Chapter 9, Trisha.

Trisha strode down the street. Her route led her down sunset boulevard until she found a specific inn. The graceful serpent was an inn that made Trisha feel poor. Someone newly washed the outer facade. The front of the building was positively shining in the evening light. She craned her neck, taking the splendor. For this outing, she dressed in her finest purple blouse with embroidered red silken pants and polished boots, with a lift to make her seem taller than her already formidable height. Trishas hair was tied with a purple ribbon at the back in a loose ponytail, to keep her unruly shoulder length curly hair from getting tangled.

Trisha smiled to herself. With her heightened boots, Reskeme would only come up to her chin. If only he could see her right now, he would be flabbergasted at the unfairness of Trishas height. Trisha clutched her leather satchel. When Trisha had returned to her room, there was a satchel on her bed. It was made of dark black leather with three distinctive blue symbols in a triangle tooled into the covering flap.

How the bishop procured such an expensive item to carry the contracts on such short notice was nothing short of witchcraft. Sure, the bishop could have already had one in hand, but that didn't account for the silver lettering stitched into the leather handles. Trisha Auvariant scrolled on the inside of the leather handle so no one but her could see.

Trisha paused in crowd letting the thick press of humanity roil around her like a rock amidst a raging river. That surname stood out. Maybe the Bishop was playing a joke? But no, the Bishop never did anything without a good reason.

Trisha entered the inn and was greeted by a server. The server smiled and his moustache glinted orange by the faint light of the sunset.

" Welcome to the graceful serpent. How may I help you, my lady?"

" I am meeting with lord Tanes." Said Trisha.

" Of course, he is expecting you. Please, right this way." Said the server, bowing gracefully before sauntering away.

The mans step held a grace Trisha could only hope to emulate. She tried with a little effort to stride like him, but found her gate felt like more of a bumbling toddler in comparison. The man must be a practiced fighter in his off time, Trisha thought.

He led her to a private booth and the lanky Tony Tanes and an older man, his hair Grey around the temples, greeted Trisha. That must be Tony's father the count. The count's eyes had many laugh lines, and he greeted her with a warm smile.

" Well, please take a seat, my lady. You have already met my son, I am lord Ferdinand Tanes, of house Tanes." Said Ferdinand rising from his chair and holding out Trishas plush seat for her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Trisha Auveriant." Said Trisha, bowing the best she could. Compared to years of practiced grace of the nobles with her, she felt so sloppy.

Tony smiled shyly at Trisha as she sat down. She held her leather satchel loosely on her lap. The scent of cherry wine filled Trishas nose, her mouth watered.

" I wasn't aware the Bishop took you into her house." Said Ferdinand, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

" It was a recent development." Said Trisha, just as confused as the count.

" I can't wait to see what the fops at court say to this. I know over a dozen houses that will be outraged. They have all been vying for their sons or daughters to be the Bishop's apprentice and successor for over a year now. And then some commoner comes along and takes its right out from under their noses." Said Ferdinand, guffawing.

" Would you like some wine, Trisha?" Asked Tony, a flush materializing on his cheeks.

" Yes, that would be lovely." Said Trisha, smiling as Tony poured her some purple cherry wine. The bitter wine was tart and flavourful and Trisha crinkled up her nose at the taste. Pushing aside the full glass, Trisha decided to avoid the too bitter wine.

"Lord Ferdinand, I appreciate your candor. I am new to such things. My grasp of the noble house's politics is extremely limited." Said Trisha.

"I'm rather curious, lady Trisha. How did you become the Bishop's apprentice?" Asked Lord Tony.

" It's not as complicated as some seem to think. Lord Noah found me during the battle for Drent and thought I might make a good inquisitor. Once the Bishop met me, she took me in and told me I was her apprentice." Said Trisha. It may have been a simplification, but the story was the truth.

The air filled with the scent of cherry wine and freshly baked bread. The server returned, placing silver trays of sliced ham, cubed cheese and breads on the table.

Tony stare at her confusedly, as though he didn't believe her.

" Most things seem simple after they are over. I am a count. Many people might think it's complicated to become a count. But in actuality, it's more luck than anything. Extremely simple yet hard to do." Said Ferdinand, straightening his well kempt brown and black silken doublet. The older man smiled fondly at his lanky son, who was staring at Trisha when he thought she wasn't looking.

" So you support the bishops' decision to make me her apprentice?" Asked Trisha. Count Ferdinand chortled.

" I must say, your bluntness is refreshing. As for the uproar you are making, I wouldn't miss that for the world." Said count Ferdinand, his eyes twinkling.

" Father is happy because you stopped his rivals daughter from getting in." Said Tony, cracking a playful smile so like his fathers.

Trisha cocked an eyebrow at the much too happy count Ferdinand.

" And who would that be? I have the feeling I need to watch my back around them." Said Trisha wistfully.

" Perhaps. Jermy Nero is not one to forgive a slight. Especially not one from a commoner." Said count Ferdinand, amusement in his eyes.

" Thank you for the warning." Said Trisha. She wanted to broach the topic of the contract, but knew this noble ritual, no talk of contracts until after the meal was eaten..

The food arrived and all three of them dug in. The starter comprised a light chicken broth, followed by a small salad with a tart sauce. Trisha's mouth was watering and her stomach grumbled by the time the main course arrived.

