Chapter 22

~Erik~

Well now, this was an unfortunate development.

Atherton Wellspring glared down at me from his high horse. Unfazed by his arrogant posture, I folded my arms. "I am terribly sorry, but as you can see we are in the midst of a rather important community meeting. Appointments are required for you to state your business."

The man wasn't alone. Thompson and Strick were behind him with another man I did not know. A portly fellow, on a skittish horse, looked rather dismayed at the sight. I assumed him to be the landlord. A half dozen police officers rounded out the bunch. That part worried me. One word from the councilmen and I could find myself in worse quarters than the tenement apartment. That threat, though very real, would not deter me from protecting my precious device.

It appeared that Wellspring appointed himself the mouthpiece. He pointed to the distillery with his walking stick. "Trust filthy thieving immigrants to make trouble. Permits are required to construct anything for the manufacture of alcohol."

"Well then, it is a good thing that is not what this is for, councilman."

He tugged back on the reins, the horse danced at the mixed signal. "I will have none of your twisting words after what you pulled. Don't think we have forgotten!"

Mastering myself, I stood at my full height, blocking his way to the distiller. "I imagine I left quite the impression on the city council. That much had been my intention, I assure you. My other was that we should have come to some manner of an arrangement—like proper gentlemen. "

His lip curled. "You insolent wretch! How dare you enter our chambers in the stolen clothing of a gentleman."

"Stolen?" I placed a hand to my chest. "Certainly not. I appeared before you in my own proper attire. Well, it is regretfully a bit out of good repair. Had I the means I most certainly would have addressed that detail properly."

Wellspring spat toward my feet, I had to nimbly shift out of the way.

I looked down before fixing him with a mildly offended stare. "That was quite unnecessary."

"You are all trespassing." The man I had assumed to be the land owner urged his horse forward. His mount spun in a restless circle.

I addressed him far more cordially than he deserved. "You must be the proprietor of the tannery that once stood here."

His brow furrowed, clearly not anticipating my calm reaction. All the more reason I maintained it. Men do not know what to do when something defied their expectations. Thus, when an overinflated buffoon is convinced he is dealing with a mannerless animal, present the finest etiquette and watch him struggle with how to respond. He blinked before replying, "I … am?"

"Ah good. We hoped to have some words with you in regards to the proper compensation for those who were injured and the families of those who died in the collapse of your business." I longed to allow more force in my voice. But I disciplined myself, remaining every bit the gentleman out of sheer spite. The trick was certainly paying off. Thrust into confusion, they looked to one another.

The owner threw a perplexed expression at Wellspring.

I cleared my throat. "Pardon my assumption, but is that not why you came here? To take responsibility for your neglect?"

He pointed at the lot. "What have you done to my building?"

I did not so much as glance over my shoulder. I did not trust them. Around me the other residents of the Bowery had fallen back, understandably cowed by these powerful men. I was certain that the police presence did not help ease the tension. Reason was the ground I stood firmly on. "What building? All that we found here were abandoned ruins."

His jaw hung loose as he turned to Wellspring. "Are you listening to this tripe?"

Wellspring snapped a nod. "I certainly am. And I will not tolerate such blatant disrespect from a man who will not even show his face."

That stung for a moment. But not enough to visibly register, I hoped. "Disrespect? I beg to differ, gentlemen. Name but one moment in this discussion where I have offered clear slight and I will make due with an apology." I paused, glancing between the councilmen and the owner. "Nothing? As I suspected. Now, as for trespassing—you are currently in the Bowery ward on our street, not a one of you lives here. So I ask, since you are insisting on remaining in our, as you put it, deplorable presence—what is your business here?"

The owner thrust a finger toward the distillery. "I want my property back!"

"You mean the tannery? Ah, well, since we did not find any such tannery standing here, you are quite mistaken on your claim. We merely used the abandoned remainder of a death trap."

That only served to anger our uninvited company. I did not expect any different outcome. "Liar!" the owner shrieked.

"Liar?" I remarked nonchalantly, "I have been nothing but honest with you, sir." I fixed him with an accusatory stare. "Unlike you to those you employed. But what were they to you—aside from a source of cheap profits."

"He's responsible for this! I want that thief arrested!"

"Thief? My good sir, one cannot steal what has been abandoned to neglect."

"Atherton! Do something!"

Wellspring pressed his horse toward me.

I did not move a single step as I focused my attention on him. "Speaking of neglect, councilman … what you see here is a direct result of the lack of responsibility for the people of this ward."

"There are no people here." Wellspring scowled. "Only vermin."

"One could argue I found the same populating the council chamber, but that is a mere trifle."

He stiffened. "That is a step too far."

I kept my gaze level. "At least it is a step, more than a collective of myopic narcissists who are so blind they court their own demise have taken."

"Excuse me?"

"Do you really think that diseases will not invade the more prominent households as a matter of courtesy?"

Wellspring averted his chin. "Not as a matter of courtesy, but as a law of nature. Those who inhabit this ward are a cesspit of vile behavior which calls down the wrath of the All Mighty."

