Exploitable Weaknesses by Brian Keller (red queen free ebook txt) 📗

suspect that Loryn has some truly horrific memories, but without knowing any of that, I already know everything I need to know about her. If you’re upset, I am not here to console you.” Spen looked defeated. He sat down in the dust beside Birt’s mound of dirt, “Loryn is pretty amazing, isn’t she?” Cooper squatted down before he replied, “You all are.” Spen looked up at Cooper with an expression of curiosity. Cooper continued, “Utsef knew that too. He’d have never let me bring you all back here if he thought otherwise.”

They occupied themselves by returning to the hole being dug as a temporary vault and had been digging for several minutes when they heard a deep rumbling from the southeast. They stopped and stepped outside. Both of them looked skyward and Spen commented, “It’s a little early for seasonal storms to be blowing in, but it looks like we’ve got rain coming.” Cooper nodded, “Let’s get Birt’s miniature quarry covered up. If we don’t go tonight, or if things change, then we may still want to use it.” They quickly gathered some furs and laid them over the mound. They were still weighing the furs down with rocks when Gaff returned. Cooper asked him, “Anything?” Gaff shook his head, “Mardon said they've been paddling across a few times each day, but when they come back they wait until a small group comes to join them on the boardwalk, then they mill around, exchanging greetings and pleasantries for a minute or so, then they disperse in pairs. Leaving two or three men to watch them leave. ‘Checking to see if anyone takes notice’, Mardon said. Not that there’s any way of knowing who needs to be followed, anyway.” Cooper nodded, thinking, “At some point it may be necessary to follow them all.” The three of them returned to the task at hand and finished weighing the furs down with rocks and bricks, then stepped back inside and began inspecting their own roof. Spen suggested they build a tent above the hole they’d dug, saying, “I’d rather not have spent all that effort digging only to have it fill with water.” Cooper was still looking upward as he commented, “The patch work you all did with the roof looks pretty good.” Gaff added, “That may be, but it’s untested. And we should expect some wind to accompany the rain.” Cooper nodded, “Good point.” He looked around at their remaining supplies, “We don’t have enough furs to make a full tent. Not even if we add a few oilcloth cloaks.” Spen offered, “We’ve enough for a small lean-to. Winds might affect the roof, but it shouldn’t get too bad in here.” The sounds of thunder were becoming more frequent but that still didn’t drown out the clop of hooves and the clatter of approaching wagons. Cooper looked from the door, back at the two Journeymen, “Do what you can with it. I should take a look at our transportation.”

The first thing he noticed was that both wagons were returning at the same time, loaded. Birt’s wagon was filled with firewood of various sizes; logs, sticks and kindling. Dailen was sitting proudly as he held the reins to his horses, and Rukle, Balat, Naro and Loryn were reclining on stacks of blankets in the back. As Cooper approached them, he studied the horses. They certainly weren’t young animals, but they had energy in their step and pulling the wagons through town hadn’t seemed to tire them. As he drew closer to Dailen’s wagon, Cooper commented, “I wonder how much rain water those blankets will soak up?” Loryn grinned as she pulled out an oiled sailcloth and shook it open, “Hopefully none.” The four passengers busied themselves with draping the tarpaulin over the stacks of blankets and tucking the edges in underneath. Birt asked, “Does the weather change our plans? I can see how it might help, but it’ll also hinder us in other ways.” Cooper shrugged, “Depending on how much rain we get, the wagons’ll leave tracks. We’ll need to come into town, instead of circling to the south. The cobblestones of the Grid will hide our trail… but it’ll also increase our risk. City Watch patrols, two wagons loaded with prisoners, shackles still on their ankles…” Rukle chimed in, “But the rain will make it easier to approach the quarry. Poor visibility will work in our favor.” Loryn added, “We lay the prisoners down in the wagons. Spread blankets over them, and the sailcloth.” Cooper appeared uncertain, and Loryn continued, “At least then the City Watch would have to stop us and look under in order to see them.” Rukle looked over his shoulder at the approaching line of dark clouds, “One thing for certain, that isn’t just going to blow over. Might not be too bad though. A little wind, a fair bit of rain… that’s all it looks like to me.” Cooper was thinking about the open spaces and rolling hills between the quarry and the city, “How do you feel about lightning?” Rukle shrugged, “Not much to be done about it, I suppose. If it’s your time to go, death will find you, lightning or not.” Dailen grumbled, “Well, if it’s your time to go, and it’s to be lightning, then I hope you’re not riding in my wagon…!” This brought a chuckle from most of them and Birt asked, “So we’re still going then?” Cooper nodded, “If it rains, the roads will be muddy for the next few days. We’re not going to wait for the roads to dry. If there’s rain falling, the Watch patrols aren’t as likely to stop us. They don’t want to stand out in the rain any more than anyone else does.” Rukle turned his palms up, “Besides, if it goes wrong, a patrol isn’t more than three or four men. We just kill them and drag them into the wagon and cover ‘em up. We can dump ‘em later.”