The Watchtower (standard:romance, 1023 words)
Author: Liam Walker	Added: Aug 22 2005	Views/Reads: 3437/0	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
a nice tale a coming of age drama

The Watchtower By Liam Walker 

It was a lovely spring morning the air was crisp clean and the daffodils
were out and the sun was high up in the blue sky, the birds were 
singing and William Hudson was awaking on this fine day. The date was 
March 25th and it was a Monday morning and the year was 1960, it was 
seven am in the morning and William was feeling refreshed and ready for 
the day ahead in his home up on water foot hill in Newport Wales. He 
felt safe and comfortable in his watchtower home but one thing was 
missing and had been missing for some time now and as he shaved in 
front of the mirror his mind was showing him just what he was and still 
was missing in his life. 

William Hudson was a thirty year old Welsh man, he was the son of a
wealthy landowner that being the earl of Shrewsbury and William had 
been left this watchtower home in his fathers will. William was a loner 
and a complete curmudgeon and looked on the villagers with disdain as 
he was their landlord and he looked down on their rented homes and 
lands from the vantage point of the watchtower. 

The only real contact he had was with his four employees, that being his
cook, his cleaner, his butler and his servant. They all thought he was 
a little strange because he didn’t bother with anyone but he paid their 
wages so they were quite happy and kept their opinions to themselves. 

William was ageing he needed a wife this lonely world was killing him.
While he was shaving the mirror and his mind had shown him the path or 
life he could lead, but would he try and go down that route?. 

He looked out of his kitchen window and he saw Elizabeth Hudson walking
towards the church. Elizabeth was the daughter of a cabinet minister 
and he had been watching her from his tower for a while now and he so 
wished he could just talk to her but he was afraid to as he hadn’t the 
confidence to do such a thing or so he thought anyway. Elizabeth was a 
beautiful 25yr old unattached lady and she was an English teacher at 
the local school. William wanted her he knew she would make him a good 
wife and could bare him children. He was desperate for a son to carry 
his name on, in fact he was that much in turmoil he decided in the 
spare of things to go out to the village and make a speech to the 
villagers once and for all and make himself seem more popular. He 
thought to himself if this works I could get Elizabeth if it doesn’t 
work then I have lost nothing anyway. 

So he announced to his staff that he was going to the village and they
could not believe he was about to embark on this at all. For the last 
seven years since his fathers death William Hudson of water foot hill 
had been a complete recluse and he did not venture anywhere so this as 
you can imagine was a complete and utter surprise to his four staff. 

The Butler said, "don’t you think I should go with you sir give you some
morale support," William replied, "I don’t need any support thank you," 
now I am giving you all two days off with full pay as I wont be back 
for two days. 

With that William packed an overnight bag and left the watchtower and
headed for the village for the first time in seven years. I know what 
you are thinking how and why did William manage to suddenly get the 
confidence and the courage to go out let alone go to the village well I 
will tell you its like this you see a man cant be a man without a good 
woman and there comes a stage in a mans life when he realizes this, and 
this is what had happened to William Hudson. 

The Village 

It was midday by now as William approached the village and he met as he
had expected quite a hostile reception. The mayor of the village 
stopped him and said, "There’s no place here for you go back as your 
safety cannot be guaranteed here I am afraid to say, your rents are far 
too high and people of this village don’t like you". 

"I come here in peace with an offer for the village," by now a crowd had
formed and they were chanting insults at William and some were throwing 
fruit at him. However the mayor said to the crowd to stop their insults 
and the throwing of the fruit and give him a chance at least. The crowd 
agreed and with that William offered the village 4 weeks free rent a 
year that being 2 weeks every summer to be agreed around July or august 
and two weeks free at Christmas time, and he also agreed to lower the 
rents by forty percent with immediate effect. With this news every 
villager was delighted but there was just one last thing, we call it a 
catch today. 

The catch was Elizabeth Hudson they had to agree for him and her to meet
up for rent conditions to be met which they did and they courted for a 
few months and then they married and the village had a feast that day, 
William had gone from being the most unpopular man to being well liked 
in a few short months it was amazing to see and even believe really. 
From now on all was well in water foot hill for ever more, and within a 
year William and Elizabeth were blessed with a baby boy and two years 
later a baby girl, finally William had found a life for himself and he 
had Elizabeth to thank for that, his children were called Thomas and 
Lucy, and at last he had a son to keep the Hudson name going and look 
after the village and its estates. 

The end 


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