Chapter 14: The Trade Route
On the third day of Gray Bone digging the well, someone came from the south.
Three horses. Three men. Northern hide coats. Frost Claw Tribe markings on their chests. The lead man was in his forties. Deep lines carved into his face by wind and weather. His horse stopped at the camp's edge. His eyes locked onto the well.
"Water." He said. His voice was raw. His lips were cracked.
Leon stood. His hand went to his blade. Gray Bone climbed out of the pit. Shovel in hand.
Violet looked at the man. "You're scouting?"
The man gave a bitter laugh. "My tribe is drinking mud water. I can't wait for the Trade Market."
His name was Hagen. Salt mine overseer of the Frost Claw Tribe. The nearest river had been dry for seventeen days. They had dug a well ten meters deep. Dry all the way down.
"Sell me one barrel." He said. "Just one."
Violet looked at his shaking hands. The bloodshot veins in his eyes.
"No need to buy. I'll give you a barrel."
Hagen froze.
"After you drink it, go back and tell your tribe. Gray Rock Tribe has water. Not just one barrel. A lot. Send your people to haul it. No charge."
Hagen stared at her. His eyes reddened. "Why?"
"Because at the Trade Market in three months, I need you to tell everyone for me. Gray Rock Tribe's water is sweeter than Silver Spring's."
Hagen left. He carried that barrel of water like he was carrying a child.
Gray Bone stood by the well. "You gave him a barrel of water just so he'd spread one message for you?"
"Spreading one message is worth more than selling one barrel of water."
Hoofbeats sounded in the distance. Many of them.
Leon's ears twitched. "Ten riders. Silver Spring markings."
Ten horses burst from the gorge. The guard captain led them. The scar on his face. He reined in at the camp's edge.
"Astrid told me to tell you. She wants your water too."
He threw a pouch of silver coins onto the ground.
"Starting today. Your wells belong to Silver Spring. You won't sell? We take."
The nine men behind him drew their blades.
Gray Bone gripped his shovel. Darryl's long blade left its sheath.
Violet didn't move.
"Go back and tell Astrid. My water is not for sale to her."
The guard captain's face changed.
"She wants to take it? Let her come herself. Sending you means she's afraid. If she's afraid, she can't take anything."
She bent down and picked up the pouch of silver. Threw it back.
"Take it back to her. Tell her. Silver Spring's water will run dry in three months. Gray Rock Tribe's water won't. She can take today's water. But she can't take what comes in three months."
The guard captain stared at her. Then he turned and rode into the dark. The nine men followed.
Gray Bone lowered his shovel. "Just now you—"
"Just now I bet she would back down."
"And if she hadn't?"
"She had no choice but to back down." Violet looked into the southern dark. "Because she's afraid of me."
---
Late night. Everyone was asleep.
Violet sat by the fire. Looking at Silver Spring's map.
Leon walked out of his tent and sat beside her. "Still not asleep?"
"Thinking about how to make sure Astrid never dares to come again."
"Is there a way?"
"Yes. Let everyone know. Gray Rock Tribe's water is their water. If Astrid tries to take my water, she's taking their water."
"Who are they?"
"Frost Claw Tribe. Frost Wolf Clan. Shadow Clan. Everyone without water."
Hoofbeats sounded in the gorge. Many of them. From the north.
Leon's ears twitched. "Twenty riders."
Violet stood.
Twenty horses burst from the dark. Not Silver Spring riders. Frost Claw Tribe. Hagen at the front. Nineteen men behind him. Each leading an empty cart.
He jumped off his horse and walked to Violet.
"That barrel of water you gave. Forty children. Each one got a sip. They asked me what the people of Gray Rock Tribe look like."
He looked at her.
"I said. A woman. Very thin. Covered in wounds. Bandages on her feet. But she stands there like a tree. The wind can't blow her down."
He pulled a piece of salt from his coat.
"This is our last good piece of salt. I've kept it three years. Never could bring myself to eat it. For you."
He placed the salt in her hand.
Violet looked down at the salt. Her hand was shaking.
"You don't need to give me this."
"You have to take it." Hagen's eyes were red. "If you don't, our debt to you can never be repaid."
"The water is east. Fill your carts yourself. Fill them all."
Hagen turned and walked toward the well. After two steps, he stopped.
"Cecilia. If Astrid wants to take your water, she'll have to go through us first."
Cart after cart filled with water. The Frost Claw people said nothing. They just filled their carts in silence. Left in silence. Each one looked at Violet as they went.
The last cart left. The camp fell quiet.
Leon stood beside her. "One hundred and thirty people. Forty children. You gave them water. What did they give you?"
Violet looked down at the salt in her hand.
"They gave me my life."
"Whose life?"
"Everyone's life."
She placed the salt inside her coat. Raised her head. Looked into the southern dark.
Astrid.
You have a hundred warriors. I have two hundred and thirty people who have been thirsty a long time.
You have a granary. I have four wells.
You have three hundred men. I have the entire North.
She turned and walked back to the fire. Sat down. Spread the map across her knees.
"What are you doing?" Leon asked.
"Changing the plan. At the Trade Market, I'm not selling water anymore."
Leon's slit pupils tightened. "You're not selling?"
"No. I'm giving it away. Whoever lacks water, I give."
"Can you afford that?"
"No. But Astrid can afford it even less. She sells water to make coin. I give water to make sure she makes none."
She stood and rolled up the map. Held it to her chest.
"Three months from now. At the Trade Market. Astrid sells grain. I give water. Everyone will come for my water. Everyone will know. Gray Rock Tribe's water costs nothing. Silver Spring's water costs your life."
She looked into the southern dark.
"What does she have to fight me with?"
Wind came through the gorge. Firelight danced in her gray-blue eyes.
Leon looked at her. A long time.
"When did you start planning this move?"
"The moment the Frost Claw man stood before me."
"That moment?"
"That moment, I saw a man in his forties standing before me. His hands shaking. His eyes full of bloodshot veins. He wasn't scouting. He was begging for water."
She looked at Leon.
"In that moment, I knew. I wasn't doing business. I was saving lives."
One hundred and thirty people. Forty children. One piece of salt kept for three years.
She pulled her coat tighter.
Astrid. You're too late.
---
End of Chapter Fourteen
One hundred and thirty people of the Frost Claw Tribe. Forty children. They traded a piece of salt kept for three years for her water. If Astrid wants to take it, she'll have to go through them first. Violet is no longer selling water. She's giving it away. What she's building isn't a trade route. It's loyalty.