Huge Ajax's Arc

Chapter 323 of 619

The suites shone with silver now, but silver did not pour drinks. When the roads cleared, Tucker rode to the port and returned with four men. He brought them through the canal at dusk and lined them up in the bar. Ajax came down to look at what his coin had bought. The four men stood in a row. Each was young and well made, broad in the shoulder, easy on the eye. Tucker had picked them for looks as much as work. He knew what wealthy patrons liked to see when they climbed the stairs. "These are the ones," Tucker said. He thumbed a gold chain and grinned. "Clean hands, good looks, strong backs, willing to work, and none of them talk. Marco read every one. They're safe." Ajax walked the line. He needed men who could carry water up six flights and pour without shaking. He also needed the kind of men a patron would remember. He stopped before the first worker. "Take off your shirt," he said. The man looked to Tucker. Tucker nodded. The worker pulled the shirt over his head. Ajax told him to raise his arm and flex. The bicep rose hard and round. Ajax pressed it with his thumb and moved down the line. Each man stripped and flexed in turn. Every one had the frame for the work. Aldric stood by the bar with his ledger. He watched without writing. A slight grin on his face as he eyed the men. "Strength carries the water hot," Ajax said. "And a patron pays more when the man pouring looks like this." He turned back to the four. "You clean. You carry. You pour. You serve them well and keep your mouths shut about this place. Do that and you eat and sleep warm." The men agreed. Ajax turned to Tucker. "They can't serve in work rags. A patron pays for the room and the staff in it. Have Tarron make them clothes. Fine cloth, cut clean." Tucker's grin widened. "He'll like that. He's been itching to cut the good silk." Ajax looked at the plain suites in his mind. Silver on the tables. Bare workers in the halls. The rooms still lacked something. He asked the question aloud. "What would make the rooms better?" Aldric closed his ledger. "Small things. A basin for washing. A hook for a coat. A cloth for the table." He paused. "A patron notices what's missing before he notices what's there." Tucker nodded slow. "And a fire laid ready. Nothing sells a room like a warm hearth waiting." Ajax weighed it. He had the men now. He had the silver and the plan. He said "Aldric prices basins and cloth for the cart. Tucker sets the workers to their duties as soon as their clothes are ready." The four workers pulled their shirts back on. Ajax had his staff at last, dressed and ready by thaw. His house would serve as fine as any lord's hall.