tigress;chapter six

angus

Angus put himself to work immediately after his journey. He originally did not plan on embarking on the expedition, but the responsibility fell into his lap regardless. At this point, he could not trust Derek to appropriately complete his assignment in a timely matter. Antoine planned to stay for a week or so. He had lots to say about the way Angus was running the empire. Some of the comments could be seen as disrespectful but Angus was desperate for help and disregarded most comments despite the sting to his psyche.

His office chamber was littered with documents and maps. Some of the documents laid out a prospective infrastructure plan focusing on the third and fourth districts. Formerly regarded as useless un-arable land, this new infrastructure would make the most disastrous parts of the empire a booming addition to the new empire.

It was time for Angus to start making smarter decisions and this was one of them. His sovereignty would be a dreadful one if things did not turn a new leaf.

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Angus, Antoine, Derek, and the members of the council were all seated in the main formal dining room. Breakfast was to be served shortly by a select few royal slaves and workers.

Derek was slightly irritated because Joey was not present. He was reminded several times about how important these dining meetings are and continues to be late. Even Derek has standards and knows when to buckle down and take his duties as a knight seriously, he expects Joey to do the same. Derek looked at Angus and shared his look of annoyance, he already knew that this morning was going to be a troublesome one.

Not long after, the large French double doors opened and Joey entered completely unfazed. At the very least he was dressed in his proper attire and appeared presentable. Angus gave Joey a sharp glare as he seated himself at the opposing side of the banquet table of Angus and the council members. Angus did not want to be there any more than Joey did but some formalities had to be met and this breakfast was one of them.

Shortly afterwards the royal slaves and workers that were serving that morning's breakfast emerged. They had an array of delicacies adequately arranged to serve. The first royal worker introduced herself and directed the slaves to begin setting up the banquet table. The dining room was silent except for the repetitive clanking of the porcelain cutlery. Angus was staring in disgust at one of the council members' interest in a royal slave. He was a gluttonous bastard in every way, if Angus could strike him down right then and there he would.

To make matters worse the royal slave was playing into the council member's advances with her loathsome giggling. Regardless of how conventionally attractive she may have been. With long midnight black hair and fair skin, she was a royal slave for a reason, and being in the presence of any royal was a privilege. When the council member noticed how the rigid Angus was staring him down he harshly directed the royal slave to step back in her rightful corner. For a moment there was a slight pout on her face as she realized she would be reprimanded shortly.

With Derek, Antoine, and Joey present breakfast was more lighthearted than Angus anticipated. The three of them managed to significantly lighten the mood and balance out cordialness with buoyant comments. Angus only chose to speak when he needed to keep the conversation flowing.

He was growing irritated with some of the council member's actions. They were told to be on their best behavior yet and still are acting inappropriately in the presence of an important guest. Breakfast had proven to be a dreadful one.

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"Does your council committee know that we are meeting in private?" Antoine inquired pulling out the tufted armchair.

"No, and that is best. I do not want them snooping and creating nuisances this time around," Angus says as he offers Antoine a cigar before lighting his own.

Antoine raised a skeptical eyebrow yet he took the cigar Angus offered him. He didn't respond but his inhaling of the smoke from the cigar was more than enough confirmation. Angus sat down shortly after exhaling the fume with his head leaned backward on the chair.

"How was the initial extradition?" Antoine questioned.

"Decently enough, just like you predicted there is a lot of valuable land that can be manufactured and industrialized."

Antoine hummed in agreement. It was just as he predicted. The outer districts were prime for industrialization. No one resided there and it was a perfect way to overcome the overpopulation in the capital that Angus had mentioned earlier. Originally the area of the capital closest to the palace was for the prosperous who could afford it. The congestion of lower-class individuals pushed them into these affluent spaces and it did not take a genius to predict the unrest that would follow.

"And you are aware that it is going to take an immense amount of time to refurbish all of that land?"

Angus nodded placing his cigar down on the ashtray of his desk. No part of their proposal was going to happen quickly. They were playing the long game. Antoine's empire was rich in resources that were perfect for industrialization. Coal, ores, and lumber all of which Angus wanted to take advantage of. If they worked collaboratively they would be the first two countries to set off a technological revolution that oozed prestige.

However, Antoine Hagan would not be handing over resources to the Dante empire without a worthy return of investment on his side. He wanted a canal and railroad built that would effortlessly connect the two countries and make the exchange of materials and resources easier. As is, the journey from the two surrounding countries is painstakingly tiresome. Engineers from both countries are expected to start and finish their blueprint for the canal by the next snowfall.

