78

A woman spoke then.

“I will take the other side of this argument.”

Wesley smiled wide. Calum sensed he had great love for this woman.

“Yes! You must!”

“Let me begin by clarifying your argument, lest I build my opposition upon soft ground.”

“Of course.”

“The man, Armitage, returns to us with a boy. Another child, left with this careless guardian. The boy has suffered a great tragedy, true. A grotesque murder, a daughter and a father with a mutilation that reminds us of the old conflicts. I see why this moves you, Wesley, I do. But you are right to start long ago. So I shall join you there.

You were of no use to us after the fire. No one here would disagree with that. But you were in pain, all three of you were. Then the girls themselves were lost. You never discovered why. You never even had any deep tale from the man, Armitage. Instead, he came here for answers? Wesley, you should have gone there with questions!”

Wesley laughed and interjected - “I see that your clarification is done? Proceed with your argument.”

“Now I see that time has passed, that your griefs somehow have quieted, and now you seek to remedy your losses with a show of courage. This boy gives you that opportunity, and you invoke the twisted one, Thadodaho! You seek to untangle his matted hair! You suffered greatly, and it is sensible to conjure for yourself the warlord - the one who opposes peace - Wesley, you have had none for many years. But understand that Hiawatha stood to convince the warlord not for the sake of any one man, but because he was brokering peace for the five nations. What war is there with the five? I desire us to retain our connection to our ancestors and our old ways, but through remembrance of the stories, not by reliving the tragedies of others.

So, explain your case again if I misunderstood it, because it seems to me that you believe that, because of one boy's tragedy, the spirit of the ancient warlord is somehow unleashed again on the earth? Wesley, my friend, if that is your story, then I fear you may not be well - perhaps some cedar tea and a quiet night is what you need.”

Wesley was glowing, the argument was strong, Calum was not sure why the large man seemed so happy. But the woman was not yet done.

“And as my last point, I would ask, why are you the one making this case, Wesley? We know nothing of this boy or his family. Why do we cheer for our old friend? Should we not begin this case again with the trial we never had - give Onondaga their audience with the man Armitage.”