Chapter 93

"I want fish! I want fish!" Richard rolled on the ground, wailing, his face smeared with snot and tears.

Mary Stone watched coldly, making no move to comfort him.

"Get up!" John Stone Sr. barked, startling the boy. Terrified of his grandfather's temper, Richard scrambled to his feet and bolted inside.

Mary sighed. None of her daughters-in-law were easy—Elizabeth was too meek, Patricia too sharp-tongued, and Emily... well, Emily had her own way of stirring trouble.

"Time to help out," Mary muttered, glancing at the darkening sky. The autumn rain had brought an early dusk.

"Captain Stone! Trouble!" A villager rushed over in a panic. "Ethan's been beaten! He's demanding to split from his family!"

John frowned. "He nearly drowned this morning, and now this?"

"Let's go see." He turned to Mary. "Fetch the village head."

Instead of following, Mary detoured to Emily's house.

"Michael! Emergency!" Charles Clark burst in, breathless. "Ethan got beaten by his sister-in-law—he wants to leave home!"

Gasping, he added, "And she's trying to strip him of the clothes you lent him!"

Emily's rolling pin clattered onto the counter. She gaped at Michael.

Michael's face darkened. "What nonsense! Who's stripping whose clothes?"

Charles realized his blunder and scratched his head. "No—I meant—"

"Better hurry," Emily said, suppressing a laugh. "Before someone actually undresses you."

Michael groaned. "Those were clothes I lent Ethan!" He dragged Charles outside. "The way you said it made it sound like his sister-in-law has designs on me!"

The moment they left, Mary arrived.

"Where's Michael?" She peered into the kitchen.

"Just left." Emily gestured to the plump dumplings on the counter. "We caught a wild duck—made dumplings and soup. Was about to invite you both over."

Mary's heart warmed at the sight of the steaming dumplings. "Poor Ethan. Lost his parents young, and now his own kin mistreats him—"

A distant commotion cut her off. Emily and Mary exchanged uneasy glances.