He grimaced. “Yes, I suppose you have a point. Well, I’d better let you
get to work. But do let me know when you come to a decision.”
We parted ways at the doors of the keep. He made for the temple,
which was located near the wall on the opposite side of town from the river. I
started for my tower, but thought better of it and decided to find Captain Rain
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instead.
His surviving men turned out to be using a little waterfront tavern as a
barracks. The owner of the place had died some days ago in a goblin attack,
but the building itself was intact and the main room had more than enough
space to quarter the surviving members of the shattered unit.
Captain Rain was using the living quarters upstairs, while his little
group of concubines ran the kitchen with the help of what I suspected were
more camp followers. There were a lot more men about than I’d expected,
though.
“We left a few men in Lanrest when we first set out,” Rain explained
when I asked about it. “For the first few days we were sending the wounded
back to town as well, and there are a few men who thought the camp had been
wiped out in that giant attack and made their way back on foot. We’ve got
seventeen men who can fight, and another twenty-odd wounded.”
“Any sign of Rolf and his band of deserters?” I asked.
“Not a hint. That’s just as well, though. I’d have to hang them, but with
our losses the men are in no mood for that.”
“I suppose not,” I agreed. “So, I take it the Baron still isn’t too happy
with you?”
Considering that the tavern was outside the town wall, odds were they
wouldn’t go more than a few days before something snuck in to attack them in
the middle of the night. That couldn’t be an accident.
“We’re on shit duty,” he confirmed. “I asked about moving the men into
one of those new towers you’re building, but he said he was reserving the
space for his own retainers.”
“You could always jump ship,” I suggested. “I’m leaving as soon as the
wall is done, and I could use some professional soldiers.”
He shook his head. “I wish I could, but our contract runs for another
month. Besides, the Baron wouldn’t allow a body of troops that aren’t under
his control to stay here. If I break the contract he’ll run us out of town before
sunset.”
“If you stay here another month he’s going to get you killed,” I pointed
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out. “You heard him plotting to thin out the refugees, and those are his own
people. The closer you get to the end of your contract the less he’s going to
trust you. He’ll send you to scout for giants, or collect food from ruined
villages, or whatever it takes to make sure none of you are alive by then.”
“No Margold company has broken a contract in seventy years,” he said
stubbornly. “I’m not going to be the first. If he orders us to do something
suicidal then he’s in breach of the contract, and we can pull out. But unless he
does we’re stuck.”
I sighed. “I’m sorry to hear that. I suppose your loyalty speaks well of
you, but it’s damned inconvenient for me. Ah, well. Are you still supposed to
be providing my escort?”
“Yes, and I can spot you a couple of guards for your tower too. Just
don’t expect us to turn on our employer.”
“I get the picture. Go ahead and send them over, then. I’ll be starting on
the wall in a bit.”
Rather than walk back to my tower, I swung by the docks and moved
the hover-barge. I still didn’t trust the situation, and I wanted the thing close at
hand just in case. I reshaped the embankment next to my tower into a dock just
big enough to hold it, and resolved to come back and finish the improvements
I’d been planning sometime soon. It needed a roof, and some kind of heating
system, and manual controls so I didn’t have to steer it myself. Of course,
controls would also mean someone could steal it.
One of the refuge girls peeked curiously over the side of the stairs as I
parked the barge. What was her name again? Gudrin, that was it.
“Good morning, milord,” she said cheerfully, her breath misting in the
chill air. “Are we going to be leaving on that thing, then?”
I almost reminded her I wasn’t a lord. But no, that was a bad habit. It
was becoming increasingly clear that if I wanted to be able to protect my
people I was going to have to pass myself off as a noble. Better to just refrain
from commenting on that topic until I had a chance to come up with a plausible
story.
“It looks that way,” I told her. “I take it you’re joining us, then?”
She did a little curtsey. “If you’ll have me, milord. Miss Avilla said
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most of the mercenaries for hire are single, and she wanted a few reliable girls
on hand to keep the numbers in balance. Although I’m not sure what I think
about this ‘wolf-touched’ business.”
I chuckled. “She actually explained that, did she?”
“Hrodir was asking her some pointed questions, milord,” she
explained. “It seems her magic works better on some folk than others? She said
I’m so open a couple more wolf hearts would probably have me sprouting fur
and getting an urge to go hunting.”
“You don’t seem too put off by the idea,” I observed.
She shrugged. “It’s a bit unsettling, to be honest. But you’ve taken good
care of us so far, milord. I’ll trust that you know best how to keep us all alive,
and try not to worry overmuch.”
“I see Avilla is picking good people,” I smiled. “Don’t worry, if we do
any major enchantment I’ll ask for volunteers and explain the risks first. I take
it you’re on lookout duty?”
“That’s right, milord. We’ve a lot of people coming and going, and it’s
hard to get a good enough view from inside. But there’s plenty of open space
between here and the town, so if I see soldiers coming I can scurry back inside
and help Gronir bar the door long before they could reach the stairs.”
I was halfway up the steps myself by then, so I paused to look her over.
She was wearing one of the warmth cloaks I’d enchanted the day before, but
her face was bare and her feet were wrapped in rags. With the temperature
well below freezing that seemed a little inadequate.
“It’s a good plan, but find someone to take turns with,” I told her.
“You’ll get frostbite if you stay out here too long.”
She nodded. “All taken care of, milord. Beri is going to spell me until
lunch, while the men are busy moving furniture and getting guard shifts
organized. Then they’ll take over and we’ll be working inside.”
Two steps inside the tower I was intercepted by a blonde-haired
missile.
“Daniel! Are you alright? Are we in trouble? What happened with the
Baron? I saw you brought the windboat, do we need to leave?”
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I stopped the manic flow of questions by kissing her. Ah, honey and
cinnamon, with a hint of cherries this morning.
“We’re fine, sweetie,” I said reassuringly. “The Baron’s not happy, but
he’s not going to make an issue of it publicly. I think you can even go shopping
as long as you take a couple of guards with you.”
She smiled in relief. “Oh, good. I suppose I was worried about nothing,
then.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s good to be cautious. Actually, I want us to