“So I gathered, Mister Bones,” Graham intoned with no small measure of exasperation. Yes, he had done his reconnaissance on this man now, stubborn creature that he was. He had already asked if the man believed – truly – that the men he was presently so determined to protect would ever do the same for him. That if granted the opportunity to return to their old lives, to flourish underneath legitimacy, they would not turn on their fellows in a minute.
What had been curious about this was the fact the man seemed rather unbothered by the reality of the fact that many would do that. It seemed that Billy “Bones” – there was no way that was actually his surname – was not harboring any illusions that his “brothers” would all invariably do the same. Rather, he seemed determined to hold true and steady for those who held the same belief in the flag of rebellious equality as he did, and that was good enough.
He was loyal, of that there was no doubt. Yet surely, a man as doggedly protective as this one had something he would rather fight for than men who would betray him as soon as it became convenient to do so. The trick was finding it – if he could do that, it would be better than breaking him. A man willing would always be better than a man shattered – and frankly, Graham preferred to avoid torture unless there was absolutely no option through civil means left.
“I think I am beginning to understand you, all the same,” He announced then, taking a seat across from the chair his prisoner was presently chained upon, “I think the reason you are so determined to stand true to these people is because you have nothing else to be loyal to – no home left behind that you feel can be regained, no life that can be returned to. So you hold to what you know – to who you know, even if it means they betray you in the end, because without them you don’t know how to define yourself or where to direct that protective nature of yours.”
Sighing – because he knew if he said too much he would lose the man again – Graham leaned forward and set the trap. “I think you could benefit from protecting those who would do the same for you – and I also think that those you are especially determined to protect would accept pardons if you were the one to present them. Would it not be better to legitimize your friends and start doing something with your life that doesn’t leave you and yours at constant risk of the noose? Or does your loyalty only extend so far – does it not account for the quality in which they live, but only the mitigation of how they may die?”
Ocean Archive 