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He awoke to find hi next to hi charm under his breath When Seph opened his eyes, Snowbeard released a sigh of relief and hissed, "Let led into a sitting position, and i black and nasty into a basin that Nick had at the ready Nick wiped his face off with a washcloth

"Nick," Seph whispered "What did Rachel…"

"Stay down," Nick ordered, and went to dulass of water "How’s he doing?" Her usual cynical suspicion of Seph had been replaced with solicitous concern

"Sorry for the trouble," Nick called from the lavatory "He’s had a touch of flu these past few days When I gave hi fro over"

"I didn’t knoas sick," Rachel said, twisting her hair between her fingers "You should have said"

Snowbeard returned with the empty basin Seph rinsed his mouth and spit into it He felt awful, like the time he’d come doith mono at that prep school in Scotland and had ended up in the hospital His entire body itched and burned like he was breaking out in hives Hallucinations swa, Rachel?" the old ing,"but I still don’t see why…"

"Better to be safe than sorry," Snowbeard said "It’s probably just the flu, but perhaps soered a synaptic shock to the brain, er seizures in susceptible people"

Woozy as he was, Seph couldn’t help thinking that Snowbeard was a reuys

"Would you like so to eat, honey?" Rachel asked "I could whip you up an omelet, or some soup," she offered "There’s chocolate cake, and burnt-sugar custard"

Seph shuddered at the thought of confronting food Snowbeard creakily rose to his feet and took Rachel’s elbow "Don’t worry, my dear," he said "I kno very busy you are I’ll stay here with Seph and we’ll let him rest a bit, then I’ll take him on hos in the inn?"

"That’s the only one I found Either she took thelar stole the was stolen" Effortlessly, Snowbeard ushered Rachel fro the stairs Snowbeard shut the door behind her and pulled a chair over to sit beside Seph

"How are you feeling?" The old ry lines

"Terrible" And confused and embarrassed "I don’t knohat I …"

"What did you see in the painting?" Snowbeard de Persuasion, Seph realized, feeling the hot flow of power He i to the habits of a lifetiet much of a look at it I was kind of dizzy on the way over here, frouess, and I just…why do you ask?"

Snowbeard studied hi and collapsed I want to knohy"

"I don’t even re his brain, but aze What was the old , anyway? "What did it look like?"

"It was a painting of Trinity Harbor"

Not the painting I saw, Seph thought He opened his eyes "Er Right Now I rehtened More Persuasion "Don’t lie to me This is i make me pass out, anyway?"

"There are a multitude of possibilities, my boy Sorcerers can embed spells in objects Certainly a curse could be e"

"So you think whoever broke in here cursed Madison’s painting?" Seph asked carefully

"Curses are generally embedded at the time the object is made In this case, at the time the canvas was painted"

"Well, Madison painted it So that’s i the Old Bear to challenge him on it

"Not only that," Snowbeard continued as if he hadn’t heard, "the curse, if that’s what it as directed specifically at you It didn’t affect Rachel orfrom the room and she carried it down into the cellar Whatever it was, it was ht have succeeded"

"Curses and attack ic don’t work in the sanctuary We know that"

"Much is possible that is beyond our knowledge," Snowbeard said gravely "You were the one ht be vulnerable to a powerful curse directed at you or packaged in a different way"

Seph knehere this was going He set his lips tightly together and waited for the punchline