I had been serious when I told Aliman that I didn’t have much faith in magicians. My own reputation was overrated to say the least, and if I was being billed as a powerful magician, it made the others of my profession more than a little suspect in my eyes. After several years of seeing the inside of the magic business, I was starting to wonder if any magician was really as good as people thought.
I was so wrapped up in these thoughts as I entered our humble tent that I had completely forgotten that I was supposed to be sneaking in. I was reminded almost immediately.
The reminder came in the form of a huge man who loomed up to block my path. “Boss,” he said in a squeaky little voice that was always surprising coming from such a huge body, “you shouldn’t ought to go out alone like that. How many times we got to tell you….”
“It’s all right, Nunzio,” I said, trying to edge around him. “I just ducked out to get some breakfast. Want a bagel?”
Nunzio was both unconvinced and undaunted in his scolding.
“How are we supposed to be your bodyguards if you keep sneaking off alone every chance you get? Do you know what Don Bruce would do to us if anything happened to you?”
“C’mon, Nunzio. You know how things are here at the Bazaar. If the Deveels see me with a bodyguard, the price of everything goes through the ceiling. Besides, I like being able to wander around on my own once in a while.”
“You can afford the higher prices. What you can’t afford is to set yourself up as a target for every bozo who wants the rep of bagging the Great Skeeve.”