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He clenched his hands and stood, turning away

That sense of his oorthlessness had wormed its way under his skin until he believed it In hisover hi into his ribs

You’ll neverof yourself, you useless bloody bastard

"There," Clerive you for that unkind reive me for my little falsehood--and we’ll be even, won’t we?"

He’d never been able to get those words out of his head; his mother’s intervention had driven them deep into his flesh, buried them where he couldn’t touch the

And because of that, he hat, going to walk away froic in the world could not stand up to one fact: He sier

"We’re not even," he said in a surprisingly cal him with those ice-blue eyes of his--clear, and yet all too confused

"We are not anywhere near even Tell me what you did to her--admit it aloud, you coward"

Clero reached out and grabbed the other man by the collar

"The truth, Clermont"

"She was a hot little--"

He hit the man in the stomach He didn’t bother to pull the punch, and Clermont, who had likely never been struck before in his life, went green There was a tier But right now, he couldn’t see the point of it

"The truth, Clermont, or next time, I’ll rip your stones out with my bare hands"

The duke whi to a woain

"What was that for? I’ the truth, now!"

"That wasn’t for what you said It was for what you did" Hugo let the rab a piece of paper and a pen and set it in front of him "I want you to ado said "I want you to write on paper that you forced her to it, and that in reparation for your criree that you will send your son to Eton--or sponsor your daughter for a Season"

"But--"