The crane stood cold above the river landing.
Cora had refused to let anyone repaint it.
A yellow stripe ran across the damaged cage, interrupted where Iven’s brace had pressed the outer frame during the fall. He could still remember the weight arriving through his arms and the sound of the people beneath it trying to find somewhere else to be.
This morning there were no people beneath it.
The landing had been closed around the inspection, its loading work moved to another berth. Ward Examiner Auren stood behind the barrier with the jointly sealed clip in a small wooden box.
Beside him waited a mechanic with graying hair and hands broad enough to hide it.
“This is Rhesk,” he told Iven. “She gave a statement yesterday.”
Rhesk looked at the crane rather than him.
