The Armor of Light: A Novel

Three years have passed. Amos is now alone in his house, as his mother died two years before. The war has increased the demand for textiles for military uniforms, but most contracts are taken up by Hornbeam, who was willing to bribe Will Riddick. Amos explains this to Sal, the “unofficial representative of the workforce” (309) and she curses Will. Kit, now 14, has been working in Amos’s mill since he was six. He is a vital presence and understands the machines better than anyone, so Amos offers him a full-time position on a good wage. Meanwhile, Hornbeam opens a new mill. His business is flourishing, and his son’s marriage has produced a child. The child is named Joseph, after his grandfather, but Hornbeam insists that they never call the boy Joey, as this is what he himself was called when he was “a scrawny kid scavenging in London’s rubbish heaps” (311). Few people know about his desperate past, and he does not want to be reminded of it. Hornbeam shows Howard his secret new project: a mill powered by a steam engine. The new mill requires only a quarter of the present workforce, meaning that many hands will lose their jobs.