“It seems to me,” muttered Balthazar as he stirred the teapot, “That gold, frankincense, and myrrh are pretty stupid gifts to bring a ten-day-old baby. Why don’t we get him a stuffed camel or a rattle or something like that? Something he might actually enjoy?”

“Honestly,” said Melchior, “I agree. But Caspar insists. The dream was adamant. It has to be gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

“Pffffff. Those tax collectors doing the census squeezed me hard, and now I have to fork out for frankincense?”

“Stop bellyaching, you.”

Melchior kissed Balthazar on the lips. They embraced, then kissed again. Balthazar pinched Melchior’s lower lip between his, then they pressed their faces close together.

“He’s ok with it, you know,” said Melchior quietly, “Caspar. He doesn’t mind about us.”

“He says that. I think he judges us when he’s alone in his tent.”

“Well, if he does, then fuck him. This is 1 BC. We’re not in Ancient Egypt now. He needs to get with the times.” 

“What does BC stand for, anyway? I’ve always wondered about that. Seems weird that we’ve been counting down all these years without knowing what to.”

“Well,” said Melchior softly, slipping his hand under Baltazar’s cloak, “If you ask me, I think it stands for Big Cock!”

“There she is!” said Balthazar, looking up at the sky, where the great star they were following had risen in the firmament.

“Oh, what a shame!” Melchior teased, “I won’t have time to give my best king a hand job!”

“I’m sure the journey can wait!” said Balthazar with a grin, guiding Melchior’s hand back to his dick. Balthazar felt his lover’s hand jerk his penis up and down under his cloak. He felt his balls squeezed and the tip of his penis rubbed.

“Oh, you really are a wise man!” he murmured.

“Did you know, they didn’t use to cut the foreskin off? Those Semites hit on a good idea with that one.”

“They sure did...oh, squeeze it like that again!”

Melchior saw Caspar preparing his bag and saddling his camel for the night’s ride.

“Come on, Balthazar, you’d better hurry up and…” Melchior felt the warm goo of Baltazar’s cum cover his palm.

“Good lad!”

“My star!” said Balthazar, kissing Melchior on the lips.

                                                                                                *

They journeyed for hours across the field and the moor, and above them stars streaked across the desert sky, but all were outshone by the mighty one they had been tasked to follow. Melchior sang lustily,

“Three Wise Men from far off we are,

Running from Herod,

Tyrant and Czar.

Casp had his mother, I had his brother,

His father blew Balthazar!

Oh…”

“Shhh…,” said Caspar, reigning his camel to a halt.

“Look, there are people at the watering hole.”

And, indeed, in the glimmering silver light of the star, they could see three tents pitched and a fire with three hooded figures around it. This was bad news. Water was precious in that dry place. They could be facing a fight to access the oasis.

All three men dismounted and led their camels cautiously forward on foot.

 “Ahoy, pilgrims,” Melchior called out.

“We are three Magi, following the great star. May we share the oasis? We will break our bread with you.”

A figure stood and turned to face them. He was a tall, bearded man.

“Greetings, fellow travelers. It would be an honour to break bread with such a company. My name is Shepherd. Jacob Shepherd. I am travelling with my wife, Esther, and my sister, Abigail, whose wedding in Bethlehem we are travelling to. Please, be seated, friends.”

They hobbled the camels and set up their tents, then they joined the Shepherds at supper.

“We are shepherds by trade as well as by name. But it’s a hardscrabble life, camping out here. Our hope is that Abigail’s marriage will elevate our family in status. She is betrothed to a wealthy merchant.”

Esther spoke up excitedly,

“Bethlehem will never have seen such a wedding. We’ve booked up an entire inn!”

Abigail, who had pulled the hood of her cloak over her head, looked down.

It was hard to tell in the gloom. Caspar could have been imagining it, but he thought he felt the wife’s eyes on him.

Wine was produced and passed around. They feasted until long into the night, drinking. All except Caspar were completely drunk. Melchior had his arm around Jacob, and they were singing:

“While Shepherds washed their cocks by night,

All seated on the floor,

An angel from on high came down,

And blew them even more.”

Caspar watched them sing, his disapproval written all over his face. The women had taken wine too and were chatting animatedly amongst themselves. Balthazar, drunk and feeling ignored by Melchior, was falling asleep.

“There’s more wine in my tent! Can I tempt ye?” Melchior cried.

“I’ll sing another song or two with you!” roared Jacob.

“Balta, will you join us?”

