Chapter 13: Books |
The Nobility owns the land, but they cannot manage all of it themselves. Originally Mayors, councilmen and their ilk were all appointed, but now most are chosen by the local commonfolk. The nobility can still have them removed, but they must prove that proper payments have not been made to them or that there is an inability to properly govern. In my experience mayors are far more often booted for the former than the latter.
Transcript of Master Daveed Norman giving a lecture at the Guild of Law
Solomon stepped off his carriage in Moonfallow on the main street. He drew a number of looks as he did so, but he ignored them. There was no sense in trying to travel incognito. Even if he wore a disguise he was a head taller than most of those in the town, and his long red hair couldn’t easily be hidden in a cap. Not to mention he wasn’t going to be able to walk, talk or act like someone less than noble. He’d likely stand out trying to hide who he was more than if he simply acted normally.
Melissa went to the covered wagon behind the carriage and helped the others out. Solomon had disguised the trip as a run into town for supplies and a chance for the servants to have some recreation and meet more of the townsfolk. It didn’t exactly take a lot of effort to convince them to come. It was either this or continue cleaning out yet another room his Uncle had never used.
He began walking along the street, taking a look at the small row of shops. Most of the stores in Moonfallow served practical purposes like a smith, butcher, or baker, but a small group of more luxury focused stores had somehow managed to cling to life since the closing of the mine and lumberyard. Aside from the bookshop he was headed toward, there was a small trinket shop, a women’s boutique, a tobacco dealer, and a jeweler. He was certain the tobacco dealer did good business, with the many men he’d seen with pipes in their mouths since he’d arrived, but the others must’ve made their money primarily from the small group of minor nobility or merchants that resided in the town. At this point most of the young men joined the Empire’s army, and those men who didn’t went to work at factories in Etling along with a number of the women. Living in packed quarters in the factories themselves and only coming home at week’s end. Almost nothing of value was made in Moonfallow itself.
He reached Sebastian’s Rare Volumes. The building was old and the sign had a worn painting of a stack of books over the name along with a large window that was a bit too dirty to see through. He allowed Melissa to open the door for him. It was like a question from his etiquette tutor. What do you do if a lady opens the door for you? Insist on holding it for her. If she’s a servant? You walk through. He thanked her and stepped inside the store.
He found himself immediately comforted by the sickly sweet smell of decaying paper. The store's walls were not visible, and had been covered from floor to ceiling with books of all kinds. He could see many of the familiar tomes that he recognized, such as the collection of Lady Arbessa’s letters, very popular among young ladies, as well as dozens of history books and the requisite copies of Drakthiss: The Jewel of the World. Aside from those though were many books he didn’t recognize including some that even seemed to have been written in elvish or dwarvish.
He nearly began to peruse when he remembered why he was there. He walked around the first wall of books where he saw an older man behind the desk. He was bald with circular rimmed glasses and wore an oversized shirt kept from swallowing him up with a too-tight vest.
The man looked at him and pointed at the far wall toward the back of the shop.
“Watch the entrance won’t you? And keep an eye out for any books that are local.”
She nodded and walked away.
He took a step toward Vantus, holding out the note. “You wanted to see me?”
“Yes, Lord.” He bowed. “Thank you for coming.”
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“Don’t worry about the formalities. If you went through the trouble to arrange this then it’s too important for all that.”
“Yes sir. I’m not certain of what First Watchman Marcus told you, but I can almost guarantee it was all lies.”
So I’d gathered. “Continue.”
“We have only twenty four guardsmen, but he tells the commission we have the full forty in order to pocket the difference. Along with that, he accepts bribes to store illicit goods in the empty homes and buildings within Moonfallow, primarily for criminals in Etling. Aside from that I have proof that he and his brother are pocketing the majority of the people’s taxes for themselves.”
Solomon had already managed to prove that with the books Mayor Neiman had gathered, but it was good to have confirmation.
“Do the people know?”
“They know the mayor’s corrupt, and his brother’s a thug.”
“And they don’t attempt to have them removed?”
“No. Whenever someone makes up their mind to try and do something about it, they’re beaten, or even disappear. They always seem to know exactly who's going to make trouble.”
“Are you in danger?” he asked.
“I might be, but I don’t think so. I’ve been careful. I just record what I can, collect whatever evidence possible, and wait for an opportunity to do something. So far they haven’t seemed to take any interest in me. I was even promoted to Third Watchman after I began investigating.”
“And where is this evidence?” he asked.
Vantus looked warily toward the exit, peering through the gaps in bookshelves to see it. Then he reached into a nearby bookshelf and pulled a pair of books. One was a ledger, another had handwritten notes and testimony. He handed it to Solomon, who took it carefully and slid it into his long mourning coat.
“You’ve taken a great risk bringing this to me. With this and what I’ve already gathered I should be able to call in the garrison in Etling to start a formal investigation to have the mayor and his brother removed.” Once that was done he would be in charge until a new mayor was selected. That would let him get a better grasp on what would be needed to attract the merchant partners he needed, not to mention the Union. In the state things were now, none of that would be possible. Not to mention the idea of land and people under his control being subject to the whims of thugs like them made him sick.
“Can I ask why?”
“Why, my Lord?”
“Why would you trust me with this? It was the right thing to do, but their payments to my late uncle and now to me have no issues. Many would’ve ignored what you said. Why bring it to me?”
“I spoke to your driver, Duncan. He said you were a good lord. I felt that meant it was worth the risk."
Solomon raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t had any bad interactions with Duncan, but he also barely knew the man.
“There’s something else,” said Vantus, peering through the books again.
“Go ahead.”
“The missing girls… I can’t prove it, but I think they’re involved.”
“Why?”
“They never show concern about them. They seem so absolutely certain that it would be a waste of time to look for them. The strange thing is, when we have a case involving a missing child or man the Captain always has someone on it, but when it’s a missing young woman they give it to the same guard whose job it is to sit on them and do nothing.”
“For what purpose would they take them?”
“My Lord, I believe there’s some popular brothels in Etling… the girls who have gone missing were all considered quite beautiful.”
Solomon’s brow furrowed. “I understand. Hopefully once I get this information to Etling we’ll be able to find what happened to them.”
“Thank you, lord.”
Vantus pulled his pocket watch from his coat and checked it.
“I’m going to make my way out the window and over to the next store. Please wait fifteen minutes before leaving.”
Solomon looked across all of the books that surrounded him and smiled. “I think I can manage that easily enough."
Vantus nodded and went further into the store where the beginnings of a staircase could only just be made out.
Solomon left the dark corner he was in to find Melissa holding a small pile of books.
“I see you found a few things.”
“Yes, Lord,” she replied, holding the books out to him. He placed his walking stick in the crook of his arm and balanced them, looking at their spines. The first was a very thin tome that seemed to have been handwritten and had some damage on the cover, Local Gods of Moonfallow, and the next was a bit better constructed and had the look of a Drakthiss official report, with black leather and silver lettering across it, A Record of Moonfallow Nobility. The third was a copper blood novel with a bloody knife drawn on the cover titled, Midnight Murder. These were typically cheap and salacious books that could be bought for a single copper. He raised an eyebrow as he held that one up to Melissa.
“I apologize, Lord, I’d meant to hold onto that one.”
He shook his head. “It’s fine. I can see the appeal of this one. Pick out a few more. I was intending to have a section of the library available to you and the rest of the servants anyway. Books like this will be a good start.”
She nodded, and he turned his attention to the other two books she’d found him. One was clearly just some local scribbling, but the other was an official document. How it had wound up in a bookstore was unclear, but he could certainly use it.
