The Rambling Spy

by Mackenzie Morgan

  Rhianna shook her head. “We just finished dinner. We’re fine.”

  After they sat down, Kevin said, “I got your letter today.”

  Allisandra nodded.

  “How was he while he was here? Did he do or say anything that might tell us what he’s up to?”

  “No, he acted like what he claimed to be. He helped some of the farmers with their orange crops, and once the harvest was in, he left.”

  “Well, he did show up to help build the house for Aster, Tobias, and Shana,” Craven said.

  Allisandra chuckled. “I think he showed up because he’s a little sweet on Shana.”

  Craven raised his eyebrows. “What makes you think that?”

  “Just a few things I’ve noticed, but never mind. It doesn’t matter. He’s gone now.”

  Kevin frowned. “He didn’t ask any questions?”

  “Not that we’ve heard of.” Allisandra glanced at her husband. When he shook his head, she looked back at Kevin. “Why?”

  “I was hoping he might have said something that would let me know whether or not he’s here on Rolan’s orders, and if he is, what those orders might be.”

  “If he is, he didn’t give any indication of it. And he was a big help with the harvest. If he were to show up here again, he’d be welcomed with open arms. Most of the people around here hated to see him go. Even Aster had relaxed about him.”

  “Does she still think he was one of Rolan’s guards?”

  Allisandra nodded. “But she did say she never saw him do anything to hurt anyone.”

  “Well, at least there’s that.”

  As the conversation turned to Rhianna’s impending absence and the care of her gardens, Kevin and Craven played with Lysette. At one point, while the women were chatting, Craven tilted his head towards Rhianna. “How long will she be gone?”

  “Two years.”

  Craven nodded. “Might want to think about getting a little one of your own once she gets back.”

  “Can’t say the thought hasn’t crossed my mind, but too soon to think about that. Two years is a long time.”

  Craven shook his head. “Not as long as you think. It’ll fly by. But don’t let her get too comfortable up there in North Amden.”

  A small grin cracked Kevin’s face. “I don’t plan to.”

  When Kevin and Rhianna got ready to leave, Craven hugged Rhianna and said, “Don’t stay away too long.”

  “I’ll try not to. Hopefully we’ll have some breaks when I can get away for a few days. Maybe we can drop by then.”

  Allisandra overheard her. “I’ll hold you to that, and you too, Myron.”

  Kevin nodded. “Duly noted.” Then he and Rhianna left for home.

  Chapter 41

  The Search Begins

  Joan stopped by Kevin’s office after lunch Wednesday. “You wanted to know when I heard from Montuck in Grainger. His report came in this morning.”

  “Good.” Kevin motioned her in.

  “And it was quite thorough.” Joan handed it to Kevin. “Not only did he know how many clinics need to be set up, he listed where each one should be and the name and location of a sister to supervise it.”

  Kevin scanned the report. “Here’s Myerston, in the list of places where clinics are needed. Perfect!”

  Joan grinned. “I thought I’d oversee setting that one up and make a step by step blueprint as we go. Then when someone asks how to do it, I’ll have something to give them.”

  “When do you want to go?”

  “Whenever Chris has time.” Joan turned towards Chris. “It’ll probably take a couple of days, maybe more. Will that be a problem?”

  “Are you planning to spend the night?” Chris asked

  “I’d rather not. We can see the people we need to see during regular business hours. I’d like to be home for dinner.”

  Chris nodded.

  “Alek can go with you,” Kevin said.

  “Why?” Joan asked. “Chris will be with me.”

  “Chris will be busy helping you and getting information for us. He won’t have time to be a bodyguard, too.”

  Joan frowned. “We’re going up there to set up a clinic. Who’d want to hurt us?”

  “The people I’m looking for if they think that’s why we’re there,” Chris said.

  “Speaking of that,” Joan turned back to Chris, “you need to fill me in. What’s this all about?”

  “You remember the raid near Bridgeport? The one Marcus broke up?” Chris began.

  Joan nodded.