“I will.”

Caspar went to his tent. The women went to theirs. And Jacob, Melchior and Baltazar crowded into one tent.

At first, the three men sat in a tight circle. They told tales of their native lands, and the myths gave way to tales of girls they had fucked, which in Jacob’s case were true and in Melchior’s case were not.

As Balthazar was slurring out a story of a young farmer’s daughter he had screwed, Jacob put his hand on Melchior’s knee. Melchior at once put his hand on top of Jacob’s.

Five minutes later, their fingers were interlocking.

They clasped their hands together for an hour. And with their other hands, more wine was drunk.

It was Jacob who made the next move. He ran his hand up Melchior’s leg until it reached his genitals, which Jacob squeezed. When Melchior did not object, Jacob shuffled closer, and they kissed.

“Can Balta join in? I don’t want him to get jealous!”

“Sure,” cried Jacob, “The more the merrier!”

The three men disrobed and were naked. Melchior knelt before Jacob and began to suck his cock. Jacob was fondling Baltazar’s cock with his hand.

“Hey, did you hear about the Egyptian who wouldn’t come out of the closet?” said Melchior.

“No?”

“He was in de Nile!”

“They’re super progressive in Egypt, you know,” said Jacob, “All the daddies become mummies.”

They switched roles. Balthazar lay on the ground. Melchior knelt to suck Balthazar’s dick, and Jacob prepared to fuck Melchior. He spat on his own fingers to lubricate Melchior’s asshole, and his own cock was already wet with saliva, and he was able to penetrate Melchior.

“Ow, go easy with that thing, big boy!” cried Melchior, feeling Jacob’s cock press firmly into his sphincter.

“Let’s see if we can wake up that prostate, my man!” said Jacob, angling his cock appropriately upwards.

“Ah!” Melchior cried, “Ah!” The dick in his ass felt so good, but he was struggling to focus on Baltazar’s cock while being fucked. Melchior slipped his hand between Baltazar’s legs and tickled his balls…

                                                                                                *

Caspar lay grumpily alone, listening to the grunts, groans, and exclamations from the other tent. He was trying to sleep, but the threesome in the next tent was keeping him awake.

“Get that cock inside me, man, push it right in!” roared Jacob’s voice. Caspar pulled the pillow over his ears. Just then, there was a rustling at the door of his tent and the door opened. Caspar reached for his knife, sure that he was about to be attacked by marauding bandits here to rob him...

To his amazement, it was the woman, Esther.

“We can’t have the men have all the fun,” Esther said, “I’ll join you if you like?”

“Oh, fuck yeah! Suck it harder, Jacob, suck it harder!” Melchior’s voice carried into the tent.

Caspar needed no second invitation! 

He kissed her. Esther threw herself into the kiss. He breathed in her scent, delighted to be with a woman again after months on the road. She had used some sort of talcum powder and had a jasmine-like scent around her. 

“Ah! Ah!” cried a voice that could have been Balthazar.

“Ah, I’ve parted the pink sea,” they heard Jacob say.

Caspar shook his head. He helped the woman out of her robes, and he kissed her naked body all over. He kissed Esther’s thighs and legs. He kissed her navel and then moved up to her breasts. He sucked on her nipples. Her scent was so alluring, especially after the long, hard ride across the desert. Caspar had not had a woman in the four months since he had visited the brothels of Judea.

“You and your husband…”

“My husband…hails from the city of Sodom, and I from Gomorrah. But I keep my garden of Eden well-watered in the company of men who appreciate feminine charms.”

“So I see!” replied Caspar as he slipped his fingers between her legs.   

Moments later, Esther was sat naked on Caspar’s face, and his tongue was tickling her clitoris.

“Oh, I’m going to cum!” Melchior’s voice.

“My wife is getting dicked by Caspar!” They heard Jacob yell, roaring with laughter.

Caspar couldn’t see it, but Esther blushed, then she leaned across Caspar’s body and put his penis into her mouth. He knew at once that she was an experienced cocksucker. The scent of her sex drove him to attack her clit with his tongue…

A moment later, they heard,

“Here, pass some wine, Melchior. I want to wash that down,”

Caspar and Esther both burst out laughing.

                                                                                                *

In the other tent, Balthazar was taking the rogering of a lifetime. Jacob’s eyes were closed as he rammed his cock up Baltazar’s ass. He had never met an asshole this tight, he was thinking.

“Ow! Ah! Ah! Fuck me!” cried Balthazar.

