Tracie Peterson - Dawns Prelude

Josh frowned. "Nothing. I didn't know they had."

Kjell looked hack over his shoulders. "Don't say anything to them, but when they get hack, tell them to come sec me."

"Sure, boss."

"And, Josh?" The younger man waited expectantly. Kjell smiled. "You don't need to call me boss, remember?"

"Sorry. Force of habit. When I was working in the railroad shops in Seattle, it was required."

Kjell chuckled as he made his way back to the office. He liked the young man, who'd only come to work for him the month before. Josh showed great skill when it came to anything mechanical, and Kjell knew he'd be an asset for the sawmill. He sobered as he rejoined Arnie.

"The brothers aren't here right now, but that isn't important. Just know this. I haven't raised the price on you. Things stay as they arc."

The older man nodded with relief. "Thank you, Kjcll. The Sidorovs told me they would settle up with me tomorrow when they brought the last of the load, but I didn't want to wait until then."

"You were wise to come to me. I'll deal with them. I'm not sure what the misunderstanding was on their part, but I'll get to the bottom of it."

He shook hands with Arnie and returned to his seat. "If you have any more problems, just come directly to me."

The man nodded. "Thank you, Kjell."

Kjell waited for several minutes until he was sure Arnie had gone before he summoned Aakashook and Keegaa'n, the two Tlingit boys who worked for him.

"Boys, I have a question for you. You helped Anatolli and Ioann load the wood on the wagon yesterday, didn't you?"

The boys nodded. Kjell could see they were worried that they had somehow done something wrong. He sought to case their concerns. "You aren't in trouble. I just wondered if you knew anything about the price of the wood being increased."

"No," Aakashook said, looking to his brother. "Can't know nothing more." This was his routine way of explaining that he didn't know anything else about a matter.

Kjell nodded. The boys' English had improved considerably since coming to work for Kjell. They actually spoke Russian quite fluently, but Kjell knew their mother wanted them to speak better English, so he spoke it almost exclusively with them. Now, however, he wanted them comfortable, so he switched to Russian.

"Did the Sidorovs say anything at all about the delivery?"

The boys exchanged a look, and Kjell could see they were still uneasy. "You can tell me if something is wrong."

Keegaa'n, the elder of the two at thirteen, spoke up. "They are mean to us, Kjell. They hit us and if we talk had about them, they will hit us again."

Kjcll frowned. "They have no right. When did this happen?"

Aakashook had to join in. "They do it all the time. All the time they tell us they will hurt us if we don't do all the work they give us."

"Well, I don't intend to see that go on anymore. You should have talked to me about it. You will in the future, yes?"

The boys said they would.

"Good. Now it's nearly time for them to lock the gate. Go on home before you get in trouble." Kjell despised that the Tlingits in Sitka were confined each evening. The law held that the native people were not to be allowed to roam about the town after six o'clock. It was said this was for their safety more than anything, but Kjell knew the whites saw the Indians as a nuisance and had found a way to eliminate their presence, at least for part of the day. Night after night, soldiers rounded up the Indians like wild dogs. The natives would flee ahead of the soldiers, some trying to hide out, but generally they were caught. At six in the morning, the stockade gates were opened and the people of color were allowed to once again meld into the white Sitka society.

Though Kjell was bothered by the injustice of it, the boys didn't seem to give it any thought. It was all they knew. They hurried off, playfully punching at each other's arm. Each one tried to be the first to reach the large open door. Kjell followed slowly after them, watching the siblings race across the yard and down the road. They were good boys who had come to him at the insistence of their grandfather. The man had owed Kjell a debt and would not rest until some form of payment had been established. Kjcll knew the man couldn't afford to buy the wood and would have just given it to him, but the old man's pride would not allow for it. Instead, he offered to let the boys come every afternoon to work at his mill. Their mother especially liked this idea because she saw the benefit in their learning better English.

Kjell heard the wagon coming down the road and realized the Sidorovs were returning. He wondered what they would say when confronted with the question of the money. And then there was the issue of their hitting the boys. Kjell wasn't entirely sure how to approach the subject. He certainly didn't want the Sidorovs to somehow make the boys pay for their admission.

Two strong draft horses plodded up the drive and came to a stop when Anatolli pulled back hard on the reins. Ioann jumped from the wagon and began to unhitch the horses.

"I need to talk to you about something," Kjell said, looking from one broad-shouldered brother to the other. "Josh will take care of the horses. Why don't you step into my office." He turned and called for josh and waited until the younger man was in sight before joining the brothers.

"I need to talk to them-will you see to the horses?"

"Sure thing, b Kjell." He grinned. "See? I'm getting better already"

Kjell gave a chuckle, hut it was halfhearted. He hated confrontation with anyone, hut even more so with employees. He entered his office.

"I had a talk today with Mr. Seymour. It seems you told him the price of his lumber was to go up by fifty dollars. If he would pay you in cash, it was to be half that amount. Now, which one of you wants to tell me what this is all about?" he asked, crossing his arms and taking a stand behind his desk.

The two men were noticeably unhappy Anatolli's jaw clenched tight, and Ioann crossed his arms in a defiant manner.

"The man speaks lies," Ioann said, narrowing his eyes.

"Does he?" Kjell countered. "And what purpose would that serve? Perhaps I should go speak with some of the other customers and see if they've had similar problems."

Anatolli shook his head and reached out to take hold of his brother's arm. "We must not lie. It is true. But please understand. We did not do this had for our own pleasure."

Kjell looked from one man to the other. "I'm listening."

"It's our mother." Anatolli glanced at Ioann for support.

"Da, our mother is very sick. We get word that she may die," Ioann said. His entire countenance changed before Kjell's eyes. His expression took on one of a chastised pup. "We need money for the journey home."

"Why not just tell me about it? Instead, you go steal from my customers?"

"We did not think a little here and there would be missed," Anatolli said, shrugging.

"Twenty-five dollars is hardly a little amount. Who else have you done this to?"

"I can't remember," Ioann replied.

That many, eh?" Kjell shook his head and sat down at the desk. "You will return the money immediately, or I will turn this situation over to the army"

Anatolli jumped forward. "But please, we cannot do that. We have already purchased the tickets to Russia. We cannot get hack our money. Please do not take us to the soldiers, or we might never sec our mother again."

Kjell considered his words for a moment. The man was probably right. If he made this a matter of public knowledge, it would be months before they could go home. Against his betterjudgment, he nodded.

"Very well." Both men smiled and nodded as if to assure him he'd made the right decision. But I want a list of the people you overcharged. I need to make everything right with these folks."