The Price of Demand (Reintegration Edit 1)

“Oi, Sias, here we are!”

The tower rose to an imposing fifteen meters. Workmen climbed up and down a solid interior staircase or being raised on crude lifts hoisted by the power of their fellows at the top.

The grizzled foreman stood at the base of the tower, huge hands wrenching a gear that wound a rope, raising several of the men in his team higher to the unfinished portion of the tower’s top level. Youngish eyes, prematurely hardened, kept a hawkish watch over the site.

Waldon Sias turned to the younger workman who’d called out. “I want that southern wall built up by mid-day. You’ll double-time it today, and if I catch you sluggards lazing around you’ll wish you were in the army, I’ll come down on you so hard!”

“Good morning, Sias. Your men are making good progress.” The young man was no woodsman or tracker moving about silently, but was lightly built and tread softly. Maybe twenty one years of age at most, he had come into some money in the recent past and had been eager to put it to use.

“Altman Dolet, a good morning t’yeh as well, sir. Aye. They’ll ‘ave the rest of ‘er up by sunset, you can be sure of that.”

Altman nodded to the older man, and pulled a pair of large leather and brass goggles down over his eyes. He stood still and silent, head canted up to inspect the work.

“I’m glad to hear of it. I’ll need you to begin working on the foundry in three days’ time, and we still have the market—”

Waldon’s eyes snapped from him to the tower’s top, where a too-tall stack of stone blocks were teetering. As the two men below watched, stunned, a workman taking several of the blocks stumbled and fell into the stack. Down, down they all came, landing in a mangled heap not three meters from where they stood. Altman stood stock still, a stricken look on his pale face.

Waldon’s bellow rang out, “Oh— Medic! Man down, north-east tower! MEDIC!”

Uneasy murmuring broke out as workmen rushed to the scene. The fallen man lay in a broken pile, but his chest rose and fell. His arm pumped blood from not one, but three compound fractures.

The foreman stepped back to clear the way for the arriving medics, men and women in long, soft leather robes. The lead medic took one look at him and gestured her assistants forward with a stretcher, then stepped in to help them clear stone blocks from the man. Waldon’s face grew ashen as they worked to free him, and a hand dipped into his pocket.

Waldon pulled a four-leafed clover from his pocket and slowly walked to the blood-spattered pile of bricks. He glanced at Altman; he knew the young scientist didn’t care for silly superstitions, but they’d served Sias well. He carefully placed the clover on the spot and backed away. “Of all the rotten, stinkin’ luck …”

Altman visibly shook himself back into action. “The medics will be here in moments, Sias. I’ll look into the accident if you could assist them when they arrive?”

“As sure as rain I will, Mr. Dolet. A’right men, back to it! And don’t let me catch any ‘o you bein’ as careless as Claver there! If he thinks a rest in the medics’ tent’s gonna save his sorry hide for long, he’s got a long, hard lesson ahead! You, get tha’ …”

The Price of Demand (Dialogue Edit 11)

(Altman Dolet) “Stop!”

(Kaylene Dolet) “Get him!”

(Altman Dolet) “We’ve got you! What are you playing at, causing all these accidents?”

(Culprit) “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

(Kaylene Dolet) “You’re a filthy liar!”

(Culprit) “That’s ridi—”

(Altman Dolet) “You’ve got the evidence all over you. I spread red iron oxide over all the roofs in this town; there’s nowhere else you’d have gotten covered in it.”

(Culprit) “Look, I swear I didn’ come here jus’ to cause trouble, I was put up to it! E’s the one you want.”

(Altman Dolet) “And who is he?”

(Culprit) “Some Mitchell bloke back in ‘ol Holdswaine, a high-up rich type with plenty ‘o influence. ‘Ad his thugs visit me after I ‘ad some … troubles … payin’ a debt. Them’s the ones set me up with this job an gave me the … er … extra instructions.”

(Altman Dolet) “That’s a tough position you found yourself in.”

(Culprit) “You’re tellin’ me! I carried th’ bruises for days after that, an’ I didn’t even give ‘em any trouble. Them’s bad sorts.”

(Altman Dolet) “Did you leave family behind in Holdswaine? Friends?”

(Culprit) “Nah, just me mates at the waterin’ ‘ole, but thems that ain’t ‘ere won’t care. Uh, what’re you plannin’ on doin with me?”

(Kaylene Dolet) “They’ll kill ‘im, or make ‘im wish they had if we send ‘im back.”

(Altman Dolet) “I don’t doubt it.”