A plate of roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy filled her plate. Trisha took her time hoping her educate wasn't to atrocious. Trisha listened and Ferdinand talked about the most recent gossip. With the fall of Drent and the failed attack on Wyndham, the eastern count had his hands full. His holding was failing, and he was desperate for support. This was usually the responsibility of the duke or the king, but the count had supposedly had a recent scandal with the duke's daughter.

This was a budding tree between the King's second son and the count. Trishas mind whirled. To think the eastern count wasn't getting support because he couldn't keep his pants on. In one fell swoop, the count had made enemies of the duke and the second son of the king. The eastern count complained that the lack of haste from the king's army was on an unfounded accusation. Even after he was caught by the prince himself in her chambers completely naked with the Lady Nyla.

No wonder those two cities had fallen so easily. The servers took their plates away.

Ferdinand turned to her.

" This upcoming weekend, the eastern count will be here in the capital. He is coming to muster support from the other dukes. And no doubt to make contracts. I'm betting with the dukes taxes he is struggling." Said Ferdinand.

" Is that when the queen is holding court?" Asked Trisha.

" Yes, it is a time for Scheming plotting and gossip."said Ferdinand.

" You forgot backstabbing." Said Tony helpfully.

" Everyone knows about the backstabbing. Now, Trisha, what is this contract you bring to me?" Asked Ferdinand, straitening himself in his chair. Trisha sensed the mood, as Ferdinand's face changed to serious.

She presented her plans as taught by the Wessers. She went over the contract in excruciating detail for over an hour. Once she was done, Trisha leaned back.

Tony seemed excited, and Count Ferdinand's face was inscrutable.

" Tony, since this was your idea, please lead the way." Said Ferdinand , Tony's eyes went wide. But he straightened up, smoothing his creamy silk in Doublet.

The wiry young man cleared his throat before addressing Trisha far more formally than he had the entire meal.

"What are the contracts you have come to offer?" Asked Tony, sweat already beating on his forehead.

Trisha took a sip of her cherry wine, forcing down a gag. She pushed the glass away from herself. For a second she had forgotten the awful flavour.

" I have three contracts. Two are supply contracts while one is the building and labour contract." Said Trisha. She pulled three contracts from her satchel and presented all three to Tony and his father, Ferdinand.

" This is a lot of products. And for two years, no less." Said Count Ferdinand, whistling softly.

" Yes, but as per the contract. I will give a market share in the company to which ever house holds one of the three contracts." Said Trisha.

" What is the percentage for each contract?" Asked Tony.

" For the supply and delivery of timber, the church will pay by the cord delivered monthly.

Then there will be the supply of steel rail ties, spikes and gravel.

And finally, the most demanding but also most lucrative. There is the survey planning and building contract. Whoever owns this contract will scout the best route, clearing the way and building bridges, clearing rocks and so forth." Said Trisha, gesturing to encompass everything.

"What shares in the company do each afford?" Asked Tony. His father stayed silent but nodded to his son at the question.

"For the lumber, upon completion of the contract, a ten percent share in the company.

For the steel contract, the share is fifteen percent.

And for the building of the railway, it does not meet the conditions until the railway reaches Quimby. But that is twenty percent in market shares of the company." Said Trisha.

She hoped she sounded no nonsense, straight to the point. She swallowed hard as the shrewd intelligent eyes of count Ferdinand bore into her.

Tony glanced at his father. It was clear to Trisha he was in over his head. This was the kind of deal that could make a rich house fabulously rich. They would be fools to let it pass. A twenty percent share in the company meant they would own the shares and would make a sizable profit when the company spanned the entire kingdom.

Ferdinand, sensing the importance of this contract, took over.

" And why are the terms of the contract different for the third contract?" Asked count Ferdinand.

" Because we want to ensure that this railway has the upmost quality throughout the entire kingdom and perhaps beyond. Once the contract is fulfilled to Quimby, we can decide from there. For your benefit we have implimented that you have a first say on whether you want to renew the contract to a new destination. That is, if you complete the contract on in the ascribed time." Said Trisha.

" I would be foolish to turn down the third contract. But why couldn't I just sponsor all three?" Asked count Ferdinand.

" You must understand, these are all being offered separately. We want this to get done with as much haste as possible. While also keeping the quality high. All three contracts will end upon arrival at Quimby, or once the time is up. If the houses responsible for the individual contracts have been stalling or purposefully waylaying the railway, we can cancel them and offer the contract to another house." Said Trisha.

" Are the other counts dukes and barons being offered this contract? There are three other counts, and a host of other nobles rich enough to fund this project." Said count Ferdinand, eying her much more cautiously.

Trisha grinned.

" The Bishop is worried that Briggins and the encroaching enemy may waylay the kingdom's progress. A mana rail in place by next year, troops and supplies we can forward to the front may finally push back the darvan forces for good." Said Trisha. She did not say that the Bishop was worried about the nobles delaying progress to line their pockets.

" And how many other houses are you planning to visit?" And count Ferdinand.

" Because of a request from the Bishop, your house was first. I will wait until the Queen's Court to present the other two." Said Trisha, grinning evilly.

" You are a very mischievous young woman. When word spreads of the contracts for steel and lumber, not to mention the market share in the railway, the other houses will throw their gold at you." Said Ferdinand.

" Does that mean you agree to the third contract?" Asked Trisha knowingly.

Count Ferdinand nodded and reached his hand across the table. They shook and Trisha splayed the contract out for him to sign.

They talked more, indulging in sweet cakes and glazed breads. By the time it was ready to retire, she was sick of hearing about political intrigue. Trisha bid them farewell and took her copy of the third contract. One down and two to go.