The fifteen minute novel writing experiment is a attempt to write a complete (and very rough) draft of a novel by writing for fifteen minutes each day. I have taken a timed writing from one of the daily prompts done in 2021, cleaned it up a little and used it as my jumping off point into a story. Each day I will take the last line of the story written the day before and use it as my sentence starter and write for fifteen minutes, growing the story as the year progresses.
Day 139: “I did,” her husband replied. “And he wasn’t surprised to see me. As he’s already had another visitor with the same complaint.”
“I did,” her husband replied. “And he wasn’t surprised to see me. As he’s already had another visitor with the same complaint.”
Kissa looked at her husband. “Denya’s husband, Caran?” she asked.
Heval nodded. “He visited three days ago.”
“Good,” Kissa said. “It isn’t right.”
“I know,” he said nodding. “Part of that money should be ours, and part should go to Caran and Denya’s household.”
“And part to Anya,” Kissa said. She shook her head. “I can’t believe Uncle took money to send her off and then started to spend the dowry he claims didn’t exist.”
She clamped her lips shut and stirred the porridge in her bowl with sharp movements. “Do you know we haven’t had a word from her since? Unless you could those men who visited a few months back. “
“I know,” her husband said in a placating manner.
“And they went straight to uncle no word to the rest of us about what they wanted to talk about it, just word from the manor house where she was sent.”
“And they wouldn’t tell you the name of the house where she is working,” Heval said as though the conversation was not new. As Kissa had a tendtendency to repeat things when something irritated her, Anya suspected he had heard the words before. She smiled.
“And they won’t tell us the manor house so we can send a message to her,” Kissa repeated. She nodded her head. “She might not want to talk to Uncle but I’m sure if I sent her a message,” Kissa continued.
“Or Darya,” Heval said.
“Or Darya, then Anya would respond and tell us that she was all right.”
“I know,” her husband said.
Kissa’s eyes narrowed. “You noticed that they didn’t start spending the extra money until after those men came to talk to him about Anya.”
Heval looked up and frowned at what was clearly a new addition to the conversation. “What do you mean?”
“I mean they may have spent a few extra coins to hire someone to help the little ones out when Anya left and they could have scraped together the money for that on their own, but they didn’t really start spending money until after that conversation. Which means that either the visitors gave them money, or brought information about Anya back that made them realize they no longer had to keep the money reserved for the dowry safely tucked away because there was no one to claim it.”
Kissa’s eyes teared up. “Anything could have happened to her. I know the money is a point of principle and something you can take to the magistrate, but she is my sister and no one has heard anything from her since she left. That Lord Mathis fellow has been back a few times, sometimes recruiting staff for the manor house other times not but no one has asked him for details either. That is something someone should look into.”
“I know,” Heval said. He reached out a hand and grasped Kissa’s. “The money would be good, I can’t deny that and it is yours by right, but it is also the only way we can force him to disclose the details. It would be partially Anya’s money too and she would have to be brought into a legal matter.” He gave Kissa’s hand a squeeze and let go. “We’ll find her and make sure she is fine.”
Ten til Midnight 