Chapter Five

**A Young Man in a Distant Land**

“I’ll have to stop gardening soon,” Wilhelm commented as he led Jason into his private study. The man had only been making small talk while there were still servants around. “We had a long warm fall but winter is coming in like a mad cat.”

“I hope there won’t be much snow this year,” Jason remarked. He had no idea what to expect of the weather and thought it wouldn’t hurt to try and learn about it.

“Huh,” Wilhelm snorted, “we can pray.” The man went behind his desk and ringed a bell. As if waiting for the signal, a well-groomed manservant entered the study. “Tell the kitchen to bring up lunch whenever it's ready,” Wilhelm said. The manservant nodded with a short bow then left the room.

Jason looked around the study, afraid to touch anything yet everything called to be inspected. The room was a short rectangle with two long walls composed of towering bookcases stuffed to the brim with tomes thick and thin, brown and black, and everything in between. By the short wall across from the door, a wood desk sat in front of a giant window. The window’s curtains were pulled to the side and the garden was in clear view. Beyond the garden and behind the estate's walls the ocean could be seen and along with a portion of the city’s port.

“Here I already know you'll like it,” Wilhelm said offering Jason a crystal glass half-filled with a dark amber liquid. Jason took the glass and put it to his nose. Whiskey, he thought happily.

“Your Norish blend?” Jason asked. He reached his glass out and they clinked. Jason took a spit.

Wilhelm sighed happily as he drowned in the drink, “no it's Hanwollock. Suppose to be 30 years but it was a gift so probably not,” Wilhelm said.

Jason took another generous sip, “regardless it’s good thank you. I’m guessing you want to wait to talk about business until lunch arrives?”

Wilhelm nodded, “if you don’t mind.” The older man turned to look out the window. The noon sunlight reflected off the man’s hair and the strands shimmered like silver.

“Your house is beautiful,” Jason said out of courtesy.

“Where are you from, Jason?” Wilhelm asked ignoring the pleasantry and still looking out the window.

“Somewhere far from here,” he replied warry of delving into the fact he was a player. The topic seemed delicate to certain nonplayers and Jason had a feeling Wilhelm might be of the latter group.

Thankfully Wilhelm accepted the answer and moved on. “When most people meet me they assume I was born a street rat that forced my way up this hill. The colorful ones think a slit a few throats on the way," he said with a laugh. "Why else would I buy the most pretentious plot of land in the city? Why so many servants and horses and ships, what was I trying to prove they think. But my story is just as unfair as the one they assume.” He paused and finished off his glass. “I was born the second son of the second son of a minor noble. So far removed from power that it did me no good but just enough prestige many options in life were limited to me. My father inherited a small hamlet that was little more than a bundle of farms without even a plow ox between them. Whatever money he could drain from the place he poured into ale or whores in the city. Needless to say, there wasn’t enough money to make my brother’s start in the world let alone mine. My mother believed my only option would be to join a monastery while my father thought I should fight for a king. Meanwhile, my cousins grew up comfortably and went on to become knights; one even became a baron. All because their father was born first. I believed I was destined for neither of my parents’ option so one night I left our Hamlet to see the world and never looked back.” Wilhelm stopped, the glass in the man’s hand rattled nervously. When he saw Jason was watching Wilhelm quickly moved over to his whiskey bar and poured another glass. “Another?”

Jason nodded his head unsure of what to think. “Um, yeah sure,” he said handing over his glass. Jason hadn’t thought too hard about who Wilhelm was other than a successful merchant, he was too distracted by his own problems and only saw an opportunity. However, now he saw the man in a new light but had a feeling there was more to the story.

Wilhelm returned the glass to Jason. “I only tell you this because you remind me of myself, all those years ago. A young man, alone in a place far from home.”

“Why me, Wilhelm?” Jason asked.

“What?”

“Why are you helping me? You barely know anything about me.”

Wilhelm smiled, “some times the right people are in the right place at the right time. In due time you will figure out how things work my friend, and your place in the system,” he said then sipped his whiskey. Wilhelm’s eyes went wide. “Mm, it looks like our food is here.” Jason looked to the door and saw the servant reenter the room followed by an additional two younger servants each pushing carts laden with food. They led their loads to the center of the study where a low table sat, surrounded by a set of couches and a few chairs.

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Jason's mouth began to water as he saw a dozen steaming lobsters stacked on a silver plate. The smell of fresh bread filled the room. “Stop looking at it and get some,” Wilhelm said then stepped by Jason and began to load a plate with food.

“This is delicious,” Jason said through mouthfuls.

Wilhelm wiped a line of melted butter from his chin and nodded, “I know it is. Took me four years to find my chef. I’m afraid to invite guests over because they always try to hire him and I end up having to increase his salary.”

When they were done eating their plates were taken away and the servant handed them warm wet towels to clean their hands. Wilhelm threw his towel onto the table and sighed, “alright let's get down to business.”

