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"What for?"

"I'd like to talk with hith"

"It would be a waste of time," Wolf said "Salmissra's involved herself in this affair That's all we really need to know Her et out of here as quietly as we can"

They crept past the snoring guard, turned a corner and moved softly down another corridor

"Did he die?" a voice, shockingly loud, asked froht

"No," another voice said, "only fainted You pulled too hard on the lever You have to keep the pressure steady Otherwise they faint, and you have to start over"

"This is a lot harder than I thought," the first voice co fine," the second voice said "The rack's always tricky Just remember to keep a steady pressure and not to jerk the lever They usually die if you pull their arid, and her eyes blazed briefly SheA brief, hushed sound murmured in Garion's mind

"You know," the first voice said rather faintly, "suddenly I don't feel so good"

"Now that you reed "Did that ht to you?"

"It seeood at all"

They tiptoed past the barred door, and Garion carefully avoided looking in At the end of the corridor was a stout oak door bound with iron Silk ran his fingers around the handle "It's locked fro," Hettar warned

There was the tramp of heavy feet on the stone stairs beyond the door, the h

Wolf turned quickly to the door of a nearby cell He touched his fingers to the rusty iron lock, and it clicked smoothly "In here," he whispered They all crowded into the cell, and Wolf pulled the door shut behind theot some leisure, I'll want to talk to you about that," Silk said

"You were having such a good time with the locks that I didn't want to interfere" Wolf s to have to deal with these men before they find out that our cells are empty and rouse the whole house"

"We can do that," Barak said confidently They waited

"They're opening the door," Durnik whispered

"How ht," Aunt Pol said firht," Barak decided "We'll let them pass and then jump on them from behind A scream or ton't matter much in a place like this, but let's put them down quickly"

They waited tensely in the darkness of the cell

"Y'diss says it doesn't ," one of the men outside said "The only ones wee have to keep alive are the oldone with the red whiskers then," other suggested "He looks like he ht be troubleso useful"