“Now that you’re done for the day, I’d like to take a look at you,” he told her as she closed the front door. “Let’s go in the examination room.”
“Oh Alec, that’s not necessary. I just want to go lie down and nap. You can take care of me when the time comes,” she said.
Alec quickly looked at her with his health vision examining her as she stood by the door. He was worried that the baby wasn’t positioned properly, but hoped that it would turn before the delivery date came. He could try to improve her condition now, but it would take many long sessions to achieve gradual improvement, and neither he nor Leah had the inclination right now.
“Alright, go rest for a while. I’m going to go look for more supplies,” he informed her, and grabbed a bag on his way out.
Alec decided to go to a different location to avoid the group of men he saw the previous day, and headed northeast to some woods that were new to him. He found a number of mosses and some snails he could make use of, and with those and other supplies returned to the shop for dinner with his family there.
“Have you heard from Natha or Annalea?” Alec asked as they ate.
“We receive the barrel of spring water every week from Natha, but we haven’t heard from him otherwise. Annalea did stop by to visit once, and seemed to be doing well. They had just moved into a new location,” Leah said.
“Oh that’s right. I saw her brother in Oyster Bay once, and he told me they had moved too. Do you know where they are now?” Alec asked, remembering when he and Bethany had visited Drawr at the riverside docks. He had an unexpected memory of the fragrance of Bethany’s perfume, and lost contact with his here-and-now as he thought about her.
When Alec returned from his memories of Bethany, Leah was describing a location, which Alec could picture, and they turned to other topics.
The next day Alec arrived early at the palace and went to serve at the Duke’s office. Two other Guards were there already, and Alec took up his corner position without comment. Lord Kelvin, the Duke’s chief minister, entered the room to speak with the Duke, and soon they were joined by Noah Rastall, another adviser Alec recognized. Soon after that Colonel Ryder came to the room and joined the conversation as well.
With the enhancement of his abilities through his warrior powers, Alec was able to listen to the discussion easily. They were still debating what action to take regarding the placement of the army. The colonel was the only one in favor of bringing some of the troops back, the other two advisers insisting that either the remote danger of an attack, or the appearance of indecision were reasons to not recall the men and women marching eastward. The Duke listened to them with frustration, wishing to have a clear consensus among his advisers that made sense to him. Looking up from the group in exasperation at one point, his eyes happened to fall upon Alec.
“Healer, you heard the cases made yesterday at the conference. Since I’ve heard the others I might as well hear your opinion. Tell me what you think,” the Duke said.
Alec looked at the three advisers who were watching him, seeing the surprise of belated recognition on the face of Ratsall. Alec looked at Ryder, who simply raised his eyebrows.
“Well, my lord, I’ve seen the lacertii fight, and they aren’t so overwhelming that a well-stocked fort can’t hold out against them if relief forces can come to their rescue, especially with a signal system like Major Abraham recommended,” he halted to further collect his thoughts while speaking in front of so many important people. “I think you should have forces back here for the sake of yourself and the city; we need armed men to thwart unscrupulous folks around the palace and in the cities. Plus, you need to keep your eyes to the west as well, and if the King passes away, it might be well to have a sizable force ready to travel quickly to Oyster Bay or elsewhere to protect your interests. But by all means expedite the construction of both forts in the east. Those are my thoughts, my Duke,” Alec said with some embarrassment over such a long speech, and took his eyes off the group to search around the room.
The room was silent for a long time. At last, Rastall broke the quiet. “You know, I think the boy makes a lot of sense. I suggest you follow his advice,” and out of the corner of his eye Alec saw Rastall tip his fingers to Alec.
The doors opened, and a new Guard came in for the changing of the duty shift. Alec moved over to be closer to the Duke as the prior occupant of that spot left, while the new Guard took up the opposite side.
“I think we’ve heard enough about the disposition of the troops,” the Duke said. “Tell me how the markets are bearing.”
“Commodities prices are continuing to rise. Wheat is five percent higher in costs that it was four days ago, and continuing to climb. Preserved goods are climbing even more rapidly in costs, and livestock are not coming to market as they normally would,” Kelvin said. “Hoarding is becoming the way folks think, and it’s hurting prices.”
“We’ll need to continue to buy grain for the winter stores,” the Duke said. “Can you arrange to buy our grain in other markets and have it shipped here, so that we can take some of the buying pressure off the local market? That could lower prices for our people, and maybe the market will return to normal.”
“You’ll have to pay more for shipping if you do that,” Kelvin warned.
“I understand that. Let’s use some of our profits from the sale of the fountain water to pay for it. Just cut our local purchases in half for now and replace that amount with the grain from other markets. Let’s see if that’s enough,” the Duke concluded.