  “We think the man Marcus grabbed, the one who had the key, is working out of Myerston now.” Chris told Joan about Mikos and Devron, and Caleb’s comments. “If Caleb’s right, Mikos is probably the one who told Gwendolyn about Marcus.”

  “Then what’s he doing up there?”

  Chris shrugged. “Hiding?”

  Joan nodded. “When do you want to go?”

  “Let’s go on a Monday or a Tuesday in case it takes longer than you think. If you’re not ready to go next week, we can go the next. I doubt a week will make much difference at this point.”

  Joan looked at Kevin. “What will you do if we find him?”

  “Lock him up until we find out what his role was. If all he did was provide transportation we won’t be able to hold him, but if he had any part in those raids, there’s no way I’ll let him stay in Camden. I’ll take him back to Landoryn and dump him in Alastar’s lap.”

  ~~~~

  The next Monday morning, Joan, Chris, and Alek left for Montock’s house in Oakdale, the town where the district officers of Grainger lived. They arrived in the middle of a snowstorm with several inches on the ground and more coming down.

  They were stomping snow off their boots on Montock’s front porch when he opened the door. He frowned when he recognized Joan. “I sent your report last week. Haven’t you received it?”

  “I have it right here.” Joan held up his report. “That’s why I’m here. I’d like to talk to you about setting up a clinic in Myerston.”

  “Oh.” Then he realized she was still standing on the porch. “Please, come in. Can I get you something hot to drink? Tea? Or coffee?”

  “No, thank you,” Joan said as she stepped past him into the warmth of his living room. “We’re fine."

  Montuck held the door as he motioned Chris and Alek inside. Then he did a double take. “Chris?”

  Chris held up the key. “Transportation.”

  Montuck nodded. After everyone was seated, he turned to Joan. “You said you want to set up a clinic in Myerston. Is that the only one?”

  “No, but it’s the one I’d like to do myself. I’ve never worked in a clinic, much less set one up, and if I’m going to tell other people how to do it, I need to know what I’m talking about.”

  Montuck leaned back in his chair. “Makes sense. What do you need from me?”

  “A letter of introduction I can give the director of Myerston. I hope he knows the lady you mentioned in your report,” Joan glanced down at her notes, “Zelda. If not, I can use the letter as an introduction to her as well. From what I understand, she used to be a chapel aide with Sister Hope out of Chadsport. I’d like for Zelda to help me get the clinic organized and then agree to run it, but if she can’t, maybe she’ll know someone who can.”

  “And if not?”

  Joan shrugged. “I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it, but I’ll find someone.”

  Montuck nodded. “I’ll be happy to write a letter, but if you’d like, I could go with you and introduce you to Phylan myself.”

  “Thanks, but I hope that won’t be necessary. A letter should do.”

  “Then if you’ll excuse me for a moment,” Montuck said as he got up, “I’ll go write it.”

  After he left, Joan turned towards Chris and whispered, “Do you want him to go with us?”

  When Chris shook his head, Joan leaned back in her chair to wait.

  A few minutes later, Montuck returned with a folded sheet
of paper with his seal on the back. “If you run into any problems, let me know.”

  “Thank you.” Joan stood up and took the letter. “I’ll let you know how things go.”

  Then she and Alek stepped beside Chris, touched his arms, and he turned the key.

  When they emerged from the energy field, they were standing in half a foot of snow. Chris glanced around, but between the falling snow and the surrounding trees, he couldn’t figure out which way they needed to go to get to town. He raised his eyebrows at Alek.

  Alek shrugged. “I have no idea. I usually travel with a sorcerer who uses a seeing eye to figure out which way to go.”

  “Well, let’s do something,” Joan said, shivering. “It’s too cold to stand around.”

  Alek studied the sky and then pointed east. “Someone’s got a fire going in that direction. Maybe they can tell us where Myerston is.”

  “If we’re lucky, they’ll take us,” Chris grumbled.

  “You’re thinking someone in the middle of nowhere will recognize us?” Joan asked.

  “No, I’m hoping whoever has that fire going will want to help a lady in distress.”

  Joan laughed as they headed east. Ten minutes later they came across a cabin near the bank of a river with smoke coming from the chimney. Alek knocked on the door.

