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The chair and the desk that had once stood here had been pressed into service in the adjacentfood and drink

That meant that everyone sat on the floor

To Edward’s left, Oliver Marshall’s knee jahnessy sat, quietly conte his cards Violet and Sebastian Malheur sat shoulder-to-shoulder across the roohnessy at his side

"So is so to explain to me," Edward asked, "e must all play cards in a closet?"

"Tradition" That came from Sebastian Malheur

Sebastian Malheur was precise and alanced once at each card as it was dealt, and then never looked at theo, when Free had taken him down to London on her brother, Oliver’s return

"Tradition?" Edward looked dubiously around the space

They were crammed in every which way Marbles--which Clermont had insisted were the only tokens to be used--took the place of cash bets Clermont had explained the matter of those tokens solemnly Apparently, marbles were a serious business in these parts

Edward shook his head "You lot have terrible traditions"

"The cras," Clerets ht before and play cards"

"Discorinned "Particularly on the part of the groom" He looked off in distant memory "And Oliver did say you could use a little discoainst the wall--ashis head "Oh, no," he said "Just because I’m left-handed and married to Oliver’s sister doesn’t anization of entirely non-sinister proportions I will not be dragooned into such a thing"

"Don’t worry," Robert said "We’re not dragooning you You’re not really a Brother Sinister You’re just a convenient excuse"

"That’s a relief"

"And Stephen and Patrick may be left-handed, but they’re not even relations So unfortunately, we can’t include them" That ca Free today," Violet pointed out "You’re just holding a late wedding breakfast"

"While we’re at it, it isn’t even the night before" That was Sebastian "So you see, it all coht circuo, we must all sit in this closet while I win at cards"

"You will not," his wife muttered

"While the Malheurs win at cards," Sebastian corrected s of which--hoe fare? I know that Oliver and Robert have both already crossed twenty-one But what do the rest of you have?"

"Seventeen," Patrick said, flipping over the card he’d kept facedown