Jason could hear the door close and assumed the servant knew what to do. “We have a few developments but I want to start with saying I made it to Trader so I’ve met all the requirements to enter the guild.”

“Good,” Wilhelm said but his face remained unchanged as if he already knew or assumed the fact. “Guild meetings are on the fifteenth of each month so you have to wait two days to be initiated.”

“But I have sixteen bags of wool I was planning on selling today,” Jason said.

“The limits are on none members are strict,” Wilhelm explained, “but I can probably pull some strings to let you pay the holding fees to store your extra wool. You’d only be able to sell ten sacks today but it's better than having to carry around six extra bags.”

“Thank you, Wilhelm,” Jason said, “if you can do that it would help.”

Wilhelm nodded but moved on, “before the initiation you will need to pay your membership fees.”

“What?” Jason said in surprise, “how much is that?”

“The membership fee is one gold per year.”

“I don’t have that kind of money to just throw around yet. I have employees and rent to pay.”

“That brings me to something I think would be appropriate for someone in your situation. I think it's time you establish a line of credit,” Wilhelm said.

“Leverage myself?”

Wilhelm raised his eyebrows in surprise, “exactly. Why keep risking your own money when you can put out some else's,” he laughed. “Now I won’t make myself your guarantor but I will write you a letter of recommendation to a bank I have used in the past.”

“That will be useful. If I can buy a few horses, a wagon, and hire a couple more employees I can get a constant flow of wool moving between Finchead and Laxtar. I became a citizen you know,” Jason added.

“You did?” Wilhelm asked in surprise. “I didn’t think you’d manage that so early, but that might just work in our favor,” he mused.

“What?” Jason asked confused by his response.

“I have a feeling that Finchead will be expanding in the future. I know they still have archaic rules limiting land ownership to citizens, most of the villages still hold that rule. Personally, I think it hurts the village by driving out entrepreneurs but it helps those that can get in,” Wilhelm commented.

“I was going to bring this up later but a lot’s happened in Finchead,” Jason said then went on to tell Wilhelm about the attack by Fallows and Finchead’s counter-attack. “Now we have their reeve captured. I’m actually going to his trial in the castle after this meeting.”

Wilhelm’s reaction was not as positive as Jason expect but the man didn’t seem upset but rather contemplative. “It is good that you’ve caught him but I will heavily caution you to be careful. The tension between Finchead and Fallows goes beyond just the local level. The King often has trouble keeping the western lords in check and I’d worry that punishing one of their reeves may lead to a more dire situation.”

“But we can’t let him go free, he burnt almost half the town and is responsible for multiple deaths,” Jason cried.

Wilhelm raised his head and nodded, “I know… I know. And besides the argument of right and wrong, if he were to go free he’d continue harassing Finchead which would mean problems for us. So what I am saying is just make sure that you try and prevent something drastic like capital punishment. We don't need a martyr. The king… if he has an ounce of intelligence left… will also try to deescalate this situation.” Jason sighed but nodded in agreement. Malcolm deserves to die but not if it will lead to more killing, Jason thought to himself. “Now these fires seem like an issue but it’s not permanent. It's easy to rebuild a town’s building but not it's moral.”

Jason was tempted to inform Wilhelm of Annabel’s plans to travel to Finchead but decided to wait until he could use the information more to his own advantage. “What makes you think that Finchead could expand?” Jason instead asked. The thought had lingered with him for a while.

“By itself, it's not much,” Wilhelm said. “But it is along the river that connects Exton and Laxtar. The Cullen’s operate coal and iron mines not far to the north of Finchead. Instead of turning one of their own towns into a trading hub they instead send whatever they have to Laxtar and Exton. I think Finchead could be turned into a hub, with its own exchanges. Also, the land around Finchead could probably support at least ten thousand sheep.”

“Why haven’t the Cullen’s done anything?” Jason asked.

“Because it takes money to build a city son,” Wilhelm laughed, “but I think the growing political situation might encourage some in the west to build a bulwark between Laxtar and Exton. But before any of that can happen Finchead needs to change first. More people need to see it's potential.”

“I think with Fallows tamed, things will start to happen in Finchead,” Jason said.

“We will see,” Wilhelm mused. “However on their own, I don’t think those country bumpkins will know what to do,” Wilhelm smiled.

Jason tilted his head, “I see the opportunity before me Wilhelm, but I have a feeling you want a cut of it.”

“Like looking in a mirror,” Wilhelm said fondly. “A lot of improvements need to be made but one day I may be willing to invest in Finchead. All the rivers in Laxtar already lead to me so soon I will need to widen my reach.”

“Finchead could use an inn,” Jason offered hoping then and there he could get Wilhelm to commit to helping him rebuild Finnan's brewery.

“That’s an idea… but for another day,” Wilhelm said to Jason’s disappointment. “Now I think we have discussed enough today. I need to get to the exchange and you need to figure out what to do with this reeve,” Wilhelm said then rose from the couch.

Jason got up as well. “Thank you for the advice, Wilhelm.”

“Always remember what I told you, Jason.”