Free The Steel Harvest by J.D. Miller Page B

drying his eyes with his sleeve. “While we’re all in such good humor, I think we need to talk about your little scavenger problem.”
    Carter steeled himself. “Might as well.”
    Ramus nodded. Standing, he faced away from them, staring into the fireplace. “Rumor around the trading bands here is that the Arcfall Covenant will arrive in Boston the day after next. That gives you only a day’s lead on them. And if they are using cars, catching up to your horse would be easier than — ”
    Carter cut him off. “Yeah. I know.”
    Silvia shank in her chair next to him, her eyes darting around the room.
    “Yeah. Sorry.”
    “Anyhow…”
    Ramus cleared his throat and then continued. “I’m assuming you know to stay off the main road?”
    Carter nodded. “Yeah.”
    “Good. Stick to the back roads, and keep an eye on Dullahan. If he gets his hooves twisted the wrong way, you’ll have to continue on foot.”
    “I know.”
    Ramus smiled, but Carter stared back grimly.
    He’s assessing me.
    “Do you have a backup plan?”
    “Yeah. I sent a letter to the church between here and New Manhattan. The guy I hired said he was heading out by car with a caravan, so it should be reaching the monks any time now.”
    “Why send a letter to the church?” Silvia asked.
    “A fair question,” Ramus said, nodding to one of his servers, who had thus far stood silently in the corner. After he rushed off, their host turned to Silvia and explained. “The church is in the middle of a very important transition. They are attempting to become the leading political power in the northern lands. Doing so would allow them to spread their doctrine as far as they please, and eventually they could send their crusades into other countries. For a normal government party, rising to power would be simple; they’d just invade and take over by force.”
    “But the church can’t do that, can they?”
    “No. The church preaches peace, so they have to act the part, lest they lose credibility. The only way they can gain the power they seek is through public support. As the Northern Lands doesn’t have any centralized leadership, all they have to do is bide their time and make sure they are perfect in the public’s eye.”
    Silvia nodded, her eyes lighting up as she digested the explanation. “So they will help us?”
    Ramus grinned. “Exactly. The church isn’t exactly the biggest fan of tradesmen; we are too greedy for their liking. But smile the right way and pay a big enough tithe, and they will grant you asylum for certain. If worse comes to worst, you should be able to lie low there until the Covenant gives up their search. Anyway, that’s the long and short of it, right, Carter?”
    “Hmm? Oh, yeah.”
    “Anyway,” Ramus muttered, sitting back down, “you seem all squared away. I can’t say I’m not going to miss your company, but I wish the two of you luck on your journey all the same. God knows you’re gonna need it.”
    “Thanks, Ramus, for everything,” Carter said. “We’d have never made it this far without your help.”
    Ramus nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. Carter noted the bags under his friend’s eyes.
    It’s almost like he’s the one preparing for a long journey.
    “Promise me you’ll drop in next time you’re around,” Ramus said suddenly, breaking the silence. “Both of you.”
    “You know I will,” Carter said. “You’re the only affordable inn in this whole damn city, after all.”
    “I will, too,” Silvia added. “I’ll make sure you’re both here, so I can be sure you’re staying out of trouble.”
    Ramus gave her a faint smile. “It’s settled then,” he said. “Next time we are all sitting around this table, we’ll be able to laugh about this whole Covenant business. It’ll even be my treat.”
    Just then, the server returned, a bottle and three glasses in hand. Carter sat upright. Ramus clapped his hands together as Silvia watched the unfolding scene with great