“I’d thought that some of the offenders could be used for work parties to clean the city.”
“They could, but they’d still have to be confined at night,” pointed out Pharyl. “You could flog some of them and let them go for a first offense.”
“We’ll need to talk about that.”
“Sir?” said Jaramyl, stiffening slightly.
“Have you drawn out individual areas for each patrol?” asked Quaeryt.
“Ah … no, sir. I’ve shown them on the map you had me draw,” answered Jaramyr.
Quaeryt didn’t want to press that too hard. “Then after you walk them through the entire area, you and your men need to come back here and decide on who patrols which of the areas. I want each team of two men to patrol the same area for a week, and then switch to another area. With five patrols, each team will spend a week a month in the same area. That should allow familiarity, but not too much familiarity.”
“Ah … yes, sir.”
“That may change based on how things go, and how the new chief wants to organize patrols, but that’s the way it will be for now. I’d like to see the map with all the patrol areas drawn in when I meet with you tomorrow morning. After we meet then, you’ll take the patrollers through their areas once more.” Quaeryt paused. “Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir.”
“You’re dismissed to familiarize your men with their patrol area.”
“Yes, sir.”
Explaining what he had in mind took slightly longer with the other patrollers first, and it was almost a glass later when Quaeryt and the two captains left the patrol station and headed back to the post, accompanied by a single squad.
After they had ridden for a time, Quaeryt asked, “What did you think of the patrol station?”
“Not a bad place for it,” said Hrehn. “Could be larger, like Pharyl said.”
“The engineers have done a good job for the time they’ve had,” added Pharyl. “In the future, it might be a good idea to build another station on the west side.”
“You could make that one bigger,” added Hrehn.
“Do you think they need to patrol all the time … or that they really ever did?” asked Pharyl.
“What would you suggest?” replied Quaeryt.
“Two shifts. One from fifth glass of the morning until third glass of the afternoon, the second from second glass of the afternoon to midnight. The time between second and third glass would be used to change patrol shifts and learn what happened and what to look out for.”
“No patrols at all between midnight and fifth glass?”
“The patrollers wouldn’t catch many people at those times, and the tavernas and inns aren’t supposed to be serving then anyway.”
“I hadn’t considered that.”
The questions offered by the two after that dealt mainly with administration and supply details, some of which, again, Quaeryt hadn’t fully considered.
When they returned to the post, Quaeryt dismounted and turned to the pair. “I’d like a word with each of you. Alone in my study. I’ll start with Hrehn.”
Once he and Hrehn had returned to the study and seated themselves, Quaeryt immediately asked, “What do you think of the patrollers you saw?”
The big captain offered a slow smile. “They’re scared to death of you, sir. That’d be good because they’re not used to discipline. They need some work there. Like Pharyl said, they really need leather cuffs. Rope takes too much time. The armorers here could make up some.”
“What else?”
“You’ll need more men, sir. You know that.”
“How or where would you suggest we get them?”
Hrehn frowned. “I can’t say as I have the best ideas for that. I’d not want the present patrollers first making those decisions, though. Not for new recruits. Maybe … put out the word and have them come here to meet with you?”
Quaeryt asked questions and listened for another half glass, then let the big captain go, saying that he’d like to talk to him again later.
Pharyl came into the study and seated himself almost cautiously.
“What do you think of the patrollers and the patrol, Captain?”
“Might I ask a question, sir?”
“Of course.”
“You were watching us as much as the patrollers. I got the idea that you had more in mind than just our opinion. Am I wrong, sir?”
Quaeryt smiled. “No. You’re not. Are there any other reasons why you thought that?”
“Hrehn and I are the closest to finishing our time for a stipend, and we’re both from this part of the country. There’s also no patrol chief, and there are no captains.”
“You’re right about that. But I do want your opinion.”
“There’s a lot of work to be done if you want a decent Civic Patrol. You’ve got them in line for now, but in another month, unless you get a good chief and senior captain, you’ll have trouble…”
Quaeryt noted the way Pharyl linked the chief and captain, but nodded and kept listening.
“… They’ll just go back to their old ways, and they’ll have their hands out for coins and favors.”
“You seem certain of that.”
“I grew up in Montagne. You know that. Even when I was a boy, people talked about how you had to pay the patrollers in Extela for everything to avoid trouble. More than a few friends left Extela and came to Montagne.” Pharyl laughed softly. “You only had to pay the patrollers in Montagne if you might be in real trouble.”
“So how would a new chief stop that?”
“You’ll never stop it all. You might keep it way down. The best way would be to let it be known that you wouldn’t look too hard if a patroller got a free meal now and again, but that anything more might end them up in a cell, if not worse. That’d work if the patrollers thought the chief wasn’t taking coins from their payroll or accepting golds from every factor or High Holder around. If the new chief ends up on the take…” The wiry captain shook his head.
“What sort of new chief would you suggest?”
Pharyl smiled wryly. “If I were looking, I’d want an older officer who came up through the ranks and wasn’t too senior.”
“Why?”
“A commander or a marshal would be looking for more golds, and the only way to get them would be the way you wouldn’t want. So they’d either leave or end up on the take. A captain or major could expect more pay and less danger than in service. They wouldn’t have any expectations about the patrollers, either.”
“Would you be interested?”
“Yes, sir. I would. But not unless Hrehn would agree to be the senior captain. It’d take two of us. And I’d want to be paid as much as a major.”
A gold a week was certainly affordable, reflected Quaeryt. “Do you have any idea if Hrehn would be interested?”
“I don’t know … not for certain. He’d talked about whether he could be a captain of patrollers in Montagne. He didn’t think it was possible here.”
“Let’s see. If you’d wait here a moment while the duty messenger finds Captain Hrehn.”
“Yes, sir.”
Quaeryt stepped out into the corridor, but couldn’t find a messenger. Less than a half a quint later, he did find Hrehn talking to the duty squad leader, and the two walked back to the study. As Quaeryt closed the door, the gray-haired captain looked quizzically at Pharyl.
