Chapter 24
THE RIDE back was horrible. Not only was the downpour cold and drastically uncomfortable, but on top of everything else, Lucas couldn't stop himself from obsessing over the fact that it meant the harvest was now almost certain to rot in the fields, and there wasn't a damned thing he could do about it. They had enough stores in the barns and silos for perhaps half the winter, but once those ran out--and providing they weren't even now succumbing to mold and mildew--they were going to have to rely on trade and purchases from more fortunate quarters, and Lucas already knew he wasn't going to be able to come up with the necessary capital.