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perhaps in the very best of taste, but none the worse for that."
Ryan realized he shouldn't have mentioned that fact. But he was going to get
away with it.
Brody was laughing, managing to smother the onset of another coughing fit.
"One thing, Mr. Brody."
"Yes?" He paused. "If it's the teaching of intrapersonal relationships and
human hygiene, I think you can rest assured that we handle this with great
sensitivity and"
"Not that. I'm heading for Leadville, then on across the tops to the next
valley along, up to the head of that to Fairplay. One of my friends comes from
Harmony, near there. Heard stories of trouble."
"I fear so. We too have heard such tales. Which is why our highway was being
patrolled with more than usual zeal."
"Any details?"
"How long since your companion was in Harmony? Does he visit often?"
"She."
"I'm sorry?"
"The particular companion we're talking about is a lady. And she hasn't been
back for many years. Her mother lived there, but she has lost touch."
Brody steepled his fingers. "Alas and alack! That this happens so frequently
in Deathlands." He peered out the window. "The sun seems to be showing us his
merry face today."
Ryan pressed on. "What kind of trouble was it?"
"Ah, yes. We heard of a gang of bounty hunters and general bandits. The odd
part of the tale was that there were norms and muties riding together."
"We ran into three killers on the road here from Glenwood Springs. They'd
slaughtered an old man with a
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Brody sighed. "And did the perps of this evil act sleep last night in the
bosom of Abraham?"
"You mean did we chill them?"
"I do, indeed."
"We did, indeed."
"They might have been a rotten branch off that same corrupt tree, Mr. Cawdor.
Take the greatest of care.
We would not want our newest pupil to suddenly become an orphan."
The two men shook hands and parted.
Ryan was shown down the corridor to where Dean waited for him.
The boy was looking out a window, across the lake. He turned and grinned at
his father. "Hot pipe, Dad!"
"What is?"
"You've saved me from doing English grammar with old Coco Copeland. The boys
reckon he's a real bastard."
"Watch the language, Dean, please."
"Sony. Anyway, you've got to go now, haven't you, Dad? Give my love to all the
others."
Dean was being unnaturally bright and perky, with a forced smile pasted
uneasily on his face.
Ryan nodded. "I'll do that. Remember, if there's serious bother, a message
will eventually find me and we'll all come running."
"Sure, sure. Thanks, Dad. But from what I seen so far, I don't mind it too
bad."
Ryan put a hand on the boy's shoulder, and the defenses crumbled and the
floodgates opened.
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It took several minutes for them both to recover some degree of
self-possession and wipe their eyes and blow their noses.
"Sorry about that, Dad," Dean muttered. "Promised myself I wasn't going to"
"Me too, son, me too." Ryan took a deep breath. "Right, I'm going now."
"And I'll go and do grammar. Then Krysty won't have to moan at me again."
Dean's voice trembled, and
Ryan turned away quickly, opening the door into the passage.
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Ryan knew that Dean had led a hand-to-mouth existence with his mother,
Sharona, for several years. He'd faced a lot of adversity in his short life,
and now he had a chance to settle down to a regular life for a year or so, in
relative peace and quiet. He'd gain some education and acquire some life
skills. Ryan couldn't deny his son that, though it tore at his heart to leave
him behind.
"In a year, if not sooner," he said, and closed the door firmly behind him.
AHAB AND JOEL WERE both back on duty, and they escorted him for a couple of
miles along the road away from the school. As Brody had said, it was a fine
morning, with a few bunched clouds to the northwest that held the possible
threat of a storm later in the day.
They recognized that Ryan wasn't in a talking mood, and the three of them
walked along, mainly in silence.
At the crest of a rise in the trail, Ryan turned and took one last long look
at the buildings. He thought that he might have glimpsed a little figure
waving something white from a second-story window, but he couldn't be sure.
"LEAVE YOU HERE, outlander," Ahab said. "Get back to our patrolling."
"Thanks. Guess I feel all right about leaving my son in the school. Seem like
nice kids and teachers. And
Brody himself. Real bad cough he's got, though."
The sec men exchanged glances. Ahab answered him. "Worries us, as well. Head
was supposed to be seeing some top doctor back east could have been Kansas
City way. But he never went. Some days he seems fine, but on cold, wet days it
can grip him."
Joel nodded, whistling between his teeth. "Days when there's a blue norther.
Bad as well."
"Brody told me a bit about this gang of norms and muties," Ryan said.
"That's what we heard," Ahab agreed. "Pickin' on some of the frontier
pestholes and taking them over.
Suck them dry and move on. Like fuckin' locusts they are."
"Think twice about coming our way," Joel said. "Need sharp teeth to bite us
off."
"You know a ville called Harmony?" Ryan asked.
Ahab looked puzzled. "That up Nebraska way?"
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Joel shook his head. "No, that's the place beyond the divide, couple of
valleys over east. You know that swank old ski place, Breckenridge?"
"Oh, yeah. Head of the valley there, isn't it? Beyond, what do you call it?"
"Fairplay," Ryan suggested.
"Right on the money, stranger. Fairplay. Harmony's beyond that. Is that the
ville you're heading for?"
"Yeah. Meeting friends there."
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Joel patted the Steyr rifle on Ryan's back. "Need that and some more like it
if that gang sees you."
Ryan nodded. "You're right."
After shaking hands with the two men, he turned eastward and began the long,
lonely walk back onto the main trail.
MILDRED WAS LAST of the companions to enjoy the deep tub, brimming with hot
water. She poured in the contents of one of the many bottles of subtly
colored, scented foaming oils.
Each successive bath seemed to take longer for the water to heat properly, and
Krysty was beginning to get edgy at the delay.
J.B. and Doc reassured her.
"Ryan'll likely spend a little time at this school before he leaves Dean
there. We know they were both safely through that ambush. And we've got a
place fixed for a rendezvous." The Armorer had been reading through a pile of
magazines from the predark days and he picked up another Reader's Digest .
"He'll be fine, Krysty. You'll see."
Doc had been listening to some classical music on headphones. Now he took them
off and smiled at her.
"Worry not, dear madam. The bullet has not been cast nor the blade forged that
bears the name of Ryan
Cawdor. Another couple of days and we shall all be reunited together once
more. Will we not?"
Krysty had been reassured by that.
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