When Fire meets Earth เมื่อไฟพบดิน

Arya stared at the huge pile of clothes.

"What are you waiting for? Start washing." lady Amara yelled at her.

Arya stared at the clothes. She had never done laundry in her life before.

She doubted Lady Amara would want to hear that.

She tried to remember how the servants back home had done the laundry.

Drawing the water from the well was very straining for her. Her delicate hands soon had blisters.

She started washing.

Thwap! Lady Amara had her on the back with a stick. "Is that how to wash? Add more energy to it."

"Yes, my lady..." Arya replied trying to stop herself for sobbing.

And so it continued, if Arya didn't do it well, she would be hit.

By the fifth time, she was sobbing as she washed the clothes.

"Poor girl" Pim said sympathetically.

"Poor girl my foot, she deserves more than that, she tried to kill someone and then after Thornin saved her, she was living like a princess lazily." the servant who had exposed Arya earlier said with contempt.

"shut your mouth!" Lada, the head servant told her.

"But..." the servant tried tried to defend herself.

"Did you think what you did was good, Thornin has been good to everyone here including you and you exposed his wife just like that. Pim is his friend and he asked her to help him out by giving his wife food, what is your business with it?"

"I....I...I" the servant stammered, she couldn't say anything.

"I will deal with you later." Lada assured her.

After several hours, Arya was through with the clothes.

"You can go now, from now on, you will work before you eat in this house. Do you hear me?"

"Yes my lady." She replied.

Arya walked back tiredly to the servant quarters. She just wanted to sleep.

Pim came to meet her. "Arya, I am so sorry. I had no idea she would be here today. I am so sorry."

"Its okay Pim, it's not your fault. She is right, I am a servant afterall."

"No she isn't, a lot of our male servants have wives who don't work, why should your case be different?" Pim argued.

"Arya...what happened?" Thornin who was coming back met them in front of the quarters.

Thornin observed her tear stained cheeks. He took her hands in his and saw the blisters.

"What happened?"

Pim narrated everything that had happened to him.

"Pim, take Arya to the room, get her food and treat and wrap her hands. Make sure she rests." Thornin instructed.

Arya noticed the fury in Thornin eyes. He looked so angry. She had never seen him angry before.

"Thornin, where are you going?" she asked.

"Don't worry, just go rest, I will be in soon."

"Come on Arya, let's go." Pim led Arya away.

Thornin marched angrily to the main house.

He met Lady Amara in the front room, she was with her sons, Akkhi and Nam.

"Thornin, are you okay?" Nam asked in concern.

Thornin ignored him.

"My lady, I wish to speak to you." he told Lady Amara.

"Yes, speak to me. Here I am" she told him.

"My lady, Arya is my wife not a servant. She isn't to do house chores."

Lady Amara burst into laughter.

"Wow! It's the effrontery, you matched in here to tell me not to give your little wife chores. She is a servant, she is married to my servant and eats my food so she is a servant."

"My lady, other male servants have wives who do not work, why should she work?" Thornin argued.

Akkhi stood up. "Are you mad? How dare you talk to my mother that way. She has said your little murderer wife will work and so she will."

"she isn't a murderer, don't call her that." Thornin snapped, his eyes blazing with anger.

"Oh! Don't tell me you have fallen in love with her? Is she so good in bed that you have forgotten your place, you little rat!"

"Don't talk about her like that." Thornin warned.

"Hmm, seems I should have a taste of what has got you so fired up. I reckon Arya would rather warm the bed of a young master rather than a servant."

Thornin saw red, he shoved Akkhi. "I said don't talk about her like that." he yelled.

Akkhi punched him. "How dare you hit me? Have you forgotten your place?"

The two fought.

"Guards!" Lady Amara yelled.

The guards came and separated them. Akkhi had bruises on his face.

Lady Amara touched his face tenderly.

And then she turned to Thornin furiously. She slapped him hard on his face.

"How dare you, a nobody hit my son?" she asked him.

"Mother, he should be punished." Akkhi snarled.

"He will he punished, tie him up." she ordered the guards.

Thornin was tied up.

"Get me the whip." Akkhi ordered.

The guards brought him a whip today.

"take him outside, I want everyone to see him being whipped and know not to mess with me."

Thornin was taken outside to the courtyard and Akkhi began to whip him.

Each whip landed on Thornin's back with force, tearing his shirt and leaving red stripes as he bled.

"next time, you will know your place." Akkhi grunted as he whipped him.

Eventually Thornin couldn't stand up, he collapsed onto the ground. Akkhi still continued whipping him.

It was only when it started raining that he stopped. He threw the whip on the ground.

"The next time anyone of you nobodies dare to defy me, this will be your fate." Akkhi yelled.

He went inside with his mother.

Arya and Pim, with the rest of the servants rushed to him.

"Nobody is to help him, just his precious wife. Anyone who does, will be fired." Lady Amara instructed.

The servants withdrew immediately.

Arya struggled to lift Thornin up and drag him inside.

It was a long, heavy walk. Thornin grunted in pain with every step.

"I am sorry, I am so sorry" Arya sobbed as she dragged him inside.