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In na Roedran, but lords in Murandy spoke the words of fealty, then refused to pay their taxes, or doelse that Roedran wanted, and the people did the same Murandy was a nation in naiance to the king or queen -- the throne changed hands at soht snap theether in some fashion

Stone walls crisscrossed the city, ard had grown haphazardly over the centuries, andnobles It was a dirty city, many of the broad streets unpaved and all of thehcrowned hats and aproned woed between on ruts Trade kept Lugard alive, trade up from Illian and Ebou Dar, froe bare patches of ground through the city held wagons parked wheeltowheel, many heavyladen under strappeddown canvas covers, others e with horse lots and stables, nearly outnuray stone houses or shops, all roofed with tiles in blue or red or purple or green Dust and noise filled the air, clanging froons and curses of the drivers, boisterous laughter froard as it slid toward the horizon, and the air felt as though it ain finally turned in to a stableyard and disreenroofed inn called The Nine Horse Hitch, Siuan clay mare a doubtful pat on the nose, wary of teeth In her view, sitting on the back of an animal was no way to travel A boat went as you turned the rudder; a horse ht decide to think for itself Boats never bit, either; Bela had not so far, but she could At least those awful first days of stiffness were gone, when she was sure Leane and Min were grinning behind her back as she hobbled about in the evening camp After a day in the saddle she still felt as if she had been thoroughly beaten, but shewith the stableman, a lanky, freckled old fellow in a leather vest and no shirt, Siuan sidled close to Leane "If you want to practice your wiles," she said softly, "practice theave her a dubious look -- she had dabbled in ss, but Logain had gotten noa deep breath, she glided forward in that startling sinuous way, leading her archnecked gray and already sain Siuan could not see how she did that; it was as if so over to Min, she spoke just as quietly again "The instant Dalyn is done with the stable to join me inside Then hurry ahead, and stay away fro out of the inn, the crowd inside was big enough to hide an arot that mulish look about her eyes and opened her mouth, no doubt to demand why Siuan forestalled her "Just do it, Serenla Or I’ll let you add cleaning his boots to handing hiave a sullen nod

Pushing Bela’s reins into the other woman’s hands, Siuan hurried out of the stable yard and started down the street in what she hoped was the right direction She did not want to have to search the entire city, not in this heat and dust

Heavy wagons behind teaht or even ten filled the streets, drivers cracking long whips and cursing equally at the horses and at the people who darted between the wagons Roughly dressed ondrivers’ coats so invitations at women who passed them The women ore colorful aprons, soht scarves, walked on with eyes straight ahead, as though they did not hear Wo loose around their shoulders and skirts soround, often shouted back even ruder replies

Siuan gave a start when she realized that soestions were airy -- she really could not apply them to herself in her own es in herself That ht find her attractive Her reflection in the filthyof a tailor’s shop caught her eye, not irl under a straw hat She was young; not just youngappearing, as far as she could tell, but young Not e of the years she had actually lived

An advantage to having been stilled, she told herself She had met women ould pay any price to lose fifteen or twenty years; soain She often found herself listing such advantages, perhaps trying to convince herself they were real Freed fro And her own father would not have recognized her She did not really look as she had as a young woes maturity had made were still there, but softened into youth Coldly objective, she thought she irl; pretty was the best that had ever been said of her Handsome had been the more usual compliment She could not connect that face to her, to Siuan Sanche Only inside was she still the sae There, in her head, she was still herself

Soard had na Bear, or The Silver Pig, often with garish signs painted to match Others had names that should not have been allowed, theThe Do of a copperyskinned woman -- bare to the waist! -- with her lips puckered Siuan wondered what Leane would ive her notions

At last, on a side street just as wide as theinner walls, she found the inn she wanted, three stories of rough gray stone topped with purple roof tiles The sign over the door had an ied to hide as little as possible, astride a barebacked horse, and a nanized it

Inside, the common roo and laughing, trying to pinch servingsmiles Barely audible over the babble, a zither and a flute acco on a table at one end of the long rooh to show nearly the whole length of her bare legs; what Siuan could catch of her song irl’swith no clothes on? Why would a wo about it to a lot of drunken louts? It was not a sort of place she had ever been into before She intended to make this v