He chopped and chopped as the dusk settled and he heard the others behind him as they sat on the stoop and watched him. His heart stirred with hatred, bitter bile rising in his mouth, adrenaline pouring through his body, stopping the pain, at least temporarily. He knew it would hit later. His arms, chest, back, neck screamed with pain as he swung back and forth, back and forth. He wished the wood he was splitting was his cousin's head.

"Alright, you can stop now." Ben's voice came through the semi-darkness.

He brought the ax down with terrific force and immediately walked across the yard toward the bunkhouse.

"Just a minute, young man!"

Jamie turned. "Yes, sir?"

"Where do you think you're going?"

"To the bunkhouse, sir."

"What an earth for?"

"To sleep, sir."

"You've got a perfectly good bedroom upstairs."

"Oh, no, sir. I'm a hired hand. Hands sleep in the bunkhouse."

He could not see his relatives clearly from his distance but he heard chairs creak and tittering.

"What the devil is this nonsense?"

"It's no nonsense, sir. The house is for guests. The bunkhouse is for hands. I'm a hand so I sleep in the bunkhouse."

He turned again until another shout stopped him. "Jamie! Get over here now!"

Jamie walked back and stood in front of Ben, his face a mask of such black loathing that Ben flinched. "Yes, sir?"

"I don't know what you're playing at, young man, but you'd better stop."

"I'm not playing at anything, sir. I'm tired and I want to go to bed."

"Go in and eat your supper!"

"I'm not hungry, sir."

"You must be, you haven't eaten since this morning."

"Well, I'm not, sir. Is that all?"

"But Hop Sing has cooked you a meal."

"If you'd told me I could have told you, sir. Now please may I go?"

"No, you may not. You just stand there a minute. Look, Jamie, I've had a hard day and I can do without this. I..." He trailed off and looked behind him at his sons.

"I, too, have had a hard day, sir. Very hard. I'm very tired. If you want me to keep on working, I will. I'm here to work, after all, nothing else. So if there's nothing more I'd like to go, please."

His voice was calm, his words so formally polite they froze the blood. His eyes were hooded, like a cobra's, full of deadly venom.

Little Joe came to his father's side. "Oh, let him go, Pa. If he wants to play silly devils, let him. He's just sulking."

"I am not sulking, Joseph."

Joe's handsome face lit up into a grin. "Oh, Joseph, is it?"

"That is your name, is it not?"

"My name's Joe, James."

"Joe is for your friends and family. I am neither. Now - "

"We are your family!"

"Hah!" The bitterness in his tone was so sharp it made them start. "I have no family! None whatsoever and it suits me fine. I am your employee, nothing more, you made that clear, Mr Cartwright." Whatever emotions were tormenting him were once again hidden beneath his veneer of glacial courtesy. "Now, sir, if you permit, I will retire."

Ben laid a placatory hand on his arm. "Now, Jamie - "

"Please do not touch me, sir," Jamie said, pulling away violently. "I don't want you to touch me, any of you."

Joe and Hoss began to laugh and Ben looked at them crossly. "Be quiet!" he hissed. The young men tried to suppress their mirth. "Alright, Jamie, I don't know what Hop Sing will say after all that extra work he's done. You'd better go and tell him."

"Very well, sir."

He went inside and a few seconds later a string of Cantonese imprecations were heard through the house. Jamie came back out to head for the bunkhouse, followed by the little cook. Ben grabbed the boy's arm again without thinking and once more Jamie pulled away with glacial fury.

"Don't touch me, sir, please."

"Hop Sing cook and cook and cook. Then little boy don' wanna eat! All that work for nothin'!"

"Alright, alright, Hop Sing, calm down. It's alright. I...I'll find some way to make it up to you. Hoss'll probably eat some of it."

"What is it?" Hoss asked.

"Stew."

"Stew n' dumplin's? Mm-mm."

"Hoss fat 'nuff. He get fatter."

"Ah, c'mon, Hop Sing, don't be such a grouch."

They heard their laughter as they headed inside.

"Now, you, young man," Ben said, pointing at his errant cousin, "you get up those stairs to bed and you stop this nonsense."

"Very well, sir," Jamie said coldly, "although you don't have any of your other hands in your house."

"Now stop this! Good night!" Jamie went in the door. "I said, good-night, Jamie!"

"I heard you, sir."

"You'll keep a civil tongue in your head! You'll say good-night!"

"I don't like to lie, sir, since you don't wish me a good night. We neither know nor care about each others' night's sleep. But I'll obey. Good-night."

With that he was gone. Ben stared at Little Joe in bafflement as his son burst out laughing.

"What the devil was that all about?"

"Don't you see, Pa? He's playing a game with you. Ignore him or he'll rile you up and then you'll be playing right into his hands. The best thing is to completely ignore him. He'll get bored pretty soon."

"Maybe you're right," Ben sighed. "But the lad hasn't eaten since this morning. How can he not be hungry? You'd think he'd be starving!"

"Of course he's starving. He's doing it to hurt you. He's a stubborn critter, I'll give him that."

"Oh, Little Joe, I've got a feeling our work's going to be cut out."

"No, it isn't, not if you ignore him. He'll get fed up quickly and he'll have to eat before long. Don't worry, he's not going to starve himself! He's not that stupid!"

Jamie climbed up to his room, his muscles trembling violently, his stomach painful, his behind still sore and throbbing. It was only by the ultimate self-control that he kept his tears in before he got to his room. His legs gave way and he only just managed to make it to the bed in time. He sank down onto the mattress, stuffing the sheet into his mouth so they would not hear his cries. As he wept he could hear Joe and Ben talking outside. His soul writhed with loathing. They could beat him to death but he knew one thing for sure. He would never, ever shed a tear in front of them again.