The boy is hard at work helping me in the workshop. Since we had the conversation about my boats, he only opens his mouth to answer my questions and speaks only the necessary and never looks to my face while speaking.

In the beginning I was happy with the changes, thinking that the boy was finally maturing and realizing his place. But I don’t know now. He was never a bad kid, just too curious for its own good. Always asking very difficult or just plain stupid questions.

But now? He just goes with the flow and goes out of his way to never start any conversation. He even stopped going to the woods to escape work. Perhaps I was to hard on him.

All that he did has try to protect his mother and sister from me. I was just using them as scapegoat to my angry at the fishermen. It was not their fault the food was getting spoiled, it was just too much work for them.

And just like my father instead of fixing the problem I just tried to yell until it's was resolved or another problem caught my attention so I could have another reason to yell. Poor Natali, always suffering from my incompetence and lack of patience.

She did say that I was being stupid and the situation was getting out of hand. But did a listen to her? No, I just start yelling louder against my family since I couldn’t put in the head of those fishermen that I was being more than fair with them.

The boy was so angry with me he even thought of a solution! Sure, the solution was stupid and very naïve, but he is just a kid with no life experience, what I was expecting? He was just trying his best to help.

Instead of thank him and explain why he was wrong, I just scared him away of the workshop. To be honest if he had tried to better explain his plan, I would have give him a good beating. Good thing that the boy understands me so well and went away.

Naïve or not his plan had some good points. When I stopped to think about with a calmer head. It’s impossible for me to keep a eye in the fishermen while doing my job and my family needed some help preserving the fishes.

Also, we needed to build a place to put everything and protect the food from the elements. I got blind by the huge quantity of fishes and forgot that we would need more hands and materials to do the job right.

As usual I didn’t see the entire situation and got lost in small problems. But thanks to the wife and the boy I finally understood all the problems and took measures to fix them. Now the situation is resolved.

I look outside and by the sun position I see that the day is almost over. I put my tools away and point the forge to the boy.

-“Make sure that everything is clean and ready for tomorrow.”

No answer, but I know he will do a decent job, maybe I should give him a few hours playing in the woods as reward. Need to start to showing some appreciation for my family, I don’t want end up like my father and die a old and bitter man that was detested by his own family.

Outside of the workshop there is a group building more places to dry fishes and another is building a storage room. I see my wife and daughter helping some of village women in cleaning and drying the day's catch.

Guilherme sees me and comes towards me.

-“Good afternoon Boss, everything is fine today. The storage room will be done in a couple of days and we will finish the drying rods today.

-“How big was the catch today?

-“Just like yesterday and I made sure that not even a single fish was stolen by those bastards.”

-“Good man, is Fernando doing a good job?”

-“Yes Boss, no problem with him, good lad. He will make the job a lot easier.”

-“Good to hear that, go back to your job, if there is any problem you can call me.”

-“Yes Boss!”

The boy wasn’t wrong, I couldn’t possible do everything by myself and I needed to trust other people. He was just wrong about the kind of people I should trust, the fishermen will never be on my side. Why would they?

They have a privileged position and are better fed than most villagers. To used to have a good position and believing they are better the everybody else. But the farmers? They break their backs year around and have very little to show for it besides hungry stomachs.

That’s why I put Guilherme and a few other farmers to oversee the fishermen. They always hated the fishermen for been better fed. There is no chance of them making a alliance to steal from me.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Still hurts inside to give so much of what is my to both the fishermen and the farmers. But there is no other way, I need both groups to be vigilant against each other so they don't steal from me.

Another thing the boy was wrong is about who should make the payments. The fool believes that shouldn’t be me to make the payments, but he couldn’t be more wrong. They all must know who is the hand that deliveries food to their pots, so they know who to be grateful for.

If another man were to makes the payment every day, they would soon forget who is given what they have. That’s why the boy is cleaning the workshop at the end of the day while I waist my time paying the workers.

Soon I must make the boy pay attention of how the work is done. I won’t always be around and one day he will have to take my position. And talking about the future, soon he will be of marriageable age and I need to think who will make a good daughter in law.

Who would think that one day I would be a grandfather? Better talk to Natali about who she wants, she will never forgive me if I was to pick a bride without her consent. The Gods know that she hated my mother even tough the woman as a saint with her.

Women, who can understand them? Not me, that’s for sure. I see Natali coming towards me.

-“Are you going to pay the men now?”

