I WAS HURLED down the stairs to the dungeon, my knees and ribs scraping against the hard rock floor.

My nostrils were forced to suck in that same repulsive stench from the night before.

I heard laughter and the clang of a heavy door as two burly guards grabbed my arms and tossed me into an open cell.

When my eyes cleared, I saw Armand, the jailer, with a mocking grin. Back so soon, jester? You must have liked the accommodations after all.

I was about to tell him to go to Hell, but he kicked me in the stomach and the air rushed out of my lungs. This time I'm afraid we'll be supplying the stew.

The guards laughed. Armand, with the strength of a beast, yanked me up to a sitting position. He knelt next to me and shook his head. Always the scum they bring me. Never a noble accused of a fancy crime. Just the whores and the motherfuckers, church thieves, beggars, a few Jews... But a jester... That's a new one.

Armand's partner came in, lugging an armful of heavy chains. So we must bind you, jester. And for s............