Chapter 16

George was just about to close up, but he was happy as hell to see me and I was happier to see him. After we said our hellos he went to the stable with me and introduced me to its owner. I put my horses in stalls and George and I went back to his shop.

"You know, if you hadn't showed me how to do that casting I'd have never made it around here. I had to let Frank go about six months ago after business dropped off so badly. Mostly all I'm doing now is casting and selling what I make," he said.

"Well, don't take this wrong, but I'm kinda glad. I want you to move to my place and take over most of the smith and casting work there. I just had a big new building built and I left plenty of room around it for a setup like you've got here. The forges aren't even in it yet and you can put 'em where you want to."

"There is nothing holding me here and that's for sure. How many other smiths are in your town?"

"I've got one real smith and three boys learning. It's a small town and my smithy is the only one in town. I'll furnish you a place to live and all the beef you can eat. Most everything else you'll need to eat too. I'll pay you for the work you do or we can work out a salary, either way you want it."

"It sounds good to me. When do we leave?"

"As soon as I can collect the girl. The same one who had her last time has got another one," I said.

"And I know who it is this time. He raised hell with another smith after you took her last time. He claimed the smith made you a key to get into his house.

"He never let on about holding the girl though. He just said he came home and found his housekeeper tied up and a bunch of stuff missing."

"How do you know so much about it?" I asked.

"Because I'm the smith he came to for another lock and key. He made me promise it wouldn't be anything like the one he had before," George said, and laughed like hell.

"I never had a key the last time. His housekeeper wasn't locking the door behind her when she went out for groceries, and I didn't steal a damned thing out of his house," I said.

"I figured it had to be something funny, because I knew the other smith he claimed did him wrong. He's a good smith, but he does not keep a copy of the keys he makes when he builds a lock. He couldn't have made you a key if he wanted to.

"On the other hand I can give you one right away," George said, and laughed like hell again.

"That's going to be a big help, but I think you need to get on the road before I take the girl this time. I also want to show you a better way to make wagon wheels. Do you have a wagon big enough to carry all your things?"

"No, but I can buy one cheaply enough. It'll have wheels on it when I do though."

"I know it will, and they'll be those solid wooden wheels won't they?" I asked.

"Yes, what other kind of wheel is there."

"Get the wagon and I'll come by tomorrow and show you how to make new wheels for it. It's a long way to where we're going and I don't think solid wheels will hold up for the whole trip. Even if they do, they will make the going much slower."

"Whatever you say. I've got a couple of friends that need to move too. Do you think you could find them jobs there?" he asked.

"What do they do?"

"One does carpenter work and the other one is a farm hand."

"I can find them work. Do they have families?"

"No. They fought in the slaver war you might have heard about, but neither one of them ever married. They live together, but both of them have been short of work lately."

"If they can afford a wagon have them get one and we'll fix the wheels on it too. If they can't afford a wagon have them find one and I'll advance them the money."

"They've got one spotted, but they haven't been able to afford it yet. They've only got ten shells and the wagon cost twelve," he said, and I counted out twelve shells.

"The road back has a few rough characters hanging around it. They do have arms don't they?" I asked.

"Yes, they have two crossbows each and I've got two. My wife knows how to cock mine so she can cock one while I'm shooting the other. We've all got swords and bucklers too, though we never really need them in town."

"You might need 'em on the trip though and I want to let you get a few days start on me before I take the girl and leave," I said.

He agreed and I headed back to the middle of town to see if my old room was available. It wasn't. The man remembered me, but he had a permanent boarder now. I didn't guess I needed the room so much this time so I went back to the first place I'd stayed last time and the same room was available. I took it for two weeks and sat down to eat before I even went up.

The next morning I got up and walked by the banker's house and into the small Inn across the street from it. I had time for watching his exit this morning since it was only about eight thirty when I ordered some sausage and bread for breakfast. I happened to see a peddler deliver some eggs while my sausage was cooking and I ordered a couple to go with breakfast.

I was just wiping the last of my fried eggs out of the plate with my bread when I saw the same two goons he'd been using last time come by to escort him to work. I noticed they both carried swords now and I wondered what he was thinking.

They could have had all the swords they could carry with them last time and it wouldn't have helped a thing. Or course, I wasn't the only variable and there was a chance he'd had other troubles on his trips from his nascent bank to home or the other way around.

He came out of his house then with a medium sized chest he was carrying. He handed it to one of the goons while he locked the door and then he took it back and he and the goons took off for his bank. I noticed they kept their hands on their swords as they walked, as if ready to pull them at any second.

Here was something that made no sense to me. If he was carrying his money home at night what was the point in announcing it - telegraphing the number of his guards and their complement of arms. Frankly it was a stupid move.

Even stupider was carrying the money home at all. He had to walk right by the real bank on his way. He could have rented a box in there and his money would have been almost perfectly safe in the real bank overnight.