BooksBarbecue
Back Beyond the Burn Line
Chapters (66)
  1. Copyright
  2. Contents
  3. Epigraph
  4. Part One
  5. 1.
  6. 2.
  7. 3.
  8. 4.
  9. 5.
  10. 6.
  11. 7.
  12. 8.
  13. 9.
  14. 10.
  15. 11.
  16. 12.
  17. 13.
  18. 14.
  19. 15.
  20. 16.
  21. 17.
  22. 18.
  23. 19.
  24. 20.
  25. 21.
  26. 22.
  27. 23.
  28. 24.
  29. 25.
  30. 26.
  31. 27.
  32. 28.
  33. 29.
  34. 30.
  35. 31.
  36. 32.
  37. Part Two
  38. 1.
  39. 2.
  40. 3.
  41. 4.
  42. 5.
  43. 6.
  44. 7.
  45. 8.
  46. 9.
  47. 10.
  48. 11.
  49. 12.
  50. 13.
  51. 14.
  52. 15.
  53. 16.
  54. 17.
  55. 18.
  56. 19.
  57. 20.
  58. 21.
  59. 22.
  60. 23.
  61. 24.
  62. 25.
  63. 26.
  64. 27.
  65. 28.
  66. By Paul McAuley:

‘I did,’ Goodwill said. ‘The syndicate was also giving grants to improve facilities at the railhead camps where wild bears captured in the New Territories are shipped before being released into bear country. And that’s where I discovered something odd. A railhead on the north-west coast had been receiving regular payments long after it had been closed down. There are very few wild bears left in the north-west, and these days any captured there are sent across the mountains to the big railhead in the lake provinces. I have sent two bears there myself, in the course of my duties. Yet when I checked with the collective that runs the railway system all along the coast, I found that several large shipments of construction materials were sent to the railhead ten years ago. And some of the goods were manufactured by your people. Cabins, furniture and so on.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Fortunately, the railway collective was zealous about keeping records, and their lading bills were very detailed. After the construction materials were sent to the railhead, it received a number of bear cubs, as well as regular shipments of food and other supplies.’

‘Something was built there, involving your people and mine. Something to do with transportation of bears, even though the railhead wasn’t open for ordinary business,’ Ysbel said.

‘Exactly so.’

‘Do you know what kind of business it was doing instead?’

‘That’s what I would like to know. According to the records of the collective, its regular shipments of provisions ceased about a year ago. It may have been shut down and dismantled, but if you have access to maps like the one I was allowed to play with when I was a guest of your friends, they might show something. It may be perfectly legal, of course. But if it is not, if it has violated custom and law, it may be something we can use against Hightower.’

‘It shouldn’t be hard to find some images of what was built there,’ Ysbel said, thinking it was something that she could use to keep Zaquil busy. ‘You did some good work, uncovering this.’