Part 16 (1/2)
By then, spring was on us and it was ti coke by packon the Odra River was extremely expensive After that, transport costs by riverboat weren't nearly so bad, about one-twelfth the cost per ton hts had followed his lead in digging coal mines for fuel, now that potbellied stoves were available Questioning the down most of the shafts, I was able to map out the coalfield fairly well
All indications were that I could dig for coal right on the riverbank All through the winter, I'd had sixa pilot shaft there on some of Count Lambert's land, and they'd struck coal five dozen yards down
Itoperation there, so I made a deal with Count Lambert for half a square ot ready to head there with a construction crew
FROM THE DIARY OF PIOTR KULCZYNSKI
It was early o to the new lands sold to Sir Conrad by Count Lambert near the River Odra There ould open n
Sir Conrad rode up the line of loadedthat all was ready I was stationed near the front, next to Sir Vladie forward to
There was a great coate, and I looked to see the merchant Boris Novacek, a friend of ate on his knees and elbows, for he had no hands!
Sir Vladimir shouted for Sir Conrad, and we both rode to Novacek's aid Yet Sir Conrad passed us and was there first
”Boris! What happened?” Sir Conrad shouted as he dug out his medical kit
”What happened?” Boris said, half dazed ”Why, they cut my hands off”
”Who did this?”
”I don't know We were never properly introduced” Novacek tried to laugh, but tears came out ”Do you have any water?”
Sir Conrad threw his canteen to Sir Vladie metal bottle to his lips
”You!” Sir Conrad shouted, looking at a young et Krystyana!”
”You! Run and get a stretcher! You! Have the men stand down We leave at three!” Sir Conrad ordered while he opened his kit and exauard, Sir Kazimierz?” Sir Vladiood Sir Kazimierz is dead He took an arrow in the eye and I think he did not see it fly at him”
”You were ambushed?” Sir Conrad said
”Yes,to buy now in Hungary I sell your cloth and ive for it but silver Even all the wine they can spare has already been brought here, I carried nothing but silver and gold, all old We had no caravan to protect us, you see, so they choppedpleasantly to sleep after hard work and many beers
”He's lost a lot of blood,” Sir Conrad said toas fast as she could, for she was heavy with child Of course she would not took on me He tied off the arteries in the left stu around the ht one
”Boris, who put on these tourniquets for you?” Sir Conrad asked
”The tourniquets? Why, I put on the right one hwaymen put on the other”
”But how could you have tied it without any hands?”
”I still had s when motivated sufficiently” Novacek see they were doing to the stumps of his wrists, and I think the tourniquets must have had them completely numb
”Then how did you loose the left one?”
”They cut off ht hand in the battle, and ht, in sport At least they thought it great sport I wasn't asked” Boris giggled
I could see a terrible fury building up on Sir Conrad's face
”So this happened yesterday?”
”Could it have been only yesterday? It seeer But it must have been yesterday afternoon, for I planned to make Three Walls by sunset”
”And where did it happen, Boris? Can you remember where?”
”It was on the trail froht's crawl” He giggled again
”Anna, can you smell out Boris's path back to the outlaws?” Sir Conrad asked his ht stu her hands hite lightning, ready to sew it up
Anna nodded Yes, a thing I had gotten used to
Sir Vladi between Sir Conrad anddirectly at me
”Then mount up! There's work to be done!” The look in Sir Conrad's eyes left no rooument, or even comment I mounted my horse, checked my sword, bow and arrows, and followed Sir Conrad and Sir Vladiallop
I heard Novacek yell, ”Stop! There are sixteen of them!”
Sir Vladimir turned and said, ”What of it? We have God on our side!”
But I don't think Sir Conrad heard hi like a hound, which slowed her down some We would never have stayed with her otherwise, and even so Sir Vladimir and I were hard-pressed to meet her pace
Sir Conrad never turned around to see that ere following Sir Vladi and sain to the trail ahead, for our pace ild
I unsheathed allop, as I'd often practiced before Tadaos the bow, and there is none better than he at a standing-shot But Tadaos will not shoot from a horse In fact, I think that it is not possible to pull hisposition
Myself, I can scarcely bend it even then! But I had taughtfly forto do when your love will not look at you
Thus I had an arrow nocked and ready in ed through the brush
Sir Conrad was in his plate ar by, and Sir Vladimir, in chain mail, would hold it dishonorable not to be able to follohere his liege lord led Myself, I was in but ordinary clothes and while they had broken off the larger branches in my path, I was still sore pressed to stay with thehtly to ot first blood in the fight, for as ent through a meadow at break-neck speed, I saw a sentry in a tree stare at us and nock an arrow
I let fly and saw that my shot was true He dropped his bow half pulled, clutched his chest and fell