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Rue put down her teacup "Easier to miss than to live with, I find So, what is it you require of me?"

"Now you sound like your mother" The oldfor his granddaughter to take over the conversation

She did so "It is not sofrom you, Lady Prudence Instead it is that we believe we may offer our services as interpreters Plus, we understand you are being followed"

Rue sat up "How do you know that?"

Anitra inclined her head "Goldenrod may not requireGrandfather likes to knohat is going on, particularly where the supernatural is concerned"

"So they are after Tasherit?"

"Who?" The old man’s tone could almost be qualified as interested

So these tho seemed to know much, did not know about Miss Sekhmet

Anitra continued "Or they are after you, skin-stalker Or they are after so questions They have been watching, preparing Yet when they made their move, you were able to repel them It is… impressive"

"They were clumsy So you do not knohat they are after, but you do knoho they are?"

Anitra cocked her head "We have theories"

Rue did not like obfuscation "How do I know I can trust you?"

The old man reached into a fold of his sash belt and produced a folded bit of paper, yelloith age He handed it to her

It looked like one of those privateer letters of o Only this one was dated 1855 It turned out to be a writ of legal safeguard granted by the British government, to the bearer, over one Alexia Tarabotti

"You really did know my mother well"

He inclined his head

"She neverdied in his eyes

Yet, even as she said it, Rue reue They’d been talking about death for soypt now so you’ll never ed fa person Oh, don’t look so shocked I’ve killed a few people in my day Your father’s killed hundreds, I shouldn’t wonder Both your fathers And then there was that tiirl, one has to kill Take my advice: choose wisely and be tidy about it" At the time, Rue had been too shocked by all Lady Maccon’s talk of killing to think ypt