(Culprit) “You can’t send me back there! It’s like she said, I’m as good as dead if I show my face in Holdswaine!”

(Altman Dolet) “No, you can’t go back to Holdswaine. But we can’t keep you here, either. Mitchell has too much influence over the union men. Sias would never stand for anything happening on his watch, but that’d be cold comfort to you if you’re already dead.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “One of the northern cities?”

(Altman Dolet) “The bigger the better, I think. Big enough to have its own unions, where Mitchell has no power.”

(Culprit) “You’ll let me go? Oh thank you sir! I won’t forget this, see if I don’t!”

The Price of Demand (Dialogue Edit 10)

(Altman Dolet) “You don’t have to strain your—”

(Kaylene Dolet) “Shut your mouth right there, husband. You aren’t as strong as you let on, an’ you’re dizzy on your feet. You need me when you catch this man, ‘specially if it comes to fightin’. Just be ready to give me my staff if it comes to that.”

(Altman Dolet) “But—”

(Kaylene Dolet) “No buts! Whoever’s up to this is hurtin’ people, has hurt you, and is threatening the future of this place. Our lives’re tied up too tight with the future of this village. I know you won’t rest while our future’s at risk; why should I?”

(Altman Dolet) “You’d think I’d know better than to argue—wait, there, that’s him. See the rust on the boots, the trouser legs, the sleeves of the shirt?”

The Price of Demand (Dialogue Edit 9)

(Altman Dolet) “It surely does; all of the ‘accidents’ have involved heavy objects falling from roofs, complete or incomplete. I spent time dusting the roofs of those few buildings that have them with rust.”

(Waldon Sias) “An’ then ‘oped whoever’s behind it didn’t decide to go up a tree for ‘is next trick, yeah, I getcha.”

(Altman Dolet) “A risk I had to take, but if tree-climbing is in his repertoire, he’s saving it for later. I mean to ensure he doesn’t get a later.”

The Price of Demand (Dialogue Edit 8)

(Altman Dolet) “I didn’t get a look at whoever it was that dropped the stone on me, but that won’t be a concern.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “But if y’didn’t see who did it, why are we rushing into it? You should be resting!”

(Altman Dolet) “I spent some time last night spreading iron dust over all the roofs in town; I’ve never been so thankful there are so few of those! Whoever did it will be wearing the evidence on his skin and clothing for the rest of the day, and with luck, we may even catch traces of it on the ground to help narrow the search. We must get to Waldon Sias immediately.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “To get his help identifying the man, of course.”

(Altman Dolet) “Yes, once we’ve confirmed it wasn’t Sias himself.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “You suspect him?”

(Altman Dolet) “In all honesty, no, but we must be thorough. And we do have to talk to him regardless, if we want him to help identify the real culprit.”

(Waldon Sias) “Good mornin’ t’ya, Mr. & Mrs. Dolet. I—by my grandfather’s hammer, what’d you do to yer head, Altman!”

(Kaylene Dolet) “Good mornin’ Mr. Sias. My husband was feeling entirely too clever today and got himself hurt.”

(Altman Dolet) “I was today’s victim. Luckily it’s not bad. Quickly, have you seen anyone on your crews this morning with reddish stains on hands, legs, clothing, anything? Red-brown, like rust.”

(Waldon Sias) “Mrs. Dolet, are y’sure yer husband’s okay?”

(Kaylene Dolet) “It’s fine, I’m keeping an eye on him. We really must know though, have you seen someone covered in rust?”

(Waldon Sias) “Can’t say’s I have, not today. This ‘ave somethin’ to do with the meetin’ we had yesterday where the rocks’re run through with iron?”

The Price of Demand (Dialogue Edit 6)

(Altman Dolet) “That ought to about do it.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “What are you up to? What happened t’ your hands? Is that blood?”

(Altman Dolet) “Iron oxide, love. Simple rust to catch our troublemaker, if all goes well.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “Whatever you think it’s for, you’d best be washin’ it off before you touch any of my good linens or it’ll be me droppin’ stones on someone’s head, and you won’t like it one bit. And you’ve got some on your trousers, it’ll be murder to get out!”

(Altman Dolet) “I’m afraid so, but that’s exactly why I needed it. I can attend to the cleaning later. I have some ideas on how the iron’s magnetic properties may allow it to be removed more easily. For now, let me just go get cleaned up. I’ll be retiring early tonight to track down whoever’s behind the assaults tomorrow.”

(Kaylene Dolet) “Solves crimes and cleans his own clothes … no wonder I agreed to stay here with you.”