Disconcerting: Day 4

Word Count: 24,004

Summary of Events:

Caetline and Mrs. Quincey talked with Caetline's great-uncle Guy about Jada's refusal to try suitable horses because they weren't bay coloured and he told them to pick a horse they believed suitable for Jada; if she wanted a bay one she'd have to buy it herself. Macaulay and his friends, spending the weekend in Edinburgh, watched the news in their hotel room and were shown the footage — just released by the Aberdeen Rescuers — of the horse being beaten; seeing the abuse upset Macaulay . . .

Excerpt of the Day: 

"You sure don't look like it," Macaulay swore. "How can you sit around so casually?"

"We're not into horses," Owen replied.

"And I didn't think you were either," Connor said.

"It's injustice even if it's being done to a horse!" Macaulay exclaimed. "How can your sense of justice not be ignited? How can you not– how can you not be upset?"

"We can't do anything about it," Euan replied. "It's back home, and we're not going back home until Monday. And trust me, commenting on Facebook or Twitter is not doing something."

"I don't want you commenting on social media!" Macaulay cried. "I don't believe that's the solution to the problem!"

"Then what is?" Owen asked.

"We need to make sure this is taken seriously by the authorities when we get home," Macaulay replied. "Da needs to say something."

"Um, Macaulay, your Da's a doctor," Connor said.

"Not just a doctor!" Macaulay snapped.

"Well, yes, he's a member of the Peerage," Euan said. "But, Macaulay, that doesn't make him more worth listening to than anyone else."

"Da runs a breeding farm for horses!" Macaulay swore. "Yes they're bay horses, not grey ones, but he knows more than the average idiot does about horses. He's known for giving money to help horses. He's not just a doctor! He's not even just an Earl! He's a horseman!"

"Well, good for your Da," Connor said. "But if he wants to say something he'll say something and I doubt the police in Stonehaven are waiting for him to say something about it before they do something."

"What does all this saying something do?" Euan asked. "It tells people your opinion on a matter. Why does your opinion matter?"

"Because we can't let people get away with that!" Macaulay exclaimed. "We need to prove that the public doesn't stand for such things and condemn such abuses!"

"It won't make them go away," Owen said. "Abuse of humans has happened for ages and it's not going anywhere anytime soon."

"Abuse of horses has happened for ages," Euan said.

"So you're just going to claim defeat and say that we won't ever stop it at all so why should we try stopping one person from doing it?" Macaulay demanded.

"No," Euan replied. "We do believe that the abuse we know about we should stop."

Connor and Owen nodded in genuine agreement.

"The thing is," Euan said. "We're in Edinburgh right now. We can't do anything useful for the weekend. Let's just relax and enjoy the weekend and worry about helping out where we can, which isn't social media, when we get home."

"Besides," Connor said. "I'm impressed that you got so fired up about this. I mean, I know your Da has horses, but I didn't think you liked or cared about them. You said before you find people more interesting, at least medically."

"This is kind of taking us aback Macaulay," Owen said.

"As upset as we are, yeah, we're kind of gobsmacked that you're reacting like this," Euan agreed.

Macaulay nodded, feeling suddenly subdued.

Pronunciations:

Guy: g'ee