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guests.
    Each man found a pair of girls leading him toward one of the chairs or divans, allowing him to choose how he wished to relax, sitting or lying down. Before he knew it, Roo had been led to a divan and gently pushed down on it, had his feet raised andplaced on the divan, had a goblet of wine handed to him; one of the girls began firmly kneading the muscles in his shoulders before he spoke.
    The woman called Jamila said, “When you’re ready, the girls can show you to your rooms.”
    Jadow, circling the waist of one of the young girls with one powerful arm, pulled her toward him, planted a loud kiss upon her cheek, and said, “Men and gods, I’ve died and gone to paradise!”
    This brought a round of laughter, and Roo settled back, letting the light touch of the girls’ hands relax him in a way he’d not experienced in years.

2
Homecoming
    Roo yawned.
    The body next to him stirred under white sheets and he realized where he was. He smiled, remembering the night before, and ran his hand under the sheet and across the back of the young woman next to him. He didn’t think of her as a whore; the term was fit for the women who followed soldiers around camp, or who leaned over the balconies in the Poor Quarter of Krondor shouting ribald suggestions and insults at the workers and sailors below, but these ladies, he decided, were unlike anything he had imagined as a boy.
    They were flirtatious, seemed well educated, were impeccable in their manners, and, as Roo had discovered the night before, creative and enthusiastic. The young woman next to him had taught Roo more things about pleasing a woman and himself in one night than he had learned from every woman he had been with in his young life. And they smelled wonderful, like flowers and spices. He found himself becoming aroused and with a grin continued to caress the body next to him.
    The girl awoke, and if she had any problem with being awakened thus, she masked it with incredible skill; she actually seemed pleased to discover Roo lying next to her.
    â€œGood morning,” she said with a wide smile. Running her fingers along his stomach, she said, “What a nice way to wake up.”
    As he gathered the girl into his arms, Roo considered himself fortunate. He had no illusions about his looks; he was easily the homeliest boy from Ravensburg, but he had managed to bed two of the local girls in town before he and Erik had been forced to flee. He knew, given enough time, he could charm most anyone, though he rarely tried. But now he was alive, with gold in his belt, and a woman willing to make him feel handsome. It was the start of a wonderful day.
    Later he bid the girl good-bye, realizing that he couldn’t remember if her name was Mary or Marie. He found Erik already dressed and waiting in the antechamber, speaking with a particularly pretty young blonde.
    Erik looked up. “Ready to leave?”
    Roo nodded. “The others?”
    â€œWe’ll see them when we get back from Ravensburg, or at least I will.” He rose and was still holding on to the girl’s hand.
    There was something about his manner that struck Roo as odd, and as they left the brothel, he remarked, “You seemed smitten with that pretty girl.”
    Erik blushed. “Nothing of the kind. She’s. . .”
    After a silent moment, Roo supplied, “A whore?”
    The city was busy at that hour of the morning,and they were forced to wend their way through the press. Erik said, “I guess. Something more like a lady, I think.”
    Roo shrugged, the gesture lost on Erik “They get paid well, that’s for certain.” He was now considering the diminishment of his purse as he weighed the cost versus the reward. He decided he needed to husband his capital a bit more carefully. There were far less expensive whores to be found.
    â€œWhere to next?” asked Roo.
    â€œI need to talk to Sebastian Lender.”
    Roo