The man's expression changed. Not much. Just a small shift around the eyes that told her the answer was yes. With 400 lb of flour behind you, Martha said that wheel would have come loose before the second bend. The silence that followed was a different kind of silence than the one before.
This one had weight to it. The man looked at the pin in her hand. He looked at the wagon. He looked back at her with those dark eyes. And Martha watched something move through his expression that she recognized not because she'd seen it on other men's faces.
Exactly, but because she'd felt it herself. That particular sensation of realizing that the ground you were standing on had a drop you hadn't known was there. Silas Boon, he said finally. I know. Martha said, "Your sister Elellanar wrote to me." He reached down.
She looked at his outstretched hand for a moment, then took it, and Silas Boon hauled her to her feet with the kind of easy strength that made it clear the effort cost him nothing at all. She was not a small woman, and he lifted her like she weighed no more than a feed sack. She didn't thank him ausively. She just got her footing and let go of his hand. "Breakfast is going to be late," she said.
I need to finish the axle first. He looked at her. You were going to go back under there. The pin is out, but the fitting needs to be cleaned and properly receated before the wheel is safe. Yes, I'm going back under there.
She dusted off her apron with both hands. Unless you want to do it yourself. Silas Boon looked at the wagon. He looked at her. He had the expression of a man who was accustomed to doing everything himself and had just encountered a situation where that option had already been taken away from him.
I can he started, "Do you know what torque the hub fitting should be set to for a wagon this size with that wheel configuration?" He stopped. Martha waited. "No," he said. "I do." Martha said, "So, I'll finish the axle and then I'll make breakfast. I'll need coffee going by the time I come out from under there.
Can you manage a coffee pot? She didn't wait for an answer. She went back to her tool chest, took out the proper replacement pin she'd already identified would be needed, and got herself back down onto the ground. She heard him stand there for another moment. Then she heard his boots cross toward the cabin.