Dorra would give them furnace time after the clinic brackets were finished, and not a moment before.
Halden began to explain the importance of the bypass. The forge chief pointed through the open door, where two workers were riveting broad supports for a care-room floor.
“I read the request,” she said. “Those beds need somewhere to stand while you improve the heat.”
Iven looked at the order board. The clinic work had been booked three days before they arrived. Beneath it stood repairs for a grain mill, a water cart and the outer frame of a heated nursery room. Nothing looked unimportant merely because another problem had walked in carrying a governor’s letter.
“How long?” he asked.
“Afternoon. If you want to help, the brackets still need drilling.”
He set down his tool case.
Dorra watched him remove the coat and fold it away from the sparks. “You know the press?”
