"How long is it going to continue!" at last he couldn"t stand it any more. "Does Orel ever get tired?"

"Never," Lis answered. He smoked without taking the cigarette out of his mouth.

"I"m afraid we might be next," Squint-Eye shook his head. "That"s for you," he said to Asa in Unclean and tossed her a card.

Asa hissed and took it. She was losing badly.

Nikto who sat next lazily put out a card for Tol. He leaned back in the chair in relaxation and was playing very sluggishly but managed not to lose even once nevertheless. Tol started warding off in his usual active manner.

The screams of the slaves didn"t stop.

After a while Asa lost again. She shrieked madly in Unclean and tossed the pack of cards at Squint-Eye. He answered her just as harshly. Nikto laughed.

"What happened?" Tol asked worriedly. "Nikto, translate for me."

"She says Squint-Eye is always looking at her cards with his crooked eye and that"s why she always loses."

"It isn"t true!" Squint-Eye said exasperated. "She loses because she"s a fool." He knocked on the table with his knuckles.

Asa didn"t understand anything but tried to knock, too, not on the table but on Squint-Eye"s head.

"Tol, hold back your goat or I don"t know what I"ll do to her!" Squint-Eye yelled.

"Come to me, little Asa," Tol said affectionately. Asa snapped at him.

"You bitch!" Tol got up and slapped her. She growled but shut up.

"Make her sit somewhere else," Lis advised, "it"s simple."

Enriki got up. "Sit in my place," he said in broken Unclean. "You"ll play to Squint-Eye."

Asa nodded happily. They changed places and continued to play. But it really didn"t go well tonight.

"Asa was right, he"s always peeping," Enriki exclaimed after a while.

"I"m not peeping!" Squint-Eye was irritated to no end.

"And Lis is cheating!" Tol added.