The Toils (Book One)

XIV. Four Pillars

Waves crashed around their feet as Antonia and Riwai relinquished their grip around each other, huffing intently under the moonlight.
"Thanks...", Antonia sniffled, pulling her pants back over her skin to protect it from the chill.
"No problems", Riwai gave a cough, "thanks, to you, as well".
"Yeah well...", Antonia bobbed her head back and forth.
"You wanna come up and get some dinner?", Riwai brushed the sand from his bottoms as he stood.
"Uh - I'm not really hungry but I'll come back up with you", Antonia stood, shaking herself to rid the sand from her clothes, "oh fuck!", she exclaimed, turning to face the bush.
Drew stood at the end of the path, watching them in disgust.
"It's not-", Antonia sprinted across the beach to Drew, trying to urge him to reconsider what he just saw.
"What the fuck are you doing, Antonia?", he spat to the sand.
"It isn't what it looks like!", Antonia puffed herself outward, Riwai jogged up behind her.
Drew looked between them, scrunching his face up.
"It looks like you and he just fucked", Drew jabbed Riwai in the chest with his forefinger.
"Back down", Riwai growled.
"No", Drew shook his head, "Thatcher and your leader are out there recruiting soldiers for the battle and you two are down here risking it all".
"How, Drew? How?", Antonia stepped forward.
"You're sleeping with the leader of the Motuekan Army, are you really so damn dense that you can't figure out how that might be dangerous to the cause?", Drew spat once more.
Antonia allowed this fact to sink in for a minute, Riwai stepped forth and answered for her - "he's right".
"What?", Antonia looked to Riwai, taken back a little.
"This was dumb, he's right", Riwai looked directly to her, "it was a stupid risk to take".
"Thank you", Drew too was stunned by this acknowledgment.
"It won't happen again", Riwai bowed his head, walking toward the path, "get rest, we're training again tomorrow", he called back to them, stepping into the bush and out of view.
"It won't happen again, right?", Drew pressed Antonia, waiting for Riwai to leave earshot completely.
"Are you really trying to tell me what to do?", Antonia looked at Drew unbelievingly.
"Antonia, we're going to war - why risk that?".
"I'm not standing here and explaining myself to you", Antonia brushed past him and moved to follow Riwais footsteps.

It was midnight by time Randall, Sean and the mob holding them captive pushed through the rioters outside the First House.
Randall was forced to his knees, as was Sean beside him.
Looking to the fifteenth floor, Randall caught sight of movement.
"Stay cool, let's just get this done", the hostage-taker leaned down and spoke gruffly into Randall's ears, speaking over the noise of chatter as the rioters closed in behind them, eager to get a gander at what was unfurling in front of the entrance to the house.
After a few tense minutes of waiting, Grayson and Wolesley finally broke through the barricades holding the main entranceway closed.
The standoff was on; Randall, Sean and the rioters vs Wolesley, Grayson and the guard, of who there weren't plenty. The distance between them was less than thirty feet, though given how intently everyone was staring at one another, you'd think they could see each other's pupils.
"You're outnumbered!", the hostage-taker called to Grayson and Wolesley.
"We're all armed!", Grayson called back, swallowing hard, steadying his nerves.
"We've got a fucking trebuchet!".
"And we've got high ground!", Grayson stood firm.
They glared back and forth, waiting for the hostage-takers to speak.
"We've got it loaded, we'll knock the high ground out from under you", the hostage-taker stepped forward, leaving Randall and Sean under the ward of the mob.
Grayson waved back Wolesley and the others, taking a step forth to meet the hostage-taker halfway between both mobs.
"What'd'ya want?", Grayson bit his lip angrily, knowing they had already lost.
"The food. Inside the house", the hostage-taker spoke shortly.
"You know that can't happen", Grayson responded, turning his head briefly.
" One word and that trebuchet gets hurled into the first two floors of the house, bringing it to the ground, and killing us all".
Grayson kicked his feet against the grass.
"You let them go, you can do what you want", Grayson relented.