Far from the mansion a tiny farm house lay near the mountains. This farmhouse was filled with music. The family members all sat around the one roomed house clapping as a young boy named Jade danced in the middle with his younger sister Caelo. Their grandmother sat in one of the two beds singing as loud as she could and clapping with the beat. Beside her was a toddler, a girl named Aria. She sat clapping and beaming around with that bright look only children an have. In the other bed was a sixteen year old girl named Trelyn sitting up and clapping along. Even the baby, in her crib, was jumping up and down to the music. For a while everyone looked bright and cheery, happy for the first time in weeks. Suddenly Trelyn began to cough. The music slowly ceased and the all looked worriedly at her. Jade sat beside her as she continued to cough.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"I'm fine," she replied. "Really,"
"I shouldn't have excited you." The grandmother said. "Everyone quiet now. Trelyn needs her rest."
Aria got up and went outside to play but Caelo looked at her grandmother with sad eyes.
"Will Trelyn ever get better?" She asked.
"Of course." Her grandmother reassured her.
"No she won't." Jade replied. Their grandmother turned quickly.
"Jade!"
"Not without medicine!" He continued. "She'll die like mother."
"We can't afford medicine." His grandmother snapped.
There was a long silence until Trelyn coughed a bit and then spoke.
"It's alright. I'm getting better. I can feel it."
With that the door opened and their father walked in. He took one look at Jade and sighed.
"Jade. i thought you were out tending the crops."
"I'm sorry father, I just heard them singing and I thought..."
"Jade I know its no fun but since Trelyn got sick we're relying on you to help out in the fields. We have to be ready for the harvest."
Jade sighed and frowned. "okay,"
He grabbed a basket and walked out the door. His father went over to milk the cows while Jade walked over to pick tomatoes. He walked through the plants, picking the ripe fruits as he went along. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw something on the road at the end of the long patch. There were two men riding horses and one horse pulling a buggy with bars at the back. At first he was paralyzed staring at this buggy coming closer. The, as the buggy stopped and the horse came bounding across the field, Jade turned and ran, shouting for his father. He could hear the horses coming closer and closer. After a minute or so he heard someone jump off the horse and run towards him. Soon he felt someone grip him around the waist and violently pull him back. He shouted, kicked and punched as hard as he could but it was no use. In the distance he could here someone shouting his name and men talking. Before he knew it he was pushed forward and fell hard on the hard floor of the buggy. He looked up and saw the barred door close and lock.
"What the hell are you doing with my son?" Jade's father yelled as he finally approached Darius at a run. As he spoke he shook with shock and anger.
Darius replied with a cold an emotionless expression. "You know the consequences of refusing to pay your taxes."
Jade's father's voice shook and his lips trembled as he spoke. "Please. Please, we couldn't have possibly gotten the money before the harvest."
"That's not my concern," Darius shouted.
His father was yelling now. "Don't you have any compassion? He's just a child!"
Darius looked back at the buggy, deep in thought, and said "Exactly." And with that he turned and walked away.
"Hey!" Jade's father yelled angrily. He ran forward and pushed Darius. He stumbled a little, then turned and punched the man across the face. Jade's father fell and landed with a smack on the hard ground. He stayed there in shock, feeling numb from the adrenalin. Darius look down at him, laughed, and walked away.600Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybrZL5rxdJ
600Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuDxOHuk4YB
Jade felt the buggy bumping up and down as it moved away. he could no longer see the place he had called home. His face was soaked with the tears that were still streaming down his face. He was sitting at the far end of the buggy leaning his head on the wall, feeling as if all hope was lost. Suddenly, it seemed houses kept coming into view, then people. They all looked at the buggy with a sad hopeless expression on their face. Jade's heart jumped as he saw them. He ran to the door and clung at the bars.600Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9g0P0u96U1
"Help! Help!" He yelled. But the people just looked at him sadly. He fell to his knees and reached out to the people through the bars, still screaming. But the people continued to stare.
"Please!" Jade said , his screams starting to fade. "Please." He fell down with his face to the ground and sobbed. The people still continued to stare.600Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXvesy99xsJ