Melchior, who had come, was sat cross-legged watching them. His head was lolling on his chest. Between the wine and the sex, he could barely keep his eyes open.

“Oh! Oh yeah! I’m going to turn your ass into a land of milk and honey,” Jacob said loudly.

“Do it!”

“You guys are hot together,” slurred Melchior, “Jacob, you’ve got a nice dick.”

“Oh! Oh! Wow!” Jacob roared. Balthazar felt the cock inside him fire out the cum. He was glad. He was tired out.

“That was an unexpected treat for this evening, gentlemen! Thank ye very much!” said Jacob, laughing as he cleaned off his dick.

“Shall we go back to our tents?” said Balthazar.

“You’re welcome to sleep in mine, fellas,” said Jacob as he lay down on the mat.

“Mmmm…Leviticus be damned,” Melchior mumbled as he lay his head down next to Jacob’s. Fifteen minutes later, they were all fast asleep.

                                                                                                *

Caspar woke first. He had not drunk as much as the others. And he realized that he was alone, although the scent of the woman’s body lingered in the tent. He got up and looked outside. To his horror, he saw that their three saddlebags had been opened, tipped up and ransacked!

“Melchior! Balthazar! Come quick! We’ve been robbed!”

The others came blearily out of the tent, rubbing their hungover eyes.

“Look! My frankincense has been stolen!”

“My gold!” cried Melchior.

“My myrrh!” exclaimed Balthazar, “Those bloody Shepherds have taken the lot!”

“We’d best be after them. We’ll have to search round Bethlehem to track them down!”

The three wise men saddled their camels and mounted them.

“Ooof, whoever designed these saddles did not consider that a gentleman might have taken one up the ass the night before,” grumbled Melchior.

“Only yourselves to blame,” said Caspar, “I am sitting perfectly comfortably.”

“Shut up, Caspar,” grunted Balthazar.

“Hey, you know what the chick who took the myrrh is?” said Melchior.

“What?”

“A Myrrh-maid! Get it? A Myrrh maid?”

Caspar shook his head. Balthazar was not in the mood and said nothing.

“And you know how I feel right now? Frank-incensed!”

“Shut up, Melchior!” said both the others.

The trio rode onwards in silence under the stars. By eventide of the next day, they had reached Bethlehem. Melchior took charge.      

“We’ll split up. They took our valuables, but we’ve all got a little money in our pockets. Caspar, you find us somewhere to stay. Make sure it’s at least four stars. One of those places with all-you-can-eat breakfasts where you can steal the bread for later. Balthazar, you see if you can make us some money. I’m going to see if I can find those thieves.”

Let us see what adventures befell our heroes in turn.

                                                                                                *

Balthazar wandered through the streets, looking for “Help needed” signs, but he found none. He decided he had better advertise his own skill set, and made himself a sign saying, “Certified Wise Man. Wisdom offered for a fee. No problem too complex.” Then he found a bench in the park and sat, waiting for customers. At last, an old woman came up to him,

“Ere, what makes you so sure you’re a wise man?”

“Well, it’s my job, isn’t it?”

“You can’t be very wise if all you do is sit around holding a sign all day, can you?”

“But I offer wisdom, that is what makes me a wise man.”

“Why should I take advice off some bloke who can’t even get himself a proper job?”

“Look, do you want some wisdom or not?”

“Alright. What is the meaning of life?”

“To pursue noble aims. To fight for just causes. To defend the helpless against the predations of the wicked.”

“Read that off a fridge magnet, did you? Here,” and she tossed a penny at him derisively.

Balthazar sat all day, but she was the last person to even speak to him. He got up and wandered through the streets until he found an alley that appeared to be a place of ill repute. There were red lights hanging from several doors in that place. Oh, why not? Desperate times called for desperate measures.

He took the sign that he had made earlier and wrote on the other side. It now read,

“I’ll gobble for gold! I’ll fuck for frankincense! I’ll munch the muff for Myrrh!”

He held it up, waiting for clients. Sure enough, one came along. A man who was well dressed and appeared anxious for his face not to be seen, for he wore a veil across it.

“Ere, how much for a good hard shag?”

“A pound of frankincense.”

“Hmmm, I’m fresh out, I’m afraid. I have gold. Three coins enough?”

“You’re sure you don’t have any frankincense? You could pop to the market and get some?”

“You’ve got to be joking. What kind of hooker are you, wanting spice for sex?”

“Well, I’m a wise man sent by a king to seek out a baby boy. I’m supposed to come bearing a gift of frankincense!”