I half-hooded my eyes. Were that the case I should have been struck down in my childhood. I disproved his belief by simply existing. More to the point, he disproved it himself. "Your ignorance is appalling."

"Behind you is proof of this! An altar to the evil vice of alcohol which leads men to ever more vile influences of the devil himself."

"None are more vile than self-deceit, nor half as self-destructive."

That struck a cord. The horse shifted as he yanked the reins, pulling himself up to his full height. "I will not be lectured by a gutter rat."

"And you are not." I kept my eyes on him and I offered a shallow bow. "I am not who you assume I am. But to a man such as you that will make no difference."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Narrowing my eyes I released a bit of power to my voice. "There is no reaching the heart of a public servant who believes in the philosophy of devil take the hindmost."

At the word devil he jerked backward. Were he a woman I was quite convinced he would have been clutching his pearls.

I was not finished. "There is a special place in the afterlife for scum like you. The fourth circle is your destiny." Clearing my throat I quoted, "'They strained their chests against enormous weights, and with mad howls rolled them at one another. Then in haste they rolled them back, one party shouting out: 'Why do you hoard?' and the other: 'Why do you waste?'"

Their jaws clenched as I glanced over them. But it was Wellspring I observed more keenly. In a swift motion he drew his walking stick over his shoulder and brought it down in a strike at me.

His cane impacted my blade, now clamped in my left hand. My arm iron firm against his impotent attack. With a deft push I shoved his stick aside, but continued to wield the blade, staring along the top of the weapon into Wellspring's startled eyes. "I warn you not to try that again or next time I let this blade fly I will not restrain myself." Not one of the policemen urged their horses forward, they remained flanking the shrinking councilmen. "You have intruded on a ward you deemed unworthy of your attention in restitution for an abandoned property. A property which the collapse of cost lives and livelihoods. You ignored the pleas of this community when we justly reached out to your council. In fact you mocked them and threw the messenger out of city hall."

"You trespassed—"

"I am not finished!" I shouted.

Whether or not he wanted, his horse took a step back.

"Your shameful actions left a destitute community to suffer needlessly without the means to save themselves. What did you expect us to do? Simply die?"

The councilmen stared wide eyed at me. Perhaps hearing it struck a moment of reason. But I knew that seed would not grow on barren ground.

It was my turn, my spit marred the perfect surface of Wellspring's shoe. "You underestimate the backbone of your wealth, you fraud." Still holding the blade toward Wellspring, I gestured with my right hand to the Bowery residents without glancing at them. "You denied us access to clean water forcing us to find our own. We will collect it from the sky for ourselves."

Thompson choked before he managed to get it out. "You're mad!"

That was debatable. At the moment his remark was not going to paralyze me. "Say what you will, blind man. It is already working. The abandoned residents of the Bowery have tasted what you denied them. Will you take that away now?"

Regaining some of his bravado, Wellspring looked to the owner of the plot and nodded. "Yes!"

I flexed my fingers on the hilt of the blade and declared. "Over my dead body!"

All he had to do was charge his horse and I would be trampled to death. But I was determined. I would not move no matter how my heart raced against this impending threat.

Wellspring raised his hand, "Officers!"

Their horses stepped backward. Fear in the men's eyes. I had not thought I was putting that much into my voice.

Then, on the periphery of my vision I caught movement. On my right. On my left. First the men I had spent days building this with, stood shoulder to shoulder beside me. Their stern eyes fixed on Wellspring. Kazimir swung a knotted rope. Salvatore and Conall clutched their hammers. Oisin and Artyom had each grabbed a brick. Daniel pushed forward to stand beside me. Then more came forward. Other men, women, and even children scowled at the mounted threat armed with whatever they could find. Hundreds of the neglected stood united.

I smiled as Wellspring's confidence evaporated into shock. "What did you call us, councilman? Vermin? While one rat may be of little consequence. A swarm is another issue altogether. By our own meager means we have dealt with that which you so blatantly ignored. You will leave us in peace."

Wellspring circled around to look at the officers. All of them shying further back. Six of them was nothing compared to a desperate mob. The men in uniform would not pay for the council's folly with their lives. On our side the view was different. If we surrendered now, we would pay with ours.

I held the knife, unwavering. A simple blade. Not even my Punjab cord, or my dueling sword. I could end this coward's life before any one of his backup could reach me. One swift strike.

But there would be no poetry to that vengeance against a fool who even now seemed unable to grasp his folly.

When he wrestled his horse around to face me, I flicked the end of the knife and this time I let the inflection fly. "You will leave this place."

The order resonated, he cringed back as though I had struck him. The others wheeled their horses around and fled. Alone, Wellspring panicked, tugging the reins left, then right. His gelding fought him until at last the horse tossed his head and took off in a blind run down Canal street.

Slowly, I lowered the blade and exhaled. We had won this battle. My eyes narrowed at Wellspring's retreating back. We had yet to win this war.