Thread: Madame Brunet (LingeringDesire & CharmSnake)

It had become much darker during the time that they had spent inside the store. Brunet remounted the canoe onto his shoulders and the two continued on and into the woods. As the path descended Jacquelyn lost her footing in the mud and while clinging to a thin branch had taken a tumble into the brush. Andr? He stepped carefully towards her, balancing the canoe on his shoulders, he let the bow rest in the bushes as he held out a hand. The warm musk of his sweat escaped his coat. Come on now, he said coldly. It's just a little mud. The path is easy. She straightened herself out and wiped her bottom as he stood up and assumed the lead. Careful not to swat her with the canoe, he turned and walked ahead. Near the bottom was another of Boisvert's lanterns marking the bank. He heaved the boat over and into the water with a splosh. Then he placed his pack in and steadied the canoe as Jacquelyn climbed aboard. To the west the sky was dim and grey and the treeline made a black silhouette. To the east the sky was almost pitch now. The moon only made a faint glow in the clouds to the south. Before climbing in himself, Andr dug into his pack and produced a lantern. Then with a match from within his coat, struck upon the gunwale, he lit it, adjusted the wick and placed it in a holding bracket in the bow. They disembarked. The water was calmer on this side of the falls. Their cascading sounds faded into the dusk as he paddled onward. A raven crawed somewhere in the trees. A wolf howled in the distance. Brunet's paddle rhythmically dipped in and out of the river. The cloud was too thick for stars. The wind had abated considerably. What was left of it played with Jacquelyn's hair. The light of the lamp behind her created a halo effect of her errant blonde locks. Andr paddled on, periodically changing from his left to his right and back to his left. The lantern was only bright enough to light a few yards around the bow of the boat and was only useful to help in coming ashore or to be spotted from afar should they find trouble. They had gone on perhaps another three-quarter hour, when Brunet followed the east bank and slowed to catch a bearing. He paddled on a few more minutes and then when he spotted the dead tree stump in the dim lantern light, pointed the boat towards shore. It nudged the ground gently as it had done before and Brunet reached out for a picket that had been driven into the bank. Grasping it firmly he pulled the boat against the shore and stepped out. It was another soggy, grassy bank and again his feet began to sink in. He held out his hand to help out his wife and then handed her the lantern. Throwing his pack onto his back he lifted the boat onto his shoulders and motioned for Jacquelyn to lead the way. The path was less trodden but still easy to follow. It was less steep than the other. Twenty yards ahead a small wood shack appeared in the lamp light. It was about eight feet by fourteen with a single slant roof and an iron chimney. There was no door on the wall facing the river, only stacks of firewood. The door was on the other side. Brunet leaned the canoe against the wall, took a key from his coat and opened the door. He took the lantern from her and placed it next to another unlit on the rickety table in the center of the house. There were two chairs. A single foggy window pane situated itself next to the door to their left. Stacked beneath it was kindling for the fire. The floor was hard packed dirt. A cast iron stove sat in the far corner to the left. Ashes smouldered from the morning's fire inside. A couple of shelves on the wall next to the stove held various beaten tin cups, spoons and other utensils and rags. On the floor were two large pots and a third filled with drinking water and ladle. In the near corner sat a battered old wash basin. On the floor at the base of the wall beneath the shelves was small wooden trap door lined by stone indicating a tiny pantry probably no more than two or three feet deep. Two wires ran from the back wall to the front wall. These had two purposes. The first was to hang laundry indoors when the weather was poor. The second was to divide the room whenever necessary as demonstrated by the blanket draped over the right side wire giving the bed privacy. The bed itself was a low wooden box filled with straw and covered with sheets and blankets. There were pegs in the wall to the right as you walked in to hang coats. Leaning up against the back wall was a large pair of snowshoes. Next to them on the floor was a wooden crate with clothes thrown in it, and a basket of dirty laundry ready for the wash. At the foot of the bed was another wooden crate, this one empty. In the front right corner was the pot with its lid on. A couple of rags hung next to it on a hook. Brunet shut the door and lowered the bar. Above it, his rifle was mounted. He put his pack on the ground and retrieved the goods that had been purchased at the store. The bottle of whiskey went on the table. The rest went on one of the shelves. He drew himself a chair, sat and sighed. That is yours, he gestured towards the empty crate at the foot of the bed. Put your things there. Then get us each a cup of water and grab some kindling and restoke the fire. He had done a lot of paddling that day and was fatigued. It was time to find out what kind of a wife he had.