The man was rather nonplussed by this reply, coming from a man in a seedy back alley of Bethlehem. He stood, looking at Balthazar as if he were a lunatic.

“Okaaaaayyy…Look, do you want the gold or not?”

“Ok, ok.”

They found an alley. Balthazar could hardly believe that he, a king and a wise man, was selling his own ass for money in a back alley. He hitched up his robes, bared his behind and bent over.

“Here, what did the leper say to the hooker?” the john asked Balthazar as he eased his cock between his butt cheeks.

“Beats me.”

“Keep the tip!”

Balthazar felt the dick begin to push in and out of his ass. The john was grasping his hips. Even as he was fucked, he was trying to work out how much frankincense and myrrh three coins could buy…

He began to pant heavily. He felt the dick bump his prostate and he grew hard as it was touched. His dick and his ass were both still sore from the hard fucking he’d done with Jacob and Melchior, but it would be worth it to get the gifts they needed. The man’s cock was just the right size for Balthazar, and he reached up to jerk off his own dick, pressing his other hand to the wall for balance.

“Where is it you came from?” the john asked.

“Judea.”

“Judea? That’s Herod’s place. That’s many leagues away!”

“Yes. We’ve been travelling for…Oh! Oh! Fuck!”

The dick in his ass robbed him of speech as it thrust deep towards his colon.

“Here, said the john,

“I know a nice girl of Judea,

Who will do anything if you pay ‘er…”

Balthazar could not pay attention to the rhyme, so hard was the cock in his ass now pounding in and out. He cried out aloud, he was jerking his own dick frantically and suddenly, with a hot rush, he shot his load out into a puddle below.

It took five long minutes for the john to come in his ass. When it was over, Balthazar pulled up his trousers and limped in the direction of the star. It had been sorely bought, but he had his gold.

                                                                                                *  

Caspar pushed open the door of the tavern. He went up to the bar. There was an old woman there with a shawl drawn over her head. He still had a handful of coppers from his pocket that the thieves had not taken, and he placed them on the counter.

“Good day, madam. My companions and I were lately robbed by three villains at the watering hole on the outskirts of the city…”

“Mercy! You mean the Shepherds gang! They’ve struck again!”

“Yes, they said they were Shepherds! That’s them! You know of them?”

“Know them? They are notorious local villains!”

“They told me they were husband, wife and sister.”

“Pffff. That’s one of their aliases. Sometimes they’re brothers and sisters, parents and daughter, uncle, aunt and niece. It’s different every time.”

“Do you know where they might be found?”

“They know better than to come back in here. I barred them years ago. Ask around, though. Someone might know them.”

“By the way, you wouldn’t have any accommodation, would you? I seek a room for myself and my companions.”
“It so happens I do…”

The old woman led him to a room with three beds, and he paid her for it. Caspar asked around some of the drinkers in the tavern, and some of the local shopkeepers too. All had tales of the thieving shepherds, the crimes they had committed and the havoc they had caused. But no one was able to tell him where they were.

Caspar was tired and he went for a lie down. On the way up the stairs, he met a young woman. She wore a blue cloak with a cowl. She had an oval face. She had piercing almond eyes. She was radiantly beautiful. And she was alone.

Now, in that city at that time in history, a young woman travelling in public without her husband, father or brother was an unusual sight indeed. The exception would be if she was a…

“Good evening, Sir,” she said.

Addressing a man she’d never met on a stairwell? She was definitely a prostitute.

“Good evening.”

“Would Sir like any company this afternoon?”

“I would.”

“For three coppers?”

“Deal,” he said, hardly able to believe his luck in meeting her. She was gorgeous and, when he got close to her, he found she smelled amazing too.

“If you don’t mind my asking,” Caspar said as he kissed her naked body, lingering around her navel and breathing deeply of her aroma, “What fragrance do you wear?”

“It’s myrrh.”

He caressed her lovely breasts with his hand.

“Really? You wouldn’t happen to have any myrrh on you, would you?” he asked, slipping his fingers inside her.

“As a matter of fact, I do. Why?”

It was too good to be true! He felt the pleasant warmth of the inside of her pussy as he stroked with his middle, index and ring fingers.

“I am in need of some, having had all my supplies stolen by bandits.”

“Yours for three pieces of gold.”

Caspar had coppers, but he had no gold. He looked down at her cloak on the floor. It must be hidden in there. A plan came to him in a flash.

