Persis paused in the doorway. 'There is no contract,' he said. Then he left.

'Wait!' wailed Jain, rising from his chair so fast he knocked it backwards. He scurried after Persis, catching him in the outer corridor. 'Come, come,' he said, 'we are reasonable men. Let us negotiate.'

'There is nothing to negotiate,' said Persis. 'Either we walk back in, remove the clause and sign, or I leave.'

Jain leaned in close, and Persis could smell the perfume on his oiled hair. 'Let us be frank, sir. You are in debt and close to insolvency. This contract is a life-saver for you. You do not really want to see it fail.'

'Good-bye,' said Persis, pushing open the outer door, and stepping into the sunshine.

'I agree!' shouted Jain. 'The clause will be removed! Now let us conclude our business.'

Persis stood for a moment, then walked back inside.

Later, when all the visitors had departed, Norwin returned to the office. 'If you were as good at running a circus as you are at negotiating, we wouldn't have found ourselves in this position in the first place,' he said.

'That's teetering on the edge of being a compliment,' said Persis.

'Damn, it wasn't meant to be,' said Norwin. 'Perhaps I phrased it badly.'

Persis grinned at him. 'Tomorrow you will see that all our debts are paid, the longest to have interest added. We will need goodwill for next season.'

'We'll need more than goodwill,' said Norwin. 'With Rage dead there won't be a Circus Orises. What is wrong with you, Persis? You are a bright, intelligent man. You were a phenomenally successful merchant. Why can you not see that Orises is a doomed venture?'

'I can see it,' said Persis. 'But I can't help it. I love the circus, watching the crowd applaud, seeing the delight on their faces as the horses ride and the athletes compete. I get a greater thrill from this than any I ever experienced making profits. And I dream of seeing this stadium full of people – all cheering.'

Norwin pinched the bridge of his long, thin nose. 'Yes, yes,' he said, 'nice dream. But let us take a long, cool look at the reality. Goriasa is a conquered Keltoi city, inhabited largely by Gath tribesmen, who have little interest in the circus. Our people number less than three thousand. There are simply not enough Stone citizens to fill the stadium. And, as for watching the horses run, need I remind you that Palantes stole our horse-riding acrobats?'

Persis sat lost in thought. 'That's it!' he said suddenly.

'Horse acrobats?'

'No. Filling the stadium. We must put on shows for the Gath. Find something they would want to see.'

'Sheep-shagging springs to mind,' offered Norwin.