Thieves World 5 – The Face of Chaos by Asprin, Robert

at wrist and neck, and a face like doom.

Quite soon he heard from Nikodemos, concisely but through a slur that comes when

teeth have been loosed or broken in a dislocated jaw, what had transpired: they

had gone seeking the Alekeep owner’s daughter, deep into Shambles where drug

dens and cheap whores promise dreamless nights, found them at Ischade’s, seen

them hustled into a wagon and driven away towards Roxane’s. Following, for they

were due to see the witch at high moon in her lair in any case, they’d been

accosted, surprised by a death squad •armed with magic and visaged like the

dead, roped and dragged from their horses. The next lucid interval Niko recalled

was one of being propped against dense trees, tied to one while the Nisibisi

witch used children’s plights and spells and finally Janni’s tortured, drawn-out

death to extract from him what little he knew of Tempus’s intentions and Rankan

strategies of defence for the lower land. ‘Was I wrong to try not to tell them?’

Niko asked, eyes swollen half-shut but filled with hurt. ‘I thought they’d kill

us all, whatever. Then I thought I could hold out… Tamzen and the other girls

were past help… but Janni -‘ He shook his head. ‘Then they… thought I was

lying, when I couldn’t answer … questions they should have asked of you – Then

I did lie, to please them, but she … the witch knew…’

‘Never mind. Was One-Thumb a party to this?’

A twitch of lips meant ‘no’ or ‘I don’t know’.

Then Niko found the strength to add: ‘If I hadn’t tried to keep my silence I’ve