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was Siward, the young thug Chesley had hired as a handyman last month. Chesley hadn't told us the boy
was involved, but we should have guessed. A head taller than me, and perhaps two years older, Siward
bullied me when he first arrived at the house. Now I knew that wasn't the limit of his wickedness.
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"See there?" whispered King. He pointed to a line of barrels beside Dauna's chair.
I nodded. Then I whispered, "Yes."
"Try to make your way around to free Dauna." He held out a knife, and I took it. I nodded again,
turned, and tread as quietly as I could back to the other side. King vanished into the gloom between the
crates.
Checking to make sure the hat remained firmly on my head, I crept around a great pile of bagged spices.
Some of them tickled my nose, and I pinched it shut. I didn't want to sneeze and accidentally alert the
villains. Soon enough, I found a space through which I could crawl close to Dauna.
Poking my head out from between the narrow aisle of barrels, I wasted a few moments trying to attract
Dauna's attention with frantic waving. Being invisible was becoming embarrassing. Fortunately, no one
could see me making these mistakes.
I looked around and counted Siward and three other men, one of whom we hadn't seen from our earlier
vantage. Two of them played at lots, and the one we hadn't seen was trimming his nails with a dagger,
while Siward
lounged against the wall, trying to look tough and knowing. He stole quick glances at the other men to
see if any noticed how dangerous he looked. None of them did.
With each of the kidnappers occupied with his own pursuit, I had no trouble slipping behind Dauna's
chair. Being invisible helped, too, I suppose.
"Dauna, it's me, Jame," I whispered softly.
"Jame?" said Dauna. I couldn't blame her. It was taking me some time to get used to the invisibility thing,
too.
"What's that?" demanded Siward, rising from his pose to stand directly in front of Dauna. "Did the little
bug say something?"
Dauna's the bold one. "I heard a voice," she said. "Must have been the city watch, come to arrest you
all." She's never been a great one for stories, though. Good thing, as it turned out.
"Right, and then they'll declare you the princess of Cormyr. Ha! Little bug! I bet your father won't even
want you back, you ugly thing. Then we'll have to squash you." I'd never seen nor heard anything as ugly
as Siward's laugh then. Dauna would have something sharp to say, I thought. But she screwed up her
face and began to sob. I guess that's when I first really hated Siward.
He laughed again and called her "little bug" a few more times. I thought him rather dull for it, but it had a
pronounced effect on Dauna, whose sobs turned to a wailing cry. King would make his move soon, I
hoped. What was he waiting for?
"Oh, mercy," cried one of the lot players. "Don't get her started again. Get away from her, boy."
"Who are you calling a boy?" challenged Siward. But he went back to his place at the wall. It was then I
realized that the fingernail-trimmer was missing. The kidnappers noticed it too.
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"Where's Lonny?" asked the other lot player. His opponent shrugged.
"Probably had to see a man about a horse." They laughed at that tired joke. My bet was that King had
dispatched the man and was busy tying him up. I used the time to put my hand over Dauna's mouth and
whisper again.
"It's Jame, your brother. I'm invisible. Really. I'll let you try it later. But first, I'm going to cut you free.
Don't scream or talk to me or anything. All right?" She hadn't bitten my hand yet, and she made a sort of
nodding motion, so I let go. Cutting the ropes was quick and easy, but they fell to the floor with a
noticeable thump.
"Hey, she's loose!" cried Siward.
Both of the lot players rose from their table, and suddenly King came leaping over the crates behind
them. But he'd jumped badly, used to landing on his front paws first. A man's hands aren't quite up to that
task, so he went sprawling on the table between two surprised kidnappers.
"Get him!" cried a lot player. The other drew his sword and raised it, preparing to stab King in the back.
"King!" I shouted. "Look out!" By then, Siward was almost on top of Dauna. I grabbed the cap off my
head and pushed it over Dauna's curly locks. Siward paused just long enough at my sudden appearance
and Dauna's disappearance for me to shout, "Run! You're invisible! Run home to Betha!"
Then Siward was an avalanche upon me.
"You prat!" he screeched, losing all composure. "I'll beat you into pudding!"
I wanted to respond with something clever, but he was quick to make good on his threat. My only
response was a series of unintelligible grunts punctuating each of his blows. I looked desperately around
for King, hoping he had not only dispatched his enemies, but could also rescue me from Siward.
But King had his own troubles. Both of the kidnappers wielded swords now, two blades to one, and
King's back pressed the wall. To his credit, he was a good swordsman, but the weapon seemed
awkward in his grip. It had been too long since he had fought like this. Then one of the kidnappers struck
him a smart blow to arm, knocking his sword down. Both villains' blades flicked toward his throat.
"On your knees, hero," mocked one of the swordsmen. Siward held me by the collar and turned to look.
King was amazed and uncertain. He hesitated, then slowly knelt, defeat in the old warrior's eyes.
"Down, you cur," ordered the other man. The first grabbed King by the shoulder and pushed him down
onto his hands.
"King!" I cried.
He looked over at where I lay beneath Siward's giggling bulk. All three kidnappers laughed mockingly,
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