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The Thieves Guild

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by Jake Kerr

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(dramatic music plays) . Episode 84:

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Pietro's Books.

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They hadn't even crossed the Great Bridge before
they had to pay their first bribe.

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It was also the moment Rafe learned of a new
phrase, handing it.

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When knights stopped at a merchant or other guild
wagon, they would inspect the goods

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and take a handful. Whatever it was, the amount
that could be grabbed with one

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hand was the property of the knight.

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Of course, a handful of coppers was one thing, a
handful of gilders was something

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else entirely. And when the knight that stopped
them saw the money in the chest, he

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practically tripped trying to get his hand into it
so fast.

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After that first hand, Tilson gave Rafe an
overview of bribery, it

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happened all the time.

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There were certain unspoken rules, one of the most
important being that you

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only took one handful.

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Greedy knights were labeled two-handers and they
somehow found

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themselves reassigned or demoted. The unspoken
rules presumably

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had real consequences. The situation was so
ingrained that

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knights with large hands were teased about being
perfect for guarding the

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thoroughfares where expensive goods were
transported.

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At that, Rafe laughed.

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"So the worst thing a merchant can face is a
two-hander with large hands?"

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Tilson nodded.

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"Yet it is the guild master thief who trails the
Founder's Day parade."

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The reminder of the filth and abuse his friend,
Raylan, was subjected to made

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Rafe somber. They were thieves, yes, but they
weren't

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two-handers. Practically every knight on their
route to the Merchant Tower

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must divide them as a mark, as they were stopped
and inspected by everyone

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with each knight dipping his hand into the chest.

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After yet another stop, Rafe muttered-

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"This is ridiculous. We will have nothing left by
the time we get to Merchant Tower."

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Tilson replied in a whisper.

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"It is how we had hoped it would go. They are
leaving us alone and focusing on the

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chest. The gilders are the price of our mission.

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It is money well spent."

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Rafe felt embarrassed. He was no good at anything
other than doing

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what Raylan told him to do and looking through
dusty books.

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Of course, Tilson was right. The money didn't
matter as much as him getting

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the books, and they were closing in on doing just
that.

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At the next stop, Rafe ignored the chest and
focused on the knight.

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He was large and ominous with a thin mouth and
cruel eyes.

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He was exactly the kind of knight that would ruin
their mission by asking difficult

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questions or demanding they justify their trip
with the names of

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superiors. Yet the knight reached out his hand
like

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all the others. "Is this what we've come to?" Rafe
thought.

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"Our defenders ignore threats in the name of
taking their handful."

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In some ways, Rafe had hoped that the knights
would confront him and Tilson,

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but as they rolled up to Merchant Tower, none had.

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This was the part that Rafe feared the most.

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With the assassination threats on Larson, he
expected that getting into Merchant

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Tower would be nigh impossible. He also wasn't
sure if the Merchant Guild

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guards were open to bribery.

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Rafe whispered to Tilson-

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"Will they take a handful?"

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Shaking his head, Tilson replied.

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"Best to assume not, but I don't know.

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I don't get to the tower."

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Tilson lifted the chest off the wagon and placed
it on a small hand-pulled

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cart that had been stored in the front of the
horse-driven wagon.

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The two of them walked right to the gate.

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A guard immediately came out to meet them.

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Who are you and what's this?

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The man addressed Rafe and nodded toward the cart.

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"This was collected from the Harvest Guild members
in the Wretched Quarter and we are to return it to
the

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guild stores."

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Rafe smiled as he nodded at the chest.

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"They won't need it anymore."

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The guard walked over to Tilson.

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"Open it up."

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'Here comes the handful,' Rafe thought as

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Tilson opened the chest. Yet the guard surprised
him and turned back to

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Rafe.

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"I have heard nothing of this. Who do you report
to?"

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Rafe had a story ready.

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"I don't know. It was one of the guards on the
bridge.

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He noticed a Harvest Guild member passing money to
a friend and he told me to go in and collect it
from

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them to return it to the guild.

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I was just dragging people to the bridge to help.

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I handle a shop in the flats and was told to shut
down and prepare for this a few days ago."

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The guard nodded, but added-

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"And they just gave it to you?"

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He sounded suspicious. Rafe shrugged.

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"They appeared to be in shock. They had just left
their homes, so I guess being asked to hand back
their money

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made sense."

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"I'll take this in. You two can return to whatever
it is you're

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doing."

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The guard reached for the cart handle.

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Tilson glanced at Rafe, unclear what to do.

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Rafe held up his hand.

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"We will need the cart. Can we walk with you while
you take the chest in and then perhaps get a bit
to eat before

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returning?"

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The guard seemed hesitant, but as he glanced at
the pile of

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money in the chest, he finally nodded.

