Thieves World 3 – Shadows of Sanctuary by Asprin, Robert

‘You say the same damned thing every damned time you turn up in Sanctuary,

Bauchle,’ one of them said, his loud voice full of mockery. ‘You have a secret

or a scheme or a marvel that will make your fortune. Why don’t you get an honest

job – like the rest of us?’

That brought on more laughter, even from the large, heavyset young man who was

being made fun of.

‘You’ll see, this time,’ he said. ‘This time I’ve got something that will take

me all the way to the court of the Emperor. When you hear the criers tomorrow,

you’ll know.’ He called for more wine. His friends drank and made more jokes,

both at his expense.

The Unicorn was much more crowded now, smokier, louder. Occasionally someone

glanced towards Wess and her friends, but otherwise they were let alone.

A cold breeze thinned the odour of beer and sizzling meat and unwashed bodies.

Silence fell suddenly, and Wess looked quickly around to see if she had breached

some other unknown custom.

But all the attention focused on the tavern’s entrance. The cloaked figure stood

there casually, but nothing was casual about the aura of power and self

possession.

In the whole of the tavern, not another table held an empty place.

‘Sit with us, sister!’ Wess called on impulse.

Two long steps and a shove: Wess’s chair scraped roughly along the floor and

Wess was rammed back against the wall, a dagger at her throat.

‘Who calls me “sister”?’ The dark hood fell back from long, grey-streaked hair.

A blue star blazed on the woman’s forehead. Her elegant features grew terrible