Between those two chapters, I would focus on chapter 14. Chapter 15 is entirely focused on Isabel dealing with the fallout of Madam Lockton having seen one of Ruth's seizures. It is chapter 14 that narrates about the meeting between Lockton and other powerful Loyalists that Isabel was able to listen to. Until this chapter, Isabel does not believe that she would make a good spy as Curzon suggested. She doesn't believe that the men would talk about anything important with her being present. Chapter 14 proves to Isabel that Curzon was right because she is in the room while Lockton and the others discuss how to assassinate George Washington.
If those men are willing to go to such great lengths to beat the Patriots, then it is clear that they hate the Patriots. Their language reflects their hatred. At one point Lockton tells the group that the "Crown must smash this rebellion into the dust . . ." This is an example of hyperbole because no matter how smashing of a victory England might have, the Patriots won't literally be smashed into the dust.
A few paragraphs later readers get a good example of a simile. Similes make comparisons using "like" or "as," and Goldbuttons compares a dying rebellion to a plant withering.
"The rebellion will wither like a vine cut off at the roots."
Notice the comparison is about strangling, choking, killing, and destroying. There is no thought of nurturing the vine or guiding its growth. It's clear that the Loyalists hate the Patriots.
A bit later the mayor talks about how the Patriots and their cries for liberty have grown too powerful, and he reiterates the importance of killing the rebellion by using a metaphor that compares the Patriots to an evil beast.
"The beast has grown too large," the mayor said. "If it breaks free of its chains, we are all in danger. We need to cut off its head."
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