Chapter 3 The Swines

• Joshua's POV
• My father had been casted out from the kingdom several years ago when he was found gulity of being unfaithful to his wife, my mother. His contribution to the home was greater than mother's so it became a burden to her and to myself when the breadwinner of the family was no more. He worked as a fisherman and fish was the island's main dish. Mom never talked about him. I often wondered if she atleast thought about him or misses him but I couldn't find the correct words to commence such a conversation with her.
• For an extra source of income, my mother and I were rearing pigs. We would slaughter them and have the meat exported to the neighbouring islands for I have followed in my father's footsteps when it came to the sea. It was a secret and a great risk because pigs were strictly forbidden for consumption in the kingdom and anyone found guilty of such, would be punished or even worse.
• My heart was leaping out of my chest as my mother and I raced home. Upon arrival, we headed to the back of our tiny house and tried to shepard the pigs out of the barn.
• "Mother, what are we going to do once the pigs are out of the barn, where can we hide them?"
• "We cannot hide them anymore. We just have to drive them over the cliff before the soliders get here."
• "How much time do we have?"
• "I don't know, Joshua, not enough, so just keep quiet and get them out of here."
• "Yes,maam."
• "Now, Joshua, you listen here. Get this group of pigs over the cliff and you run away and hide yourself until this blows over. Do you hear me, son?"
• "You want me to leave you?"
• "Yes. Yes, I do. I cannot lose you so you need to run. Go right now!"
• Our livestock of pigs had grown over the months so we were having difficulties with rounding up and getting rid of the animals. In the distance, we heard the gallop of horses hooves and their neighings as they approached.
• "Mom! They're here!" I yelled out to my mother from the edge of the cliff. Almost half of our livestock had already plummeted to their death in the sea down below.
• "STOP! IN THE NAME OF THE KING!" a solider exclaimed as he dismounted his horse. A group of other soilders all of their respective horses arrived and surrounded my mother. I hurried back to her side. Her horrific eyes turned into anger when she looked at me, aware that I had disobeyed her wishes.
• "I told you to run," she mouthed.
• "I'm not leaving you," I mouthed back.
• Another horse arrived and the soliders parted the way like the Red Sea. In rode Victor.
• "Well, well, well. What have we here?" he asked as he came down from his horse and lpoked around. Several pigs still squealed in a frenzy around us and Victor motioned to the soilders to kill them with their arrows, swords and spears. Then his eyes locked onto my mother and I.
• "You two! You know it is against the law to rear swines. What have you to say for yourselves?" Victor questioned.
• My mother and I remained silent.
• "Mmhhm," Victor sounded, "So you've nothing to say. Very well then," he added then snapped his fingers. Two soilders dragged my mother and I to the center of the back yard and we watched as two other soliders retreived their whips.
• "Whip them until there's blood," Victor ordered and the soilders attacked my mother and I in a rage of hits. My mother tried to cover me with her body but she was pulled away and I received the shares of my blows on every area of my body. My mother's screaming was the worst pain of it all because there was nothing I could have done to save her. In my peripheral vision, I saw when my mother took a tumble, landing face first, and the soilders took pleasure in whipping her on the back, cutting her skin through her dress.
• "MAMA!" I yelled for my mother right before a whip cut me on the chest.
• Tears rolled down my eyes as I fell to my knees in front of the soilder. He smiled a wicked smile and rose the whip again.. But the commotion stopped when another horse arrived.
• "YOU'RE TO CEASE IMMEDIATELY!"
• My best friend, who also happened to be the Princess, had arrived. She dismounted her horse.
• "You've no business here!" Victor shouted at her.
• "You just try to stop me," she cautioned him.
• "Do not interfere, Princess," Victor said.
• "Watch me do just that," Ariana fired back and snatched the whips from the soilders. She threw them aside then looked at me with tearfilled eyes before looking at my mother.
• "These two people, your friends, have committed a crime against the law. Swines are forbidden! They know that! Everyone knows that! And you dear get in the middle of this?" Victor was irrate as he pointed to the dead pigs around us.
• "I don't care. You're dare not order another whip to these people. You may be my father's first man but I am your Princess or need I remind you to check the rank book," Ariana said with authority.
• "Your father.."
• "Is absent," Ariana interrupted him. Victor grimaced at her but he motioned for the soilders to get back on their horses.
• "The King would hear of this. All of this!" he said once again then got back on his horse and rode out with the soilders at his tail.
• _______
• Ariana stayed behind and helped my mother and I to our feet. She fetched cloths and water and tried her all to clean us up as the tears rolled down her face.
• "I'm so sorry," she said.
• "It's not your fault," I managed to speak.
• "What can I do?" she asked.
• "You've already done enough. We cannot ask more of you," my mother said to her next.
• "Knowing Victor, he's anticipating my father's arrival so he can come back here and torch your home to the ground. He would want more blood so my advice for you two is to leave for an atoll until this is behind us. Joshua, I'll miss you like crazy. I'll write to you, I promise, but you cannot stay on this island."
• "We understand. Thank you."
• "I'll have some treats and food send over for your journey ahead."
• "Thank you, for everything."
• "You're welcome."
• I held her hand in mine, it was like I was seeing my best friend for the first time in forever. She was beautiful. Her soft blue eyes seemed to carry sparks for they were luminous. Her hair framed her face and complimented her bone structure almost too perfect. Thoughts ran through my mind. I wanted to kiss her but I dismissed that idea. She was my friend and I was certain she saw me only as such.
• Her father would never accept me and there were chitchats about him finding a match for his daughter.