Page 82 of Bloom
“He’s always conveniently out, and he's not easy to find. The wife said he’s often at that tavern-what’s it called? It's the one with a fly on the sign. The ale there is mostly piss. He seems to scrape up coins to drink.”
“Why don't you have the Master Steward move them into a dwelling?” Jaime asked as an idea came to him.
Lord Monet raised an eyebrow. “Then the landlord will be chasing them down for rent so he can pay me for his building. Why would I move them?”
Jaime ignored Aleric’s puzzled glance. “A little flat is often cheaper. They might have to share a privy with a whole floor or the whole building, but it’s a roof, and I’d rather live in a tiny flat than on the street with two kids.”
“I’m not getting what you mean. Even if it’s cheaper, he’ll still drink what money he has.”
“He’s likely gotten used to his wife chasing off your Master Steward, and he keeps being a lazy drunk. If you move them, it’ll send a hard warning. You haven’t forgotten that they’re far behind, and this is the last chance. The Father will get mad once he realizes what happened, but maybe the hard warning will knock sense into his head. He can't avoid reality forever. It’s a way of saying, ‘I’ll help you this last time, but you need to get on top of things. More work. Less drinking. Next stop is the street.’ Moving someone is a pretty big thing.”
Lord Monet didn’t appear sure. It wasn’t exactly polite for a commoner to be telling the lord how to run things, but Jaime had a feeling it would work. At times, he’d thought of things he would do if he were a lord, although it was mostly a fantasy. A man who drinks his money and expects the woman to deal with the kids and everything else all day needs a good knock upside the head.”
“How do you expect that to work?” asked Aleric. “He could still drink and not pay.”
“It’s an upheaval,” said Jaime. “It’s not as bad as finding you’ve been tossed on the street with your family, but it’s still a huge change. He’s been coasting along with no changes except the Master Steward coming to pester them once in a while. He doesn’t even have to deal with it if he goes out during the day. When his wife complains about it later, he ignores her. She mustbe doing odd jobs here and there to scrape up enough to feed the kids, but it’s not enough. Maybe if you find him a job too, that’ll drive the fact into his brain: He can’t keep on like this. No matter how lenient you are, you’re sick of it.”
“I have to do his duties?” asked Lord Monet. “A man is to go out and find work himself to raise his family. Wouldn’t you do that if you were in his position?”
Jaime frowned. “Yes, but I’ve never been one to go to the tavern and spend everything I have from work. We’re not the same. He must be doing quick jobs around the city to get drinking money, and he’s not looking for steady work. Give him a good shock, help him find steady work, and if he can’t keep it and stay out of the tavern, evict them. At least you can say you honestly tried.”
Lord Monet thought for a few seconds. “Maybe you're right. I’ll speak to the Master Steward although he’ll think forcing them to move is a bit extreme.”
“Actually, it might be the kick in the ass the husband needs,” said Aleric. “Right now, the husband probably looks at you like a cow he can milk for endless time. This might rattle him a bit without the kids and wife having to sleep outside. It can’t hurt to try.”
“A cow? That’s nice, son.”
“It’s not my point of view. I don’t have rent to pay, and I’m not plastered half the time.”
When Lord Monet left, presumably to go to his office, Aleric pushed away his plate. “Interesting idea.”
Jaime shrugged. “I’m sure he won’t like it when he realizes he has to share a privy with a floor. If he wants out, he needs to get himself in order.”
“True. I have to go out. Stay here.”
Jaime glanced at Gautier who must have been telling a funny story to his table since Zacharie and the others were laughing. “Out in the city? Where are you going?”
“I have something to do.”
“Alone? You shouldn’t leave the grounds by yourself.”
“Listen, I need to take care of something, and no offense to you, but we’ve been together a lot over the past month.”
“I know, but…” Jaime was to be his protection for the most part. Letting Aleric go out wherever for whatever amount of time didn’t sound very smart.
“I’ll be fine.” He stood. “I doubt Gautier will expect me to go out alone either. If I feel like I’m being followed, I’ll come back. I need to get this done, and it’s private.”
“Fine.”
Jaime took his time finishing his toasted bread before he went upstairs to grab a couple of books he’d finished. They had to be returned to the library. Aleric was gone, and Jaime locked the sitting room door behind him.
After returning the books, he took a walk in the garden to get some air. At his childhood home, he was sure their garden had been smaller, although it seemed massive to him as a kid. A pair of ladies stopped him to talk, and he wasn’t sure if they were interested in him or if they were hoping to get on his good side. A man who spends a lot of time with the future lord might have influence or be able to do a favor.
There had been a man back home who’d given Jaime a lovely toy soldier with silver-painted armor before settling into small talk with his parents. He’d been more interested in playing with his new toy, but after a good twenty minutes, he’d caught something about a loan. “Just a small one” to help with a business venture.
He must have thought being nice to the kid would get the Father to agree to a business deal.
He kept his answers to the ladies brief without being rude so they’d hopefully not ask him to do anything. He didn’t want to have to say “no” and possibly get sour looks because the commoner didn’t want to help.
