Hanse had sucked in his breath. He forced a grin then, struck a lighter pose,hand on hip. 'So, well, paid in gold, you said?'

'After.'

'Now.'

'Darous, give the man sufficient as earnest. And give him the amulet.'

Hanse turned from the wizard, whose voice had acquired a hissing quality: andthe hand - had vanished into one of those blinks of the eye that deceived themind and memory that anything had - a moment earlier - been there. Hanse tookthe chain and put it over his head. The amulet itself hit his bare throat and itwas bitter and burning cold. The servant held out a purse. Hanse took that, feltthe weight in his hand, opened the neck of it and looked at the gold and silverabundance inside. His heart beat wildly, while against his neck the metal failedto be warmed as metal ought, stayed there like a lump of ice. It sent a vaguemalaise through him, which changed character from moment to moment like -'Sowhat am I supposed to do?' he asked. 'And where do I look?'

'A house,' a woman's voice said to his right, and he looked, blinked, found onlythe hooded form in the chair. 'Seventh in the alley called Snake. On the rightas you go from the Serpentine at Acban's Passage. She lodges there. Mark whatshe does and where she goes. Don't attempt to prevent her. I only want to knowthe business that brought her to Sanctuary.'

Hanse let go a sigh, relief, for all that the robes shifted again -felt a wildconfidence in himself (it might have been the money) that he could get out ofthis easily, and with still more money, and an employer satisfied, who waspowerful and rich. Hanse Shadowspawn, Hanse the thief, small Hanse the knife ...had friends in high places, a condition unexpected. He expanded in thisknowledge and stood loose, dropped the purse into his shirt, ignoring the chillat his neck. 'So, then, and I come here from time to time and report to you.'

'Darous will find you from time to time,' the same voice said. The changingseemed to have settled for the moment. 'Depend on that contact. Good-day to you.Darous will show you out.'

Hanse made a nourish of a bow, turned to the servant and indicated they shouldgo.

'The blindfold,' the blind servant said. 'Use it, master thief. My master wouldregret an accident, especially now.'

Hanse put his hand on the metal droplet that hung like ice at his throat, turnedto glower at the wizard. 'I thought this was supposed to take care of thingslike that.'

'Did I say so? No, I didn't say. I wouldn't be rash in relying on it. Againstsome things it has no protection at all. My guardians in the hall, for instance,would never notice it.'

'Then what good is it?'

'Much ... in its right place. Afraid, thief?'

'Huh,' Hanse said critically. Laughed and swung on his heel, caught the blindservant by the arm and started out with him. But remembering the movements inthe outer hall, the thing which had brushed at his leg - 'All right, all right,'he said suddenly, and let go the man's arm to put the blindfold back in place.'All right, rot you, wait.'

The thief went, and Enas Yorl rose from his chair. His shape had settled againinto a form far more pleasant than most. He walked to a hall more interior tohis house, examined hands delicate and fine, that were purest pleasure to touch- and all the worse when they would begin ... next moment or next day ... tochange.

It was a revenge, a none too subtle revenge, but then the wizard who had cursedhim had never been much on subtleties, which was why his young wife had had EnasYorl in her bed in the first place - a younger Enas Yorl in those days, but agemeant nothing now. The forms his affliction cast on him might be old or young,male or female, human or - not. And the years frightened him. All the time hehad had, to become master of his arts, and his arts had no power to undoanother's spell. No one could. And some of his forms, still, were young, whichsuggested that he did not age, that there was no end to this torment - for ever.

Yet wizards died, lately, in Sanctuary. Tell the thief that was the name of thegame, and even threats might not persuade him. But in these deaths, Enas Yorlwas desperately, passionately interested. Ischade ... Ischade: the name tastedof vile rumour; a wizardous thief, a preyer upon wizards, a conniver in shadowsand dark secrets, this Ischade, with reason to hate the prey she chose.

And all her lovers died, softly, gently for the most part; but Enas Yorl was notparticular in that regard.

He paused a moment, hearing the great outer doors boom shut. The thief was onhis way, thief to take a thief. And Enas Yorl felt a sudden cold. Wizards died,in Sanctuary, and this possibility fascinated him, taunted him with hope andfear: with fear -because shapes like this he wore turned him coward, remindinghim there were pleasures to be had. He feared death at such times ... while thethief he had sent out went to find it for him.

Darous came back, softly stopped on the marble paving. 'Well done,' Enas Yorlsaid.

'Follow him, master?'

'No,' Enas Yorl said. 'No need. None at all.' He looked distractedly aboutagain, with the queasiness of impending change upon him. He fled suddenly, hissteps quicker and quicker on the pavings. Darous could see nothing - Daroussensed, but that was another matter. There was, however, pride.

And within the hour, in a dark recess of the house with the basilisks prowlingthe halls unchecked, something gibbered within a pile of midnight robes, andwith keen sense of beauty imprisoned in that moaning heap, longed towardsoblivion.

Darous, who saw nothing, sensed the essence of this change and kept himself toother halls.

The basilisks, whose cold eyes saw very well, writhed scaly-lithe away in haste,outstared and overwhelmed.

5

Not many women came to the Unicorn, not many at least of the elevated sort, andthis one took a table to herself and held it. One of the Unicorn's muddledregulars brushed by, and leaned close, and offered to sit down ... but a longhand from beneath those black robes waved an idle and disinterested dismissal. Aring glinted there, a silver serpent, and the bully's bleared eyes stared atthat, at immaculate long nails, into dark almond eyes beneath the shadowy hood.And a fog of alcohol seemed to grow thicker then, so that he forgot all thewittiness he had meant to say, forgot for a moment to close his mouth. Asecond wave of the thin, olive-skinned hand and he forgot everything andstumbled away in confusion.

'Acolyte,' Cappen Varra thought in his own counsel, slouched on a bench in thenook nearest the back door. There was somewhat of chaos in the Unicorn of late,a certain lack of the authority which had held the peace, and that sort movedin, cheap muscle. But the woman - that was something extraordinary, like theUnicorn before; a woman, a stranger in the neighbourhood... He was intrigued bythe dark robes and the fineness of them, and his fingers moved restlessly on themoisture-ringed tabletop, thinking of a song, fingering imaginary strings of theharp he had pawned (again) and thinking - oddly - on Hanse Shadowspawn, inanother and quite irrelevant train of thought, as Hanse had ridden his mind allday. Sjekso gone, Hanse vanished utterly, and night falling outside ... Hansewas up to no good, it was certain. There had been neither sight nor sound of himall day long and certain whispers passed in the Unicorn, with more and morecredibility: of revenge, of Hanse, about the likelihood of survival of oneMradhon Vis - or Hanse, should the two meet. And about a certain blind man whohad found his way without aid into the Unicorn and out again, with Hanse intow... a blind man and no beggar, for all his looks - but a man of darkerrumour.