-“Yes, better not wait to long or soon will be dark.”

-“Good, you should pay a bigger share for Roberta husbands, as always she was the person who worked the most, the other are just doing the motions.”

I control myself about saying how stupid is to pay a man extra, just because his wife worked a little hard. It’s the wife's duty to help her husband, if I’m already paying the husband, there is no need to give anything for her work!

But I remember my bastard of father and just grunt that I understand. The extra isn’t that much and whenever I follow her advice she smiles. And she knows to never ask me to reward more the one man per day.

Small price to pay to have my wife crying in my funeral instead of looking relieved. After confirming that I understand she goes back to her work. Paying the menfolk is no place for a woman and she knows it.

Whoever marry the boys must understand her place and most important of all keep the boy in line when I'm not around anymore. His mother spoil him to much and the Gods knows the boy will lost everything that I have build without a firm hand in his neck.

He is getting better, but he still hates working to much, kids his age don’t understand the importance of hard work. They just want the Gods to give everything in their hands. Back in my day things were different!

The fishermen are waiting at their usual spot. The bloodsuckers never look happy, dosen’t matter that by working to me they are making a lot more. They still look like they're suffering!

Ungrateful bastards, that’s why the boy was wrong that we could trust them. For to long they were on the top and screwing everybody else. It would be impossible to change that kind of people.

They are a bunch of liars and cheaters, that will never change. That kind of men cannot be trusted, never. They will sell their own mother to slavery if the price is right.

I finished paying as fast as I could. By the Gods, I’m the only reason their families are eating so much better! And I don’t even get a thanks, bastards ! I give half of this amount to the farmers and they cry with happiness!

Crying! That’s what I call gratitude. After getting done with the bastards I can see that the farmers and their wives are done for the day. I pay them and make sure to pay extra to Roberta's husband. The things I do for my family.

When all is done, I finally can go home to eat. As soon I get close to the house, I can smell my wife's stew. There's nothing better than a good meal after a hard day at work. The whole family is already sitting around the fire.

I sit and Natali immediately hands over my bowl full of the stew and a piece of bread. We start eating in silence as usual. The bread is too hard to eat without dipping in the stew. Nevertheless, which family can say that them eat bread in every meal! My father is probably turning in his grave!

When I was a kid he would always speak with pride that I should be grateful to have bread every three days. And that I would probably starve to death when he passed away. Look at me now old man! Who is the useless piece of shit now!

I finish and give my bowl to Natali to put the second round

-“You should eat more boy. A growing boy need all the food he can eat. You need to grow up big and strong like your father.”

The boy is busy eating and dosen’t even bother looking at me. Not that I blame him, when I was his age food was my biggest priority and there was never enough, no matter what my father said.

I start to eat the second bowl, no more bread, but it would be asking too much for that. One piece of bread for meal and all the stew you can eat is more that I had during most of my life.

-“Father I have good news, I think I finally found a husband!”

My bowl fell on the floor. Even my wife looks surprised, the boy continues to eats and dosen’t care about anything that is not in his bowl.

-“Girl, what are you talking about?!”

-“What’s wrong mother, aren’t you always complain that I need to get married?!

-“Yes! But that’s decision should be discussed with me and your father! You can’t just decided that kind of thing by yourself!”

-"I'm not you! I can make my own fucking decisions!"

-“ Watch your mouth! I raised you and I will be respect in my own house!”

-“ Soon I will have my own house and make the same stupid rules!”

My mind is still struck in the fact that my baby girl is getting married. Who is the bastard that thinks is good enough for her! I will kill him! She is to young to marry, only her mother thinks she needs to marry now.

The boy finally finished cleaning the entire pot and decide to finally enter the conversation.

- “So, who is the poor bastard?”

Natali gives the boy a death glare while Rita happily responds.

- “Ronaldo, Humberto kid.

I stop to think who the kid is, but I can’t remember. Wait, I think I remember Humberto, he died a couple of years ago.

- “Didn’t his mother died a couple of days ago?”

The boy asks and Rita looks triumphantly at Natali.

-“Yes, he has no living parents or brothers.”

I can see all the color of Natali 's face going away. Is there something here that I don't understand? The boy lost interest and is trying to see if he can find more food in the pot.

I suppose that I need go talk to the boy and explain that no lazy bastard will marry my baby girl! And then I need to start planning an wedding, the best wedding that this island has ever seen!