Other topics were discussed, and Alec followed the Duke through a variety of meetings during the morning. They arrived at the meeting with the military advisers midway through the shift, and the Duke announced his decision. “If our fort is completed and supplied, I believe the garrison will be able to withstand a siege, provided we have other troops able to give timely relief via the system of signal fires that was discussed. We also need to consider the dangers of maintaining our other posts without sufficient troops if other needs arise in our cities or to our west. My decision therefore is to allow the current troop movement to proceed so that we may offer relief to those who have been out in the expeditionary force for several months now. Those folks will be recalled back here, and more immediately, we’ll call back some of those who are going east now. We’ll also establish a fully fortified outpost at the sand bars to provide the opportunity for relief of the eastern fort. Major Abraham, I expect you’ll return to the eastern forts and make everything work. We’ll send relief for you as well in a couple of month’s time after you have this all underway.
“Thank you gentlemen for your advice. Keep me fully informed as to how the planning and execution goes.” With that the Duke stood and abruptly left the room.
Alec reflected on the Duke’s decision as they walked to the next location. He had done what Alec had suggested, with the additional, important step of relieving those who had been assigned to the road-building project for so long now. It was a smart move.
The rest of the morning was uneventful, and when the shift change for the guards occurred, Alec went to the colonel’s office to talk to him. The aide announced Alec to Ryder.
What can I do for you, captain?” the colonel asked.
“I’d like to start working on the medic training. Should I proceed with those medics and candidates we have here now, or wait for some to return from the eastern forts?” Alec asked.
“Why don’t you do both? Put out an announcement that you’ll resume medic training on a certain day, and announce training for those interested in starting training to become new medics among the guards who are here now. Then you can train the other folks when they return, which will be a few days for some, and a few weeks away for those being relieved from the east. We might as well train as many as we can. I don’t think the efforts will be in vain in the long run, do you?” Ryder asked.
“Is there anything else?” he asked Alec, who shook his head no. “Very well. Thank you for
your comments to the Duke this morning. I thought your logic was very sound, and I thought the Duke’s decision was even better. I appreciate the fact that you did not volunteer your opinion about what to do until you were asked. Once in a while we have some Guards who don’t understand the value of such discretion; they don’t serve with the Duke for very long. Now go make up your schedule for medic training and have my aide distribute it.”
Alec was dismissed, and left the room to go talk to the colonel’s aide, Lt. Saucar, about the training schedule, which he promised to distribute. After that Alec decided to go to the armory to see if any sword training was possible. Two members of the Guard were training, and one was idle when Alec entered. The sidelined Guard agreed to practice with him. Alec suited up in equipment, and proceeded to give the man a strong test without going all out to defeat him. Afterwards he suggested that his partner change a couple of habits. “They leave you open to a patient right-handed sword,” Alec explained. When the Guardsman insisted they didn’t, Alec fenced with him right-handed, and took advantage of the fatal moves that he warned the other about. “That right there is what you need to watch out for,” Alec told him. The man looked at Alec sourly, reminding him of the reputation he had in the Palace, and their session ended.
Alec went to the quartermaster’s office, looking for his friend, Captain Elcome, who never seemed to have any negative feelings towards him. “Welcome back, Alec! It’s good to see you,” Elcome said brightly.
“Elcome, thank you,” Alec said. “I’m glad to be back in Goldenfields.”
“What can I do for you?” Elcome promptly asked. “No one comes down here unless they need something, do they?” he said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
“I need supplies for the medics here in the palace and on the campaign,” Alec said.
“Alec, I have a budget for arrows, and I’ve made the fletchers of Goldenfields very happy,” Elcome said, winding up for one of the circumlocutory explanations that Alec knew him to deliver at times. “I have money for tents, and that makes the textile producers happy. I have money for harnesses, and that makes the harness-makers happy, and then they go out to buy leather and that makes the tanneries happy! I am spreading happiness throughout Goldenfields these days buying up supplies for the army.
“However, I do not have any budget from the Duke for buying medical supplies for the army,” Elcome said with a dramatic lowering and slowing of his delivery. “I can’t really help you.” He looked at Alec’s face, then looked back down at the papers strewn before him. “However, perhaps I can find something, some loose ends here and there that can be cobbled together to come up with enough to purchase a few of the critical supplies? You won’t mind or tell anyone if there’s just a slight mis-appropriation for a good cause, will you?” he asked.
“Don’t get yourself in trouble over this,” Alec cautioned his friend. “I can buy these things myself and not cause any problems for you,” he earnestly offered.
“Tell you what,” Elcome countered. “Why don’t you let me send out the purchase orders so that you don’t have to chase all over the city markets, and then I’ll send the bills to you in one nice tidy packet, with all the goods delivered straight to your infirmary? Then, if you can’t afford them all, I’ll find some funds over time to fix things up,” he slyly offered.
Alec agreed to the deal, relieved that Elcome would take all the drudgery of shopping out of the process, and went to the bank to withdraw funds that he later gave to Elcome to cover the costs of all the things he wanted. He wondered if Elcome enjoyed shopping, as Bethany did, or if it was just part of his job.
The next several days fell into a routine, which Alec found comforting. He served on Guard duty every morning. For three days he had afternoon refresher training with those medics who had taken lessons from him before he left Goldenfields. Only five of those, including a silent Imelda, were left in the palace due to the eastern troop assignments. They reviewed everything to be done, and Alec put more emphasis on how to treat typical battle wounds. They all restocked their supply kits, and Alec took them out on another field trip to learn again what to look for in the wild if they needed to re-supply.
