He laid his hand on her arm, seeing the size of her body, but feeling thestrength in it, and the flow of energy between them which had bound him to her,even more than her beauty, so many years ago. She sat still, accepting histouch, although he thought she would have been well-justified in turning away.

Do I know you?

Gilla's eyes were closed, her head tipped back to rest against the wall in arare moment of peace. The deepening light upon her face seemed now to come fromwithin. Lalo's eyes blurred. / have been blind, he thought, blind, and a fool...

'Yes ...' he fought to steady his voice, knowing how he would paint her, wherehe would look for others to be his models now. His breath caught, and he reachedout to her. She looked at him then, smiling questioningly, and received him intoher embrace.

A hundred candles blazed in Molin Torchholder's Hall, set in silver candelabrawrought in the shape of torches upraised in clenched fists. Light shimmered inthe gauzy silks of the ladies of Sanctuary, gleamed from the heavy brocadesworn by their lords, flashed from each golden link of chain or faceted jewelas they moved across the floor, nearly eclipsing the splendour of the room.

Lalo observed the scene from a vantage point of relative quiet beside a pillar,tolerated for his role in creating the murals whose completion the party wasintended to celebrate. Everyone of wealth or status who craved the favour of theEmpire was there, which these days amounted to most of the upper crust ofSanctuary, everyone wearing the same mask of complacent gaiety. But Lalo couldnot help wondering how, if he had painted this scene, those faces would haveappeared..

Several merchants for whom Lalo had worked in the past had wangled invitations,although most of his former clients would have felt as out of place in thisgathering as he did. He recognized a few friends, among them Cappen Varra, whohaving just finished a song, was now warily watching Lady Danlis, who was fartoo busy being charming to a banker from Ranke to notice him.

Several other acquaintances from the Vulgar Unicorn had somehow managed to gethired as extra waiters and footmen. Lalo suspected that not all of the jewelsthat winked so brightly .tonight would leave the house in the hands of those whohad brought them, but he did not feel compelled to point this out to anyone. Hebraced himself as he recognized Jordis the stonemason shouldering his waytowards him through the glittering crowd.

'Well, Master Limner, now that you've finished serving the gods, you'll have abit more time for men, eh?' Jordis smiled broadly. 'The space on my wall that'swaiting for my picture is still bare...'

Lalo coughed deprecatingly. 'I'm afraid that in my concentration on heavenlythings I've lost my touch for earthly excellence ...' The stonemason'sexpression told him how pompous that sounded, but it would be far better foreveryone to think his head had been turned by his new prosperity than for themto guess the truth. The solution to his dilemma that had enabled him to completethe job for Lord Molin had forever barred him from Society portraiture.

'Heavenly things ... ah, yes...' Jordis's eyes had moved to one of the nymphspainted on the wall, whose limbs were supple and rounded, whose eyes shone withyouth and merriment. 'If I could make a living gazing at such lovelies, Isuppose I'd refuse to paint old men too!' He laughed suggestively. 'Where do youfind them in this town, eh?'

Selling their bodies on the docks ...or their souls in the Bazaar ... slaving inyour kitchen or scrubbing your floors... thought Lalo bitterly. This was not thefirst time this evening that he had been asked who his models were. The nymph atwhom Jordis was now leering so eagerly was a crippled beggar girl whom he hadprobably passed in the street a dozen times. On another wall the whore Valiraproudly presented a sheaf of grain to the Goddess, while her child tumbled likea cherub about her feet. And the Goddess they worshipped, who dominated all ofthe facile splendour in this room, was his Gilla, the rhinoceros who had beenrevealed as something greater than any unicorn.

You have hearts but you do not feel... Lalo's eyes moved over the dazzle ofapparel and ornament in which Lord Molin's guests had disguised themselves. Youhave eyes, but you do not see. He murmured something about an artist'sperspective.

'If you want a room decorated, I'll be happy to serve you, but I do not thinkthat I will be doing portraits any more.' Ever since he had learned to seeGilla, his sight had been changing. Now, when he was not painting, he couldoften see the truth behind the faces men showed the world. He added politely, 'Itrust that your work is going well?'

'Eh? My work - oh yes, but there's not much left for a stonemason now! Whatremains will require a different sort of craft...' His chuckle held a hint ofcomplicity.

Lalo felt himself flushing, realizing that Jordis assumed he had been fishingfor information about the new temple - the greatest decoration job thatSanctuary had ever known. Wasn't I? he wondered. Is it unworthy to want mygoddess to adorn something more worthy than this jumped-up engineer's/eastinghall?

His mouth dried as he saw Molin Torchholder himself approaching him. Jordisbowed, smirked, and melted back into the crowd. Lalo forced himself to stand upand meet his patron's eye. for Lord Molin's excess flesh covered a powerfulframe, and there was something uncomfortably piercing about his gaze.

'I have to thank you,' said Lord Molin. 'Your work appears to be a success.' Hiseyes roved ceaselessly from the crowd to Lalo's face and back again. 'Perhapstoo successful!' he went on. 'Next to your goddess, my guests appear to be thedecorations here!'

Lalo found himself trying to apologize and froze, terrified that he would blurtout the truth.

Molin Torchholder laughed. 'I am trying to compliment you, my good man -1 wouldlike to commission you to do the paintings on my new temple's walls...'

'Master Limner, you appear to be in good spirits today!'

Lalo, who had just turned from the Path of Money into the Avenue of Temples, onhis way to make an initial survey of the spaces he was to decorate in the newtemple to the Rankan gods, missed a step as the soft voice spoke in his ear. Heheard a dry chuckle, felt the hairs rise on his neck and bent to peer moreclosely at the other man. All he could see beneath the hooded caravaneer's cloakwas the gleam of crimson eyes.

'Enas Yorl!'

'More or less...' his companion agreed. 'And you? Are you the same? You havebeen in my thoughts a great deal. Would you like me to change the gift I gave toyou?'

Lalo shivered, remembering those moments when he would have given his soul tolose the power the sorcerer had bestowed upon him. But instead, his soul hadbeen given back to him.

'No. I don't think so,' he answered quietly, and sensed the sorcerer's surprise.'The debt is mine. Shall I paint you another picture to repay it?' He added,'Shall I paint a portrait of you, Enas Yorl?'

The sorcerer halted then, and for a moment the painter met fully the red gaze ofthose unearthly eyes, and he trembled at the immortal weariness he saw there.

Yet it was not Lalo, but Enas Yorl, who was the first to close his eyes and lookaway.