Inside the production workshop at the Logot Firearms Factory, Lorne tinkered with a jumble of gun parts.
"The design of this gun of yours is certainly interesting. But-it isn't suitable for the army.
"What the army needs is a weapon that's reliable, easy to maintain, and versatile-"
After an "intense" private discussion with Hazel, the two had finally bitten the bullet and returned to the study to explain their relationship to Councilman Macht, repeatedly stressing that they were "simply" friends.
In truth, Lorne now regretted how he had handled it. He regretted not talking things through with Hazel right in front of Councilman Macht. That might at least have shown that he was open and had nothing to hide. Choosing to speak with Hazel in private had only made it look as though they were trying to cover something up.
And just as Lorne had expected, Councilman Macht had not entirely believed their explanation. In his eyes, Hazel's behavior amounted to "shyness," while Lorne had been branded a man who "wouldn't take responsibility." Fortunately, he had at least come to understand that their relationship probably wasn't as intimate as he had imagined.
As for sales channels, Councilman Macht had ultimately agreed to help put him in touch with people for his daughter Hazel's sake.
But he hadn't thought much of the Lever-Action Shotgun Lorne had produced. His assessment boiled down to one thing-it offered too little value for the money.
To be fair, Councilman Macht hadn't been deliberately disparaging it. Shotguns had relatively few applications in a regular army to begin with. They were mostly used for clearing trenches or specific defensive duties and were ill-suited to serving as standard-issue weapons.
And the Lever-Action Shotgun Lorne had designed had too many parts and a relatively complicated mechanism, making it less