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"You did a good job. Bring the money into our
storeroom to the right of the entrance.

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The kitchens are back there. You can leave the
cart outside the storeroom and then pick it up on
your way

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out."

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... practically dancing as they walked the cart
into the tower.

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Rafe could not believe how well things were going.

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All he and Tilson had to do was grab the books in
Pietro's room and

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then get out. Rafe had expected that the guard was
stealing the money,

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but he actually did store it in a locked room away
from the entrance.

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They left the cart out front and said goodbye,
heading to the kitchens.

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The stairway to Pietro's room was on the way to
the kitchens, so everything was

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even better than he had hoped. With the guard
gone, they quickly found the

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door Relin had described and made their way down
the steps.

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It led to an abandoned hall that was dusty yet
tidy.

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There were bloodstains near the bottom of the
staircase.

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At the end of the hallway was an open door with an
upended stool and

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more bloodstains next to it. Rafe walked into the
room with more

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excitement than he had ever experienced in his
life.

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Finally, the history of the Thieves Guild.

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The room had been ransacked with books tossed onto
the floor and everything in

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disarray,

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but it appeared that none of the books were
stolen.

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They were just tossed aside as worthless, more of
interest for what they may have

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hidden behind on the bookshelf. Rafe opened one at
random.

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It was a ledger of supplies from years earlier.

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Line after line of entries outlining clothes,
supplies, and

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food. Rafe wasn't sure what it meant, but he knew
it was important.

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A thick book covered in dust was titled Magic

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Guild Iconography. "Magic Guild," Rafe thought.

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These should be about the Thieves Guild.

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Sir, we need to hurry. These are a lot of books,
and it will require

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many trips to the wagon to gather them all.

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Nodding, Rafe grabbed a handful of books and
marched them up

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to the cart.

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After six trips, the cart was full enough that
they needed to empty it into the

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wagon and then return for more books.

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Trouble hit the moment they exited the guild.

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A different guard came over and asked them what
they were up to.

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Rafe replied immediately.

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These were gathering dust, and Deputy Guildmaster
Karch told us to take them to the library in

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the upper triangle. I believe he has other uses
for the storage space.

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At the mention of both Karch and the word "books,"
the guard lost all interest and

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replied...

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Well, hurry up. This entrance is secure, and we
can't have you leaving and entering all

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afternoon.

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"Only two more trips," Rafe replied.

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But the guard had already turned his back on them.

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The process had gone surprisingly well until they
passed through the gate for the last

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time. The last pile of books was on the cart and
Pietro's quarters were

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empty.

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All they had to do was get to the wagon and
depart.

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Rafe wasn't even worried about the one-handers on
the return trip.

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No one in Ness other than him cared about books.

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They had just passed through the gate when a hand
gripped Rafe roughly on the arm.

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What do you think you're doing?

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Rafe spun around. It was the guard that they had
first met when they arrived at the

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tower. Not missing a beat, Rafe smoothly
replied...

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"We were eating in the kitchen when Deputy Karch
came down and asked who had the cart.

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When I replied, he assigned me to clear out these
books from the basement.

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I guess he needs to use the storage for something
else."

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Who are you? You can't be thieves with the money
you left. What is your interest in these books?

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The guard reached down and picked one up.

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"I told you, it is a job from Deputy Karch."

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Deputy Karch left the tower earlier today.

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The guard's voice was ominous.

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I will ask you one last time, what are you doing
with these, uh-

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The guard's voice was muffled as Tilson covered
his mouth with his

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hand. Rafe was expecting the guard to violently
fight back, until he

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fell in a heap at his feet. Tilson wiped a dagger
on his blue cloak and sheathed

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it. "Hurry," was the only word he spoke.

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They were lucky in that the guard was between the
cart and the wagon and was mostly

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hidden from view. Rafe quickly loaded the last of
the books on the wagon

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while Tilson took the tarp that had covered the
chest and draped it over the body

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of the guard.

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He leapt into the wagon seat, and Rafe followed
behind him.

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Rafe looked into the back. The cart looked like
nothing more than if someone

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was in the midst of loading or unloading it and
casually tossed the tarp

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aside.

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As Tilson cracked the whip and the horses moved
forward, Rafe asked him...

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"How much time do we have?"

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"Not enough."

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Rafe looked back at the tower. The activity around
it was brisk, but

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everyone seemed occupied. The clearing of the
lower quarter had everyone on

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edge, and it was possible no one would notice the
abandoned cart and the body

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next to it for a long time. The books rattled in
the back of the wagon as they

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went over the cobblestones, and Rafe looked back
at his precious cargo.

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They were secure, and he breathed easier.

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It would take him a long time to examine them all,
but when he finished, he was certain of

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one thing. The history of Ness would have no more
secrets.

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(instrumental music plays)