Imelda and Alec kept their distance from one another otherwise, by an unspoken mutual agreement, and did not practice against one another when they showed up in the armory to work out.
After those original medics were refreshed with training, Alec took on a new class, with ten who volunteered to learn the arts of being a medic. Alec put them through a thorough training, not rushed by any schedule, and felt that at the end of the session they were able to help save lives.
At the shop Alec kept an eye on Leah, still concerned by the position of the baby, which did not show signs of improving. He enjoyed seeing Ellison come to the shop on a daily basis, and they renewed their friendship easily; although Colonel Ryder had not taken Ellison into the small group that knew about the falsely planted rumors against Alec, Ellison had made his own judgment and decided that Alec was a better person than he was accused of being.
It was clear to Alec that Leah had been right, and that once her baby was born and settled in, Ellen and Hannah might well be moving out to a new home of their own. Alec began to contemplate that he would need to hire new domestic help for the shop to help Leah.
Merle’s warrior protégé Indie continued to make slow progress, and Alec stopped by to visit him every other day or so. He saw many of his former classmates from Merle’s training, and they began to talk about his experiences in Oyster Bay and upon Ingenairii Hill, where they all longed to go.
Frost came almost every morning now as the fall season passed, and the arrival of winter was eminent. Cold rain and occasional snow fell, although the wet season in Goldenfields didn’t bring precipitation quite as often or heavy as in Oyster Bay.
Alec thought about the troops out working and marching in the southern emptiness. Those who had left the city recently were still on their way out east, but must be approaching the eastern terminus of their trip, which meant that in a few days, many people would begin to return home for the first time in months. And those troops who had been ordered to stop their eastward march and return could be expected back even sooner, relieving the empty feeling in the Guard quarters on the palace island.
Alec found that the change in weather brought a change in the complaints he helped Leah treat in the medicine shop. Arthritis complaints increased, as did general depression. Alec wondered if that were a result of the restlessness in the population regarding the lacertii threat, or something more mundane like the reduced sunlight during shorter days.
All in all, Alec found the routine of life to be enjoyable, even as he unconsciously worried that something was hanging over his head. And at unexpected times he thought about Cassie and Bethany, wondering how their lives were going back at Oyster Bay.
Chapter 23 – A Night at the Palace
One afternoon Alec was in the shop with a patient when a knocking at the door startled him. “Just a minute, we’re almost done,” Alec shouted over his shoulder. When he opened the door shortly after that to let his patient leave, he found Natha in the waiting room.
“Alec! So you truly are back in Goldenfields!” his trader acquaintance said and shook his hand vigorously. They went to the kitchen and sat down to talk.
“We are doing very well with water sales. If you’ve checked your bank account recently, you should be pleased. Have you checked it?” Natha asked. When Alec sheepishly shook his head no, Natha chuckled. “I heard you saw Drawr in Oyster Bay, and I expected to hear that you were riding one of our ships back. When I didn’t hear about you on our ships, I didn’t believe you had returned to Goldenfields, until someone told me they had seen you in town at the market. Drawr said you had a very pretty friend with you, by the way.”
“I came back on an ingenaire rower. I really intended to at least go see Annie; I heard that she and Rand had moved to a new location. But I just haven’t found time to get the
re yet,” Alec told the trader. “How is she doing and how is Helen?” He found the mention of Bethany sparked something in the back of his mind.
“Everyone in our family is doing well, thank the Lord,” Natha told him. “We’ll invite you over to dinner soon so you can see everyone and get caught up.”
“Let’s wait until after Leah has the baby,” Alec suggested.
“Oh, that will drive the ladies wild, if there’s a baby available to coo over,” Natha told him. “We’ve got one pregnancy going well and Annie is so desperate to have a baby it’s all she talks about.”
“How is business going? What does this lacerti attack do to trading for you?” Alec asked, fearing to tread around the delicate issue of Annalea’s desire to have a baby, something that only he knew was impossible due to illness-inflicted damage Annie had suffered.
“It is changing patterns of trade. The most notable lately has been that the Duke is shipping more grain in from down river markets, and paying more in shipping costs. That’s keeping everyone on the river busier and driving prices for grain higher in the other markets a little, although they’re generally stable now,” Natha said.
“Sales of arms are increasing. I’d say the smithies all along the river are doing better. I’ve seen some passenger traffic away from Goldenfields, but my folks at the docks say that the Locksforts have brought in close to a couple of hundred men in the past two weeks, who must be guards or mercenaries. I have no idea who,” Natha continued.
“I’m paying a premium to sailors to go up to the fountain to barrel up your fountain water for shipping it out. And we have some coopers and carpenters there making barrels and materials, with those folks wanting a premium too, for fear of attack by lacertii,” he added. “We expect that the army will be building a fortress there sooner rather than later.” He watched Alec’s face as he spoke.
At the Seat of Power: Goldenfields and the Dominion Page 29