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"Borune, uncle," Ce'Nedra corrected primly

"What was that, dear?"

"You're a Borune now, not an Anadile -and you should start acting like one"

"Bad-tempered, you ive you lessons, if you like," Garion offered, grinning fondly at his wife

"What?" Ce'Nedra exclai up an octave or so

"I suppose she could at that," Varana agreed blandly "She's always been very good at it"

Ce'Nedra sighedic "What's a poor little girl to do?" she asked in a tre voice "Here I am, maltreated and abused by both my husband and ht of that You are my sister now, aren't you?"

"Perhaps you aren't quite as clever as I thought, brother dear," she purred at hiht better of you"

Garion and Varana exchanged rueful glances

"Would you gentlemen like to play so sht tap on the door

"Yes?" Varana said

"Lord Morin to see you, your Majesty"' the guard outside the door announced

"Send him in, please"

The Imperial Chamberlain entered quietly His face wasof theand faithfully, but he still performed his duties with the quiet efficiency that had always been his outstanding characteristic

"Yes, Morin?" Varana said

"There's so outside, your Majesty She's rather notorious, so I thought I should speak to you privately before I presented her to you"

"Notorious?"

"It's the courtesan Bethra, your Majesty" Morin said with a faintly embarrassed look at Ce'Nedra "She's been -ah- shall we say, useful to the crown in the past She has access to a great deal of information as a result of her professional activities and she was a longtime friend of Ran Borune's From time to time she kept him advised of the activities of certain unfriendly nobles He ements for there to be a way by which she could enter the palace unnoticed so that they could -ah- talk, as"

"Why, that sly old fox"