Angus seriously contemplated telling Antoine about the young woman and tiger they had captured on their extradition. His colleague was under the impression that the area was completely abandoned.

Although Angus strongly believed that the young woman with auburn hair was not the only one hiding out there, she was just the one who happened to be caught. If there were more of them out there, they would surely prove to be resilient to his industrialization plan. That was more than enough reason for him to tell Antoine.

"On the way back, some of my men found a woman living in the forest," Angus mussed.

Antoine's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Oh?..." He trailed off intending for Angus to finish his thoughts.

"I have a feeling she was not the only one out there."

"You think there are people living in the deprived districts?"

"Yes and if they are any problems like she was they will not make the process effortless."

Antoine hummed in agreeance as he leaned back in the armchair. There was no doubt that they were the remainders of those who did leave for the capital all those years ago. Judging by Angus' tone, Antoine decided not to inquire further about the young woman.

"I suppose that changes things, yeah?"

"I also have a feeling that the council members are withholding important information from me," Angus murmured as he picked his cigar up from the ashtray.

"I am unsure as to what it is, but at this moment I do not trust any of them. I am barely tolerating them for the formality of it all," He continued.

Antoine was shocked but not surprised given what had transpired earlier during brunch. They were disgustingly overweening and he knew it wouldn't be long before Angus did away with them.

"You could send them with soldiers to the outskirts," Antoine suggested with a light laugh.

"They wouldn't last a day," Angus shook his head laughing in response.

He had something else in plan for them. Something eventful that would result in their demise.

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Derek stood tall aside Angus as they stood behind the railing overlooking several carriages leaving the palace. Angus would no longer be present in the remainder of the restorations unless it was completely called for. He and Antoine spent a large amount of time planning out the meticulous details of it all. It was undoubtedly costly to send a mass of soldiers to the outskirts. It was a small investment (possibly even a sacrifice) into the prosperity of the country.

"This whole situation is unsound of you Angus," Derek spoke first turning his attention to the brunette.

"I know you are not above massacring hundreds of people. But sending your soldiers into what is now the unknown, seems beneath you," He continued waiting for Angus to reply.

Derek was completely intent on pushing Angus' buttons. He knew this plan of his was almost uncalled for and he was acting under the influence of Antoine, who was no stranger to unanticipated decisions. The more time Derek spent with Antoine he could tell something was off with the young man although he hadn't done anything to trigger an immediate response. It was just slight comments and a lack of emotions here and there that made him appear unsteady.

"Nothing is beneath me, I will do what is necessary to refine my people and my country."

"So now you are about protecting your people? When before you had no issue with displacing your people and overpopulating the first and second districts."

Angus was miffed with where the conversation was headed, Derek had supported him on many of his ventures, but this was something he had reasonable doubts about.

"You sound like my mother," Angus joked shaking his head.

"Pains me to say regardless, but sometimes Lady Muriel is right, you are not the most considerate of the citizens so this comes off as disingenuous," Derek speculated defending his stance.

"It will appear that way towards the beginning, though when everything is said and done there will be an immense approval of my actions when everyone's quality of life is improved," Angus paused focusing on the last of carriages to leave the palace.

"And then everything will be worth it. Like I said before, I am playing for longevity."

"It just appears as though only you and Antoine truly know what is transpiring, dare I say that I'm offended by the lack of insight?"

"Maybe you would know more if you made an effort to. You seem content with courting different women in my ward and-"

Derek held his hands up in defense knowing he had crossed a line and was not going to hear the end of Angus' scolding. He made a mental note of how defensive Angus was of the conversations he and Antoine had. Under regular circumstances, Derek would be the first to know. It bothered him and he felt like he could not trust who Antoine was despite his past relations with Angus.

All of the carriages had now left the palace and Angus was left admiring the peace of the evening before his dreadful meeting with the council. Angus was unaware of when Derek had left his side completely silencing the world around him as he took in the very slight moment of peace. It was cut short when he looked at his watch and realized he would be late for his meeting if he did not leave.

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The apprehension was potent in the air and bounced off the walls of the meeting suite. Angus was itching for a cigar to ease his nerves. How did they expect him to react to this information? An underground rebellion was growing in the capital. Angus knew they were keeping information from him, although he did not know it was of this caliber. It was ironically convenient for it to be announced now when the empire was undergoing major changes.

"And for how long have you known this?"

"Lord Angus, that is not what we should focus on at the moment-"

Angus squinted his eyes at the elder before repeating himself, "How long have you known."