“Actually, never mind. Could we do it on the floor, instead of the bed? I’ve been camping for months and sort of got used to it!”

“I guess,” said the girl, and she got off the bed. She lay down on the floor and opened her legs for him again.

Caspar diddled her for a long time. He licked her clitoris, and he tickled her g-spot.

“You’re a very generous client, sir,” she said quietly, “Most men just shove it in and go.”

“I like to give women orgasms. They are never more beautiful than when in the throes of pleasure,” he told her.

“Most kind, sir!” she said, her chest rising and falling, her breath indicating that she was herself approaching her most handsome mien.

Caspar had to conceal a smile at her falling for his plan.

At length, Caspar bared his penis and entered her. Using all his knowledge of how to please a woman, he held off his own orgasm and focused on making her come.

After about forty minutes of sex, the young woman did indeed orgasm, breathing hard, turning her head to one side, and closing her eyes in her ecstasy. Quick as a flash, he reached into the pocket of her cloak. There was a package of something there. He grabbed it and with a flick of his wrist threw it away under the bed.

“Oh, sir! You make love like a king!” she gasped.

Caspar was enjoying the sex, but he wanted it over to check that what he had stolen really was myrrh. He increased his stroke and her young thighs closed tight around his penis. It felt amazing. Her scent was filling the air, the scent of precious myrrh, and his eyes looked into hers and that did it. He felt his cock contract, felt the shudder as his semen shot out. She was so beautiful that he didn’t want to pull out. He let his cum and her pussy juices bathe his penis for a few seconds as he deflated.

She left him alone presently. He picked up the package from under the bed. Yes! It really was myrrh! Of all the luck! And he’d had a great fuck with a hot chick into the bargain, and it had only cost him a few coppers. Anxious lest the theft be discovered, he set out into the city, heading for the star.

                                                                                                *             

Melchior went from inn to inn, looking for the one that the shepherds had booked up. He scanned every face that he met in Bethlehem, but he never saw Jacob or Esther’s faces. The Shepherds had claimed to have booked an inn out, but none of the innkeepers knew of any such wedding, so he realized they had been fed a cock and bull story.

Alone, Melchior rode back to the watering hole. As twilight deepened and the great star he was tasked to follow rose behind his back, he halted his camel on a dune from which he had a clear view of the oasis. The same three tents were there, and a fire had been set. 

Melchior considered his options. A one-man raid would be risky. Jacob was a big guy, and the women were probably armed too. He couldn’t ride in and play the innocent because they knew his face.

Unless…

He turned his camel and rode back to Bethlehem. He found a barber and paid a few coppers to have his hair and beard shaved off. He bathed at the public baths and bought some cheap perfumes to disguise his scent. He bought a change of clothes. Disguised, he turned his camel and rode back out of the city to the lake.

Melchior led his camel to the lake and dismounted. Soon, Jacob emerged from the tent.

“Welcome, stranger. Whither do you travel to?”

“Judea.”

“That is a journey of many leagues. You won’t make it there tonight. Join us in our camp.”

“I will. With thanks.”

It had occurred to Melchior that he should speak as little as possible, lest his voice be recognized.

“This is my sister-in-law and my niece,” said Jacob, indicating the women around the fire,

“I am escorting them to Bethlehem to reunite with my brother, who went there on business but fell ill.”

 Melchior recognized the deception at once. He looked around the camp. If they still had it, where would the thieves have hidden the stash?

“And may I enquire what is your business on the road?”

Like a bolt from the blue, a plan leapt into Melchior’s head.

“I am a merchant of spices and herbs. I have had a bumper year, but my stocks are depleted. I ride to Judea to obtain more frankincense and myrrh to sell.”

“Really?” said Jacob, “That is a mighty long way to ride, sir. It so happens I have some frankincense and myrrh right here in my tent.”

“Sir! Your price, I beg of you! I have no gold upon my person, but I will sell the spices at a great profit in Bethlehem, and you will be repaid handsomely.”

“Alas, I have gold in more than plentiful supply. You will have to make a different offer.” Melchior felt Jacob’s hand upon his knee.

“You would ask sex of me?”

“I would. I have gold enough to satisfy a king. But pleasures of the flesh, I have need of.”

“For one of your spices, a blowjob. For both, a hard fuck.”

Jacob laughed uproariously.

“Haha! You drive a hard bargain, merchant. My ladies are much enamored with the scent of myrrh. It is their favourite perfume, and something of an aphrodisiac for me. I know better than to part with myrrh so cheaply. However, I think I could give up the frankincense on those terms.”

