... a few gold short of paying them for the last 7 days ...
Just as a suggestion: Set your men to be paid every three days. You'll pay them more frequently, but less each time. This reduces the chances you'll be 2 gold short when it comes time to pay them. And if you are, you have quite a few more days to make that mad dash home (or to sneak in a surreptitious looting) before they desert.
