[piosenniel]

Child's post

Stoatie reluctantly opened one eye and then the other, yanked on his boots, and slipped a tattered shirt over his head while trying to ignore the pounding at the base of his neck and the queasy sensation in his stomach. Why hadn't the men awakened him when Boss returned? He'd been asleep for several hours.

He plodded over to the doorway and kicked it ajar barking out his displeasure. What he saw surprised him. The afternoon sun shone bright above his head, spilling its rays over onto the hard-baked earth and sending up sizzling waves of heat. Boss had apparently not arrived yet, even though several hours had passed. Used to the dreary recesses of the cabin with its windows securely boarded over, Stoatie instinctively blinked narrowing his eyes to shut out the blinding rays of light. Then he recovered and strode outside.

"Shifty!" he yelled beckoning one of the guards across the road. "Where's Boss? Still nothin'?"

Shrugging his shoulders, the thug responded, "Nuthin'. Not a sign of 'em anywhere."

Stoatie growled, "And what are the men doin'?"

"The usual. Drinkin', swearin', and gatherin' up weed in the fields. Sometimes stopin' to smoke it." Shifty's face surfaced with a wide grin.

Stoatie hated a situation like this. He was good at sneaking and killing but organizing men was far beyond his natural skills. Still, he had a feeling if Ferny had been here, he'd be keeping a closer eye on things.

He cursed his bad luck and mentally kicked himself, then turned around to threaten Shifty. "Git goin' now! You and me is gonna make the rounds of camp to make sure things are right. They'll be dickens to pay if Boss comes back and finds everyone smokin' weed and layin' down drunk!"

A little voice nagged insistently at the back of Stoatie's head. What would happen if Boss didn't come back? Maybe he'd gotten what he wanted and couldn't be bothered with Stoatie. Maybe Ferny had hightailed it with the money and jewels and left Stoatie with nothing at all.

Stoat tightened his grip on the hilt of the sword which he'd belted around his waist. Those brats would pay, he vowed. Every one of them. Those brats would pay for his misfortune. If Ferny didn't return by tomorrow morning, it was likely he was never coming back. Taking care of a plantation filled with pipeweed was not something that interested Stoatie in the slightest even if there were profits involved. In that case, if Boss had deserted him without his promised reward, he'd at least have a little fun with those caterwauling brats before he rode out for good and hauled along that feisty Bird.

He said nothing about this to Shifty, merely ordering him to bring the horses round so they could make the rounds of the fields and various senttry points. Then the two men mounted up and went out to have a look at how things were going with the rest of the gang.

[ July 18, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]