  A couple of minutes later a small woman opened the door, took a good look at Alek, and then asked, “Do I know you?”

  “No, ma’am.” Alek took a small step back and motioned towards Joan and Chris. “We’re new to this district and I’m afraid we’ve gotten turned around. Could you point us in the direction of Myerston?”

  The woman smiled and pointed north. “Follow the river a couple of hundred yards and you’ll be able to see some buildings off to your left. That’s Myerston.”

  Alek glanced towards the river bank. “Is there a road over there? Or a path?”

  The woman shook her head. “Road’s a couple of miles inland. Most folks along the river use boats to get to town, but if you stay on the river bank, you’ll be at the docks before long.”

  Alek thanked her and turned to leave.

  “I’d offer you the use of our boat,” the woman called after him, “but my husband took it to town an hour ago. I’d tell you to wait for him to get back but if he gets involved in an Octuro game, you could be waiting till nightfall.”

  Alek thanked her again as she stepped back in her house and shut the door.

  Twenty minutes later they came across a big dock with several boats tied up. Most were small rowboats, but some were fairly large.

  “Wonder if one of those belong to our guys,” Chris mumbled as they walked by.

  Joan glanced at the boats as they passed. “Possibly, but let’s find the director first.”

  “Where do you want to start?” Chris asked.

  “Let’s try the dry goods store.”

  Alek looked around the shops and then pointed to one on the left. “I think that’s the shop you want.” When they reached the dry goods store, Alek said, “Go on in. I’ll keep an eye on things out here.”

  After Joan and Chris stomped the snow off their boots and brushed as much as they could off their cloaks, Chris opened the door and held it for Joan. The only other person in the store was the shop keeper.

  When he heard the door open, he asked, “Can I help you?”

  “I hope so,” Joan said with a big smile. “Could you tell me where I might find Director Phylan?”

  “He’s usually in his shop in the mornings,” the man said, pointing back the way they’d come. “He’s the town blacksmith.”

  Joan thanked him and turned to go. “I like your store. I hope to come back and look around some after we finish our business.”

  When she and Chris got back outside, Alek asked, “Where to now?”

  “Blacksmith shop,” Chris said. “I think we passed it on the way in.”

  “We did,” Alek said, as they turned back the way they’d come.

  When Alek opened the door to the smithy, heat blasted Joan in the face. As they waited for the blacksmith to finish what he was doing, she untied her cloak and allowed it to fall open, relishing the warmth that seeped through her clothes.

  After the blacksmith finished pounding the hot metal into the shape he wanted, he set his tools to the side and turned to Joan. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

  “I hope so. Are you Phylan by any chance?”’

  The blacksmith nodded.

  “My name’s Joan. I’m Governor Karl’s wife and assistant. Minister Montuck gave me a letter of introduction.” Joan pulled the letter out of one of the pockets inside her cloak and handed it to Phylan.

  Phylan broke the seal and scanned the letter. Then he held out his hand. “Nice to meet you. How can I help you?”

  Joan explained that she wanted to set up a clinic in Myerston and asked him to introduce her to Zelda. “I understand she used to be a chapel aide and I’d like for her to help us get started.”

  Phylan nodded. “Give me a minute to bank my fire and I’ll take you to her house.”

  An hour later, Joan, Chris, and Alek were having tea and cake in front of a roaring fire in a cozy cottage on the outskirts of town. After a few pleasantries, Joan got down to business and explained about the clinics she wanted to set up throughout Camden and that she’d like for Zelda to run the one in Myerston.

  “I’m flattered that someone thinks enough of me to have given you my name, but I haven’t worked in a chapel for ten years,” Zelda said. “I might have been able to handle a basic clinic then, but not now. It’s been too long.”

  “Sister Hope recommended you. She must think you can do it,” Joan said gently. “Let me ask you something. When was the last time a mother asked your opinion when her child wasn’t feeling well?”

  Zelda hesitated. “Yesterday, but her baby just had a little cold and she wanted to help him feel better. She could have asked anyone who’s raised children and gotten the same advice. I’m not a sister.”