The elder was visibly disturbed by what was to come if he answered. He contemplated lying however he knew that Angus would see right through him. It was not intended for Angus to even know about it. How they were under suspicion so soon was alarming. The deep baritone sound of Angus' voice abruptly took the senior out of his thoughts.

"I am not going to ask again."

"Since the harvest turn, Lord Angus," He hesitated towards the end debating on whether to address Angus directly. His life and others were already subliminal being threatened.

"I will not make this meeting all about the disfranchised actions of my once trusted council members. I will deal with that later, in private." Angus placed heavy emphasis on dealing with the council members later on.

He was beyond irritated and thousands of thoughts ran through his mind of what to do with them.

The palm of Angus' right hand was laid flat on the table while his left hand was gripping his pen that was supposed to be used to note important information from the meeting. The page was mainly blank beside the few things he jotted down about the rebellion. He stared dead center at the council member who announced the rebellion growing in the shadows.

Despite the meeting moving towards different topics that required attention, Angus was mentally still engraved in the conversation regarding the rebellion. His mind was dwelling on the countless ways he could mutilate them and suffer through the last moments of their lives, but a different method was clouding the back of his mind.

Potentially he could use the council members as an additional stimulant for the renovations he was ultimately planning. Kill two birds with one stone by publicly shaming them and slaughtering them, and send a strong subliminal message to the rebels that he would have no trouble doing the same thing to them. While Angus did not know the extent of the rebellion's reach and how deep they infiltrated the capital, he knew that he had to sway the rest of the population away from it.

Make the separatists out to be a group of individuals who want to harm the intrinsic nature of the wealthy within the capital. To wipe them out so that the substantially larger lower class can have - no steal their wealth. The more Angus thought about it the easier it was to sway public opinion, just like how they swayed the lower class he will use the more powerful upper class.

The creak of a pen brought everyone's attention to the now broken pen in Angus' hand. He hadn't realized how painfully tight he was gripping the pen. Completely dazed by his raging thoughts.

The council member nearly choked on his words, "A-as I was saying, the capital is becoming slightly crowded. Hopefully, the plan to industrialize the outskirts will be completed soon because there is a possibility that we will run out of valuable resources before the end of the next quinquennial review and have to severely ration."

A low hum was heard from Angus as he tilted his head in amusement.

"We can set aside more money and resources by cutting into the council's unnecessarily lavish budget."

"I wonder what my valued colleague thinks?" He questions turning his attention to Antoine, who is seated further down the long table.

A sneer was visible on Antoine's face seemingly finding amusement in the situation. Based on what Angus told him earlier he knew that the council already had him on edge, but he did not expect for them to 'openly' express their disloyalty. A crime that rightfully permitted a death sentence, and he said exactly that.

"I agree with the proposition of riddling your empire of snouts. After all, you cannot elevate if they will be holding everyone back."

Antoine seemed disturbingly pleased by what he had to say next, "Additionally, they will not need such a large budget if they will be lifeless soon."

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It was a quarter till 10 at night and Angus' day was only now ending. His deltoid muscles were sore and his entire body was aching for rest. His body was yearning for a hot soak to soothe his soreness. A few royal workers were present outside of his master bedroom and were persistent in helping him unwind, however, Angus was having none of it.

"Lord Angus you have had a long day and it is our responsibility to assist you!" The work exclaimed.

All she got in response was a strident slam of the door and the click of the lock. She was stunned though knew better than to pry in his business. He was already incredibly aggravated and she did not want to be on the receiving end of that.

Angus knew that she was only trying to help but he did not want help. He wanted time alone, to attempt to decompress and understand his current situation.

His empire was falling apart from the inside out despite his new endeavors. Due to how far along they were in their rebellion, his usual plan to qualm their hope would not work. He needed to make an example out of one of the council members. Although only one of them perishing might not get the message across to all of the citizens, everyone that he knew was involved needed to be made an example. Then and only then would enough fear be instilled in his people to keep the rebellion at bay for the next few years while the renovations were ongoing.

Angus lifted his shirt from his body and threw it elsewhere within his residence. Before walking to his adjoined bathroom he caught sight of his body in the mirror. The deeply imbedded scars on his torso were slightly discolored showing the end of the healing process. The longest and deepest one ran from the center of his abdomen to the right side of his shoulder blade. He tried not to reminisce on the pain from the scarring, but it was a consistent reminder of what he had to endure to be eligible for the position of king.

Of when his father first realized that he was sickly and that his adolescent son would be heir to the throne.

