.. suddenly a man appeared at my side, it was Sam. He took my hand and led me to the step on the boardwalk's near side. In one fluid motion he lifted ...me up and deposited me on the seat. "Light as a feather..." He bounded up beside me and leaned over and kissed me. "Let's see about fattening you up... if you get my drift." He laughed as he gave the reigns a snap.I felt my eyes welling up with tears, 'Now I know why she looked so sad in the picture. Oh, Grandma... what have I done?' I thought to. Most of the officers and others that got multiple shares just had their portion of the prize money transferred into their accounts, but a lot of the common seamen wanted to hold their share in their hands. No problem. Having the bank right there made everything easy.Some of our immigrants knew how to work with stone. We put them to work right away, along with a work force they could teach. We had them put a stone shell around each of our lookout towers first, just as a simple exercise that they. The third weapon was some kind of long-handled sledgehammer made from the same dull metal as the armor.The right side of the alcove was different. A permanent mage light, like those near the animal statues, hung from the ceiling. Instead of an armor stand, there was a clothing stand with simulated shoulders and torso, for clothing that was too delicate to store any other way without losing its shape. Ellerie had once used similar stands to hold her robes of state. A few wisps of cloth still. He marked that she had discarded her soaked woolen kirtle without bothering to change the damp one beneath. He moved the bench closer to the fire to keep her warm, pulled Lilac down next to him on the bench and handed her mulled wine, which she silently accepted and quaffed down at once. He did not loosen his hold on her hand. She did not pull away, but leaned upon his shoulder and stared into the flames. ‘Lilac…’ he could not continue for the lump in his throat. ‘My father hates me, for I.