Their Wife

Seventeen

"How long before he gives up?"

"Knowing his stubborn ass, he'll be at it till night falls," Timothy leaned back against the paddock fence.

The sun was high in the sky. I doubted Kai would sacrifice so many hours to prove himself. This was the man who hid socks behind the washing machine because he couldn't be bothered to search for the missing pair.

I grimaced as Kai once again landed on his ass. Guess I wasn't the only one Lyria had it out for. For the last 20 minutes, he had been trying to get Lyria to return to her stall.

"Ten copper coins. I bet he'll be on his ass another five times before Henry takes pity and takes over," he said, jutting his chin towards the man standing on the other side of the fence by the gate.

Henry watched as Kai grabbed the reins in frustration once more. He shook his head in disappointment when Lyria fanned her wings and reared up on her back legs, scaring Kai. He dropped the reins and stumbled back, avoiding being struck in the head by her hoof. Tripping over his feet, he landed on his ass. Again.

"Four more to go."

"I don't have any coins," I informed him.

He looked over at me with a raised brow. "None?"

"None."

"Toffee pudding, then?" He asked with a grin.

I narrowed my eyes at him before sighing. "You can have it anyways. It's not like I actually make it to dinner." I jumped off the fence I was seated on as his smirk dropped.

"I'll get Kai to try to sneak you some leftover from the kitchen tonight. He's on dish duty."

I shook my head. "No, I don't want him getting in trouble." Apparently, there was a rule that all meals must be kept to the dining hall. Something about a rat problem because some people decided to store food in their rooms. The rule wasn't so strictly enforced until recently. I could hazard a guess as to why that changed.

I looked back towards the sky. The bright, fiery ball of sunshine was high in the sky, peaking out between clouds.

"What time is it?" I asked Timothy.

He looked at his watch. I had learned that there was no electricity in this world despite them having 'electronics' similar to ones back home when I tried to give Ezra a helpful tip on putting his phone in rice after he dropped it in water. He had looked at me in confusion and a discussion ensued where I learned that all the 'electronic devices' that I had seen were powered by magic. They were magical devices.

"Almost two."

I wanted to cry. My stomach growled. I had missed lunch, once again. I hadn't had much to eat for breakfast either. My stomach still turned at the memory of events that took place last night. "I think I've had enough of a break. I should go finish my work. Shit ain't going to shovel itself." Wait. I stopped as I was walking away, looking at him over my shoulder. "Can it?" I asked hopefully.

He looked at me strangely. "Unless you're hiding the fact that you're one of the high breeds, sorry, but you're going to have to put in the manual effort."

I groaned. Of course. Why not give the ability to effortlessly do such work to those who find it beneath them.

I grudgingly walked back towards the barn. I should probably clean out Lyria's stall before she realized I was in there and decided to be compliant with Kia to torment me.

As I entered, I caught the faintest scent of mint and sage. Just inside the entrance stood Ezra- a woven basket in his hand.

He smiled when he caught sight of me. "Hey, Nea."