Needs of the Empire by Christopher Mitchell

Author:Christopher Mitchell [Mitchell, Christopher]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781912879083
Amazon: 1912879093
Barnesnoble: 1912879093
Publisher: Brigdomin Books Ltd
Published: 2019-05-29T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

The Offer

S lateford, Rahain Republic – 20 th Day, Last Third Autumn 506

Killop’s boots crunched on the gravel surface of the road. The sun was shining through a gap in the thick clouds, and a chill mountain wind scoured the valley. He turned a corner and heard the sound of children playing. Loud squeals echoed through the trees, and he walked into a clearing, where the nursery had been built. There was still snow on the ground after the heavy fall on his birthday six days before, and the Kellach children were running through it, laughing.

He caught sight of Draewyn, who was chatting to a few other supervisors.

They fell silent as he approached, although one or two smiled at him.

‘Good morning,’ he said.

‘Morning, Chief,’ said Draewyn. ‘What can we do for you?’

‘Wondered if you had five minutes.’

‘Sounds serious,’ she said, glancing at the other nursery staff.

‘Can we go inside for a moment?’

‘Aye, Chief,’ she said. ‘This way.’

He followed her into the big timber hall and through a door to her small office .

‘I think you know what this is about,’ he said, as she sat behind her desk.

‘Honestly, I have no idea.’

He smiled. He wasn’t going to get angry, he told himself. He sat.

‘Will we start with why you’ve stopped attending our morning meetings?’

She pursed her lips. ‘I’ve been so busy, and if I can speak frankly, I’m not sure what the point of them is.’

‘You don’t have to attend every one,’ he said, ‘but it’s been six days. You’ve not even sent a deputy, which you agreed to do if you were too busy to come.’

‘I don’t think it’s right to force anyone to go.’

‘Force? Come on, it’s a meeting, not a battle. Bridget works her arse off to arrange everything. The least you could do is send someone, if you can’t be bothered coming yourself.’

She glared at him.

He paused, and took a breath.

‘Is there another reason?’

‘What do you mean?’ she said.

‘It’s not just the meetings, is it? You’ve been avoiding us.’

‘Who’s “us”?’

‘Me. Bridget.’ He paused. ‘Daphne.’

Draewyn’s eyes narrowed.

‘Daphne,’ he said. ‘That’s what I thought.’

Draewyn said nothing.

‘You holding a grudge?’ he asked.

‘No.’

‘You just don’t like her, then?’

‘I’m sure she’s a lovely girl,’ she said. ‘And I’ve tried, Chief, I honestly have. But you can’t make me sit in the same room as her, it’s not fair.’

‘What?’

‘And I’m not the only one who feels that way,’ she said, her features hardening. ‘Many of the lassies here are scared of her. How can I ask them to go to a meeting when she’ll be there? ’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘She reads minds, Chief,’ Draewyn said. ‘No one’s thoughts are private when she’s there. When you’re with her your mind goes blank, and all you can think about is that she might be inside your head, rooting through your secrets and memories.’

Killop fell silent.

‘I would have thought, Chief,’ she went on, ‘that you’d know this better than most. Do you not think, after what happened over Larissa, that she’d want to

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