TWO
767 Words
The Chief laughed. Cold. Arrogant.
“Lance?” he sneered. “That dead rat? Still dreaming about your coward husband? I have money. Power. My nephew serves in the Prescott Army. You think I fear your disgrace of a man?”
John groaned on the floor but still lifted his head. His voice, though weak, struck like steel.
“You’re filth,” he rasped. “Let her go, coward!”
But the Chief wasn’t done.
He tightened his grip on Evelyn again, raising his hand for another strike.
Then they heard voices and footseps from outside.
Guards and onlookers began to arrive at the compound. The commotion had drawn attention. And among them was Alister, striding with slow confidence, a cruel smirk on his lips.
Behind him, Nicholas followed, arms crossed, eyes cold.
The two officials that always backed up the Chief's wicked deeds.
The Chief didn’t back away. Instead, he straightened his clothes and addressed the gathering crowd with mock authority.
“This family refuses to pay their levy,” he announced. “They insulted me. Attacked me."
"The wife even tried to seduce me. Shameless woman."
Evelyn's hands flew to her mouth. "That's a.."
"The Coltons believe they’re above the law.” the Chief cut her off.
Alister tilted his head toward Evelyn, then at John, struggling to rise.
His eyes darkened. “These people need a lesson, Chief.”
Nicholas chuckled. “I say we take them to Memorial Hall. Let the whole district see what happens to those who defy authority.”
The Chief stroked his chin, nodding slowly.
“Yes… summon everyone. Let them witness how the Colton family will be dealt with.”
He didn’t need to say it twice. The guards moved in immediately.
The guards seized Evelyn and John roughly, dragging them toward the center of the compound.
Rachael came back from school. Her face was filled with panic as she saw the commotion in front of her house.
She knew it was the chief and his useless men.
Despite her size, she always put up a fight anytime they brought trouble to their doorstep.
“Mama! Grandpa!”
She ran toward them, but Alister stepped in front of her, his boots thudding ominously on the ground. He looked down at the girl with disdain.
“And this Colton brat,” he said, voice dripping with mock sympathy. “That mouth of yours will need discipline too.”
Two guards grabbed Rachael before she could even scream. She kicked, thrashed, fought—but they held her tight.
Evelyn shrieked, twisting in the guards’ arms. “No! Not my daughter! Leave her alone!”
Alister merely raised a brow. “Bring them all.”
The Chief watched the chaos with mild satisfaction, rubbing his bruised arm and sneering at the battered family.
“Let the people see what happens to debtors and troublemakers,” he muttered.
Within an hour, the Memorial Hall was filled.
The crowd gathered slowly at first, then thickened as news spread through the district like wildfire.
The Coltons were being punished.
Again.
Mothers pulled their children close. Elderly men folded their arms, watching with wrinkled faces full of pity—or resignation. A few younger men looked on with dark eyes, restless.
But no one moved.
No one dared speak.
The Chief sat high on his carved wooden throne, his bruised cheek red with humiliation and anger. Alister stood beside him, whip coiled in hand like a snake. Nicholas leaned against a pillar nearby, arms folded, clearly entertained.
The Coltons were dragged into the hall and shoved to the ground. Evelyn and John knelt together, both bruised and breathless. Rachael was pulled roughly to the center and held down.
A ripple of murmurs passed through the crowd as the girl struggled against the guards.
“She’s just a child…” someone whispered.
Alister stepped forward, the smug smile returning to his face.
He held up a grimy toothbrush and a rusty metal bucket filled with filthy water.
“Since the Coltons can’t afford their levy,” he announced, his voice loud enough to ring off the stone walls, “we’ve decided to be merciful.”
He turned to the crowd, eyes shining with sarcasm.
“Instead of the usual penalty, the girl will clean the entire hall. With this,” he held up the toothbrush.
Gasps broke out.
“That’ll take her all night!”
“She’s just a teenager!”
“It’s not right!”
The crowd stirred, shifting with discomfort.
Alister’s smile widened. He turned to Rachael and tossed the brush at her feet.
- Writer