He sighed in disappointment thinking about the current state of his relationship with his mother. She was genuine, something he could never take away from her, nonetheless she had a nagging tune that never failed to drive Angus crazy. She (and everyone else) found fault with the way that he does things and believes they could do better. If he had their years of wisdom he undoubtedly could do better too. At this point, Angus did not expect or want anyone's sympathy he just wanted to be respected, and if he had to instill fear in his people to get it, he would.

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As Angus tied the silk robe around his waist his attention was brought to the knocking of his master bedroom. He already knew who it was, as no one else would dare to bother him after what transpired earlier.

Unlocking the door and opening it slightly he lazily stared at Derek.

"It better be important." Was all he said as Derek stood there almost as tired as he was.

"I trust you'll want to hear this, you might threaten me later if I don't tell you now," He smirked noticing how Angus was now interested.

Angus widened the door and allowed Derek inside. He could tell Derek was uncomfortable with the strong heavy cloud of cigar smoke. With how the smoke still lingered, he could confirm that it was not long ago that Angus blew a heavy one. When it was this prominent it was undeniable that he was so fatigued to be smoking this close to bed.

"I have an update on the young woman."

Angus blew an obnoxious cloud of smoke in Derek's face to offset his optimistic mood. If he was going to annoy him, Angus had no problem playing into it.

"This couldn't have waited until tomorrow?"

"Like I said before, this will intrigue you."

Angus hummed in response, showing that his interest was not entirely piqued.

"A few of the royal workers found that her name is Emory."

Angus slightly paused putting out his cigar at the sound of her name. Derek noticed the sudden change in movement but decided not to comment on it.

"During lunch today she and Ruth got into a scrabble in the slave dining area,"

Angus' eyebrows scrunched up at the mention of Ruth. He had heard her name before but was unaware of her involvement thus far.

"And Ruth is?"

"The slut that was enticing Senior Stirling."

Angus hummed in response, now intrigued by the revelation. He had seen the fair-skinned young woman more than he would like. She acted incredibly pretentious for someone who was of such low status. He distinctively remembered that she would

"And this is important because?"

"Apparently they were arguing over Joseph-"

Derek was disrupted by his friend's hauntingly deep baritone laugh. He genuinely found this funny.

"Joey? That might explain his tardiness at breakfast today. He was busy entertaining slave whores. He spends too much time with you."

"Gah! That has nothing to do with it!" Derek attempts to defend himself squinting his eyes at Angus. For once not finding the situation amusing.

"After all of that transpired Emory, Liz, and Sofia disappeared and can no longer be found."

Angu's head turned back to the umber-skinned male with confusion plastered on his face.

"What do you mean they can no longer be found, there's only so many places they can go?"

Derek's hands shot up in defense as he knew this was how he was going to react. If Angus would think realistically it made sense. A good portion of the soldiers had been sent away to finish the extradition. There just were not that many guards surveying the area.

"You approved sending almost half of YOUR soldiers into the unknown. There just are not that many guards in the castle and they took note of that. Opportunists if you will, " He suggested.

"Opportunists? You and whoever else is left have the opportunity to find those three girls, and send Ruth to solitary confinement."

Derek knew not to protest being riddled with more tasks as Angus spoke again, "And bring Emory to me as soon as you find her. I fear the opportunist and I have lots to discuss."

Derek opened his mouth to question his friend's decision but chose not to. He often did not understand Angus's choices but knew that they would explain themselves later. Angus walked to the corner of his residence that housed a sizable vanity. He began combing through his disheveled muted locks expecting to hear the sound of his door opening and closing. In his peripheral vision, he could see Derek still standing there as if he had more to say.

"Why are you still here?" Angus queried while combing the front of his hair out.

"The-the tiger."

"What about it?"

"It is proving to be more difficult than Joey and Ezekiel expected. Despite the restraints it keeps trying to attack Joey and anyone else that comes close to it."

"Yesterday you said that Emory was able to befriend it, live with it, and use it against our soldier," Angus doubted with a perplexed look on his face.

"It appeared as though she did, but we still do not know how."

For a second Angus thought about what to do with the tiger although it was among the last things on his mind. He had a lot to think about and if he thought for too long it would keep him up at night.

"We will deal with it later, get some rest."

Derek nodded and left the room to escape to his residence in the ward. Finally pleased with the silence in his room Angus yelled a few profanities and threw his comb against the nearest wall. Having it shatter on impact. He was going to bed in a sour mood and that was going to prove problematic for whoever else he had to encounter the next day.

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what do you guys think?

hope you guys enjoyed <3