***
It was Loughlin’s day in the tower. He didn’t mind. He was a solitary man, by nature, and you sure couldn’t beat the view. Nothing but blue, cloudless sky from horizon to horizon. Not that clouds would be unwelcome. It promised to be a hot, dry summer.
The sixty foot tower, perched on the hill behind the lodge was the highest point in the camp. From here, Loughlin had a complete panorama of the camp and the countryside for forty miles around.
Looking east, the vista dropped away into a multi-colored patchwork of cultivated farms and pastures. To the west and south the landscape thickened into heavier woodlands. Northward, the land sloped away more gently. Out that way, beyond the ring, was a pretty, fenced meadow with a pond, the far side of which was crowded round with birch and ma