“First, the frankincense!” said Melchior.

“If you insist. But don’t try any funny business,” Jacob warned, and he patted the dagger he had sheathed in his belt.

Esther got up and returned with the spice, which Melchior quickly hid in the pockets of his robe.  

The two women scuttled, giggling, to the tent. Melchior could hardly believe he was about to give a blowjob to the man who had robbed him, but he rose from his seat and knelt before Jacob. He unfolded his robes and took hold of his penis in his mouth.

Feeling Jacob’s cock harden in his mouth, he squeezed the man’s big hairy balls. Melchior was tempted to hurt him to pay him back, but once the erection was up, he enjoyed the swirl of saliva in his mouth and the exotic taste of Jacob’s cock. He felt Jacob thrust gently inside his mouth, lightly face-fucking him. He always enjoyed when Balthazar did that. He was getting hard himself and slipped his hand into his robes.

Jerking his own dick, he closed his eyes, sucked hard and pretended he was with his true lover.

“You suck it well,” murmured Jacob.

“Thank you.”

Briefly taking Jacob’s dick out of his mouth and shaking it, he saw it was flecked with pre-cum.

“In fact, if I didn’t know better, I’d say your technique is almost familiar. As if you’ve sucked my penis before.”

Melchior smiled.

“Impossible, sir. It has been some years since I journeyed out of the city.”

“Pray tell, where did you learn to suck cock so well, merchant?”

“I was taught in Persia, that I should suck the milk of the gentiles and even the breast of kings.”

He grasped the shaft of Jacob’s cock and pressed it deep into his throat, then he sucked hard.

“Oh, you could suck honey out of a rock! But is not sex between men frowned upon in Persia?”

“Let’s just say I had an epiphany.”

Melchior saw Jacob’s knees were shaking. He was nearing orgasm now. He placed his hands on Melchior’s head.

“Fuck! Fuck!”

Jacob came hard. Warm semen filled Mechior’s mouth. He swirled it around, mixing it with saliva, then he swallowed.

“Let me swallow, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher.”

Jacob and Melchior lay down together. Post orgasm, Jacob soon dropped off.

Melchior put his head down on the sand. He had had such a long day that he was tired out too. He fell asleep. And as he napped, he had a dream.

“Melchior!”

It was the voice of God.

“Awake! Awake, and flee these bandits! Get ye swiftly to Bethlehem. When you have delivered your gifts to the baby, return ye not to Judea and Herod, for he has malign intent towards the child you seek!” 

Melchior awoke at once. The stars were still out, and the crickets were chirping. Jacob was snoring, fast asleep. Melchior, treading softly and doing everything to keep quiet, stole out of the tent.

Melchior rode back to the city, following the star and, as the first signs of dawn were leaking into the night’s inky blackness, he came across Caspar and Balthazar. At first, they did not recognize him.         

“Thy hair! And thy beard!” cried Balthazar.

“Haircuts are cheap here. There are so many Berbers around.”                                    

“Well met, fellow wise men. I have obtained some new Myrrh!” said Caspar.

“And I some gold,” said Balthazar.

“And I some Frankincense,” said Melchior, “You are limping, Balthazar. Why?” he asked his lover.

“Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

“Look,” said Caspar. “The star has stopped travelling. It rests above our destination!”

They all cheered and embraced.

It was only a short journey, winding through the narrow streets. At first, they thought it was the inn they were drawn to, but then they realized that the star actually hung directly above the stable in the courtyard.

The three men approached the shed, and from that place a light shone as if the finest sunset the world ever knew had lately taken place there. Melchior stepped over first. He knelt before the infant and reverently presented his frankincense. Then, wise Caspar delivered his myrrh.

Balthazar paused at the threshold of the stable. He looked inside and, for all the hardships of the journey, there was no denying it was a sweet scene. The young mother held her baby, all wrapped in swaddling bands, and her husband stood beside her, looking down adoringly at their son, and the animals around them snored and mewed and coughed at their feet. Balthazar smiled.

He took a step over the threshold, but as he did so, disaster struck. There was a rusty nail that some careless carpenter had failed to spot, and it stuck out of the doorway. Balthazar’s cloak caught upon it. With a horrible tearing sound, the priceless cloak ripped almost in two.

“Jesus Christ!” he roared in anger and dismay.

“Oh Joe,” said the young mother, turning to her husband,

“That’s a much better name than Keith!”