill visage he was seeing. "I'm assuming that's why you let her go, to begin with."
The man had aged over the course of Juliet's absence. His hair was in a disarray and appeared to be lacking all color. His face was ashier, his cheeks were white and sunken, and his eyes lacked all joy. It was as if his entire world had come crashing down once more.
Lysander hadn't seen his father so distraught since his mother died seventeen years ago.
"I had some funds set aside years ago in case something like this happened. It may not pay off the debt, but it can cover a good bit of it." Lysander wrote down what his father said, offering to go to the bank to find out the exact numbers. He had just arrived after his long journey, and he was extremely tired, but he could handle making a few visits before he relaxed in his room.
"We have options then," Lysander began to pack away his papers, letting his brain come up with whatever solutions it could reach. "I can start by visiting Mr. McCoy and discussing the lawful wrong he has done, and the payment we can reach. He can either take the money and let Juliet go, or deal with the court. If all goes well, then Juliet will be home before the end of the month."
Lysander met his father's eyes for the first time, letting the emptiness reach his soul. He was a kind man, good to others. He can't be good and kind to Vincent McCoy. He has to let his anger and rage and sadness build up enough to put up a good fight for his sister's freedom.
~~
"Mr. McCoy is not in right now." The man spoke firmly, not leaving any space for arguments.
"Yes, but when will he be back in?" Lysander tapped his foot impatiently, twirling his hat in his hands before moving to wipe the sweat off his forehead. He rode his horse into town to go to the bank and decided to pay a visit to his enemy's house to find his sister. "Surely he'll be back soon!"
The wrinkled man sighed, shaking his head at the question. "I'm afraid that isn't so. Mr. McCoy has gone up North after a nasty case of heatstroke. He may be back in a couple of weeks or a couple of months. I really don't know. If you would like for me to call on you when he returns, then that can be arranged, however, nothing can be done at this moment."
Lysander quit tapping his foot and began to eye the scene around him. "Mr. McCoy is out of the house? Then surely Miss Chambers is here! May I speak with her? It is urgent - absolutely fundamental that I speak with her this instant!"
Lysander surged forward a few steps, peering up the staircase as if his sister would magically appear around the corner and come rushing down the steps to greet him. Of course, she didn't appear and he was left looking like a mad man.
"Miss Chambers is not here either. She is attending to Mr. McCoy on his journey, keeping him in check and watching his health," a hand suddenly landed on Lysander's shoulder that silently bade him depart from the property. He took the silent warning and decided not to test the McCoy household's patience any further. "Is there a name and location that I may use to contact you when they return?"
Green orbs stared ahead in the house before the head that stored them shook. "Lysander Chambers, I will be staying with my father in the Chambers Plantation household. If I'm not there, then I'll be in the town. Good day."
Lysander exited the house swiftly, avoiding anyone who was nearby.
"Chambers? Did he say, Chambers?" Rosie questioned aloud from her hiding spot before running off in the direction LuLu was. Whoever that man was, it wasn't good. They never get visitors, and if a Chambers was coming by then it was worse than she imagined.
"LuLu! LuLu!" The old woman barely caught Rosie by the arms before the girl ran her over.
"What is this about? Runnin' round these halls like a mad man! Go on then, tell me what happened before I-"
"A man was here! Mr. Chambers! He said he wanted to speak with either Mr. McCoy or Miss Chambers! He looked very professional... like a lawyer or doctor or somethin'." Rosie scratched her head as she went off on her tangent. "He had the same green eyes as Juliet, so he must be related for sure-"
"Go on child, go back to your chores while I deal with this, okay?" LuLu shooed her off before turning around and heading towards the office space Vincent used during the day.
The door opened with a bit of persuasion, and the windows were soon uncovered from their curtains to let the last bit of sunlight filter in. LuLu silently went about her business, taking hold of some papers and Vincent's fountain pen before writing the quick note she had.
Trouble when you return. A young Mr. Chambers wished to speak with either you or Juliet. Be careful of what you do.
~LuLu
"Dylan! I have a letter I want you to take to town!" The man showed up in an instant, taking the note from LuLu. "Be sure it gets mailed as soon as possible. Understand?"
The young male nodded before making his way out the door. LuLu let out a sigh and leaned back, terrified of what was to come in the future.