Thieves World 3 – Shadows of Sanctuary by Asprin, Robert

limply around a tall pole slowly began to spread, and open – like a huge

mushroom, Wess thought. The guy ropes tightened, forming the canvas into an

enormous tent.

‘Under there – magic, foreign child. Strange animals. Prancing horses with

pretty girls in feathers dancing on their backs. Jugglers, clowns, acrobats on

high wires – and the freaks!’ He chuckled. ‘I like the freaks best; the last

time I saw a carnival they had a sheep with two heads and a man with two – but

that’s not a story to tell a young girl unless you’re fucking her.’ He reached

out to pinch her. Wess jerked back, drawing her knife. Startled, the old man

said. There, girl, no offence.’ She let the blade slide back into its sheath.

The old man laughed again. ‘And a special exhibition, this carnival – special,

for the prince. They won’t say what ’tis. But it’ll be a sight, you can be

sure.’

Thank you, citizen,’ Wess said coldly, and stepped back among her friends. The

ragged man was swept forward with the crowd.

Wess caught Aerie’s gaze. ‘Did you hear?’

Aerie nodded. ‘They have him. What else could their great secret be?’

‘In this skyforsaken place, they might have overpowered some poor troll, or a

salamander.’ She spoke sarcastically, for trolls were the gentlest of creatures,

and Wess herself had often stretched up to scratch the chin of a salamander who

lived on a hill where she hunted. It was entirely tame, for Wess never hunted

salamanders. Their hide was too thin to be useful and no one in the family liked

lizard meat. Besides, one could not pack out even a single haunch of fullgrown