The Sons of Liberty

Chapter 1

                                {Boston, 1770}

       "What possessed you to even think about doing something so completely idiotic?" He had expected nothing less from John. Sam sat by with a smile as his cousin seemed resigned to his situation. "Does it not bother you that you are attracting the attention of the governor and, therefore, attracting the attention of the Crown? Does none of this phase you?"

        "No... Not really." Sam grinned across the table at John. They had decided to meet at John's house in Boston after Sam had a little incident where he may have incited a riot. Or two. "Come now, John! Have a sense of humor about this!"

        John sat back in his chair and shook his head in shock at his cousin, "Do you truly not see how dangerous this is for you, Sam? For god's sake, you led a riot against the Crown last night!"

        Wasn't that the point? Lead riots, create unrest, show the king the errors of his ways. He had left out on telling John about Hancock's little journey into the realm of Dutch tea smuggling that he might have encouraged and helped with, but what John did not know would not hurt him. He felt best to leave that little detail out. Or how Paul Revere was assisting in the business. You know, maybe it would be best to just not mention any of that right now. He gave a nonchalant shrug and smiled. "Cousin, dearest cousin, I find your lack of faith in me rather upsetting. Listen, John, someone has to show them that we will not put up with their incessant taxation!" Even John could not deny him that point. They sat at the table with their eyes locked in a battle of dominance between the typical Adams stubbornness. Sam watched as John thought about what he had said, and inwardly smiled when he saw his cousin relent internally and sit back in his chair.

        "I do not care what cause you are supporting, rioting, looting, and the destruction of property are completely the adverse of what you want to do!" John smacked his hand on the table for emphasis. "You keep an eye on your friends, Sam. Do not allow them to drag you down with them!"

        For two years, the situation between the Crown and the colonists of New England had been at a perpetual standstill. Neither side was showing any signs of buckling under in the near future, which is precisely why Governor Hutchinson had written a strongly worded request for aid in quelling the insurrections in Boston. He had secured troops, but instead of helping calm the situation, the sudden presence of military forces only made the citizens of Boston more incensed with their whole situation. Riots had increased, the soldiers could not walk down the streets un-harrassed, and Sam Adams and his Sons of Liberty were leading the charge with clubs at the ready. Taxes were beginning to seem like the least of the colonists' problems, however. Things were only seeming to get worse after every protest. Sam looked out of the window beside the table at the bright green of the spring leaves, and he could not help but wonder what Hancock was doing while he was in here explaining himself to his perpetually annoyed cousin.

                                ***

        Well, while Sam may have had his hands full with John, the other John, surname Hancock, had his own hands full down on the docks. It was getting harder and harder to smuggle in tea with the soldiers milling about. Tax collectors and customs officers had become craftier just as he had, and he was beginning to get rather sick of it. Some days he had an easy one to scare off, but other times it took a little more elbow grease. Today, he got lucky. It was the skinny little dark haired fellow that had clearly once been the brunt of all of his classmates' jokes. Hancock watched him stumble up the gangplank with an amused smirk and the little hawk-nosed man stopped in front of him with an imperious scowl. Hancock had the build and the height to blow him over without so much more than a breath, but he wanted to entertain this little man's fantasies just this once, "Well, good day to you, sir. To what do I owe this pleasure for having you aboard my ship?"