  “No, but when you gave her advice, did you suggest she give him anything? A tea maybe? Or a poultice?”

  “Yes, but any other mother would have told her the same.”

  Joan nodded. “Do you have a garden?”

  “It’s buried under snow at the moment, but I’ll have one this spring. Why?”

  “What do you grow?”

  “Vegetables, herbs, same as everyone else.”

  “What kind of herbs?”

  “All kinds, cooking, healing, whatever I think I might need. Why?”

  “Do you only grow what you think you’ll need or do you grow enough for other people, too?”

  “I grow as many different kinds as I can, and I plant as many as I have room for. Why?”

  “I bet you prepare teas and poultices too, don’t you?”

  “If they’re needed, but I’m not a healer.”

  “I understand, you’re not a sister, but you know a lot about treating illnesses and wounds. I’m not asking you to do anything you’re not already doing, just to do it in a more official capacity.”

  “It’s that official capacity that worries me,” Zelda argued. “If I’m in charge of a clinic, people will expect me to know how to help them. What if I don’t? What am I supposed to do then?”

  “What do you do now?”

  “I tell them to go to Chadsport to see Sister Hope.”

  “And that’s what I’d expect you to do if you’re in charge of the clinic.”

  Zelda paused. “You keep referring to a clinic. Are you expecting the town to build something for this?”

  Joan shook her head. “Before my husband was governor, we traveled with a sister for a while. She held clinics in a lot of the towns we passed through, usually in taverns. That’s the type of thing I’m talking about, but on a regular basis. Would you be willing to be available for a few hours maybe twice a week?”

  “Maybe, provided everyone understands I’m not a sister. I can bandage a wound, but I c
an’t close it, and I can’t use my hands to relieve pain.”

  “Everyone already knows that, don’t they?”

  “The people who come here to see me do, but if I do what you’re talking about, I’ll be seeing strangers who don’t realize I’m just a regular woman who helped out in a chapel for a few years a long time ago.”

  “They will if you tell them,” Chris said.

  “He’s right,” Joan said. “Mainly you’d be dealing with people who live in Myerston and the surrounding farms. They already know you, but if someone new comes in, tell them who you are and what you can do. I’m not asking you to make any promises you can’t keep or do anything you’re not comfortable with. You always have the option of telling them to see Sister Hope.”

  Zelda didn’t say anything, but she looked like she was considering the idea, so Joan kept going. “Do you deliver babies?”

  “I have,” Zelda admitted slowly.

  “Here? In Myerston? Or when you were working with Sister Hope?”

  “Both. Why?”

  “I was just wondering. In some places they have midwives, women who assist with deliveries. Do you have midwives around here?”

  “If we do, I’m not aware of it. Usually it’s me and a couple of women who’ve had children and know what to expect. To be honest, it’s usually not that hard.” Zelda grinned and then chuckled. “Hardest delivery I ever assisted with was a cow’s. She had twins. Most unusual for them to have two, but I don’t think she was impressed by that fact. Poor thing just wanted it over, but mother and babies all survived and are doing well.”

  “Do you deliver animals often?”

  Zelda’s grin widened. “More than you’d expect, especially when the mother’s a child’s pet. I’ve delivered cats, dogs, a few horses, a couple of goats, even a few pigs.”

  “And you wonder if you’re qualified to run a clinic?” Chris asked. “Sounds to me like you’re already doing it.”

  Joan nodded.

  The light of laughter went out in Zelda’s eyes and her face grew serious again. “I still don’t think it’s a good idea. I don’t want folks around here putting off going to a sister because they assume I can fix them up. I can’t heal everything.”

  “You’re right. No one can, not even the sisters, and if you’re dead set against it, you don’t have to do it,” Joan said. “I think you’d be good, and since Sister Hope gave us your name she does too, but no one’s going to force you to do anything you’re not comfortable with. It’s up to you, but I would like for you to think about it.” Joan stood up as if to go. While she put on her cloak, she asked, “Is there anyone around here who makes regular trips between here and Chadsport?”