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Biffy glanced up through his lashes, trying to keep as unthreatening a deair out into the hall She earing a dress of pale blue satin with royal blue velvet tri expression Biffy had no idea why, but that expression terrified hie He wasn’t particularly taken with the dress, either Blue on blue always looked dah for his hackles to rise, even in human form "Did you ken, pup?"

"Knohat, my lady?" Biffy kept his voice mellow

"Did you ken it was him? Did you ken what he did?"

"I’"

"Did you ken what he did to my pack? Stole Graanized everything Played us all like ere bally puppets Got my pack to attempt treason and Gramps to feel betrayed so he would up and run to Woolsey Do you ken what that did towhat it was like? Did he give us a single thought? Destroy one pack to save another, will he? Bollocks to that! I’ll skin hi to understand, trying to put everything together "This is all before my time, my lady"

She lashed out at hith and Alpha rage at anyone ould threaten her pack, past or present, real or iainst the wall and down to one knee, blood spattering the perfect points of his white starched collar

Felicity gave a little squeak of alar Biffy could feel the cut on his lip healing even as he regained his feet It had taken hi while to becoether again, like skin darning He pulled out his handkerchief, lilac scented, and dabbed the spatter off of his cheek He could feel the hunger starting, the need to consume bloody flesh to co so still behind the vibrating Lady Kingair, sh the lilac of his handkerchief and the rose of her perfuair, there’s no call for that kind of behavior We are all civilized here, if you would just--"

But the Alpha was already away, ripping the dress fro to wolf forht Floote had enough presence of ht have crashed through it

Biffy was frightened for Lyall and iven the suddenness and violence of the preceding few minutes He knew he should warn the Beta somehow, but first he had to ascertain the particulars He turned to face Felicity

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Floote subtly replacing a tiny pearl-handled gun into his inner coat pocket with his free hand The butler air turned violent Biffy wasn’t certain how he felt about this Should butlers be hiding se? Didn’t seem very domestic

Felicity tried to make her way to the now-open door

Biffy moved supernaturally fast He would never be as quick as Lord Akeldama, but he was certainly faster than Felicity Loontwill He signaled Floote with a sharp gesture, and the butler, understanding perfectly, closed the door fir lady’s face In the same instant, Biffy took Felicity by one arm

His hands--slender and fine and once so well suited to his preferredthe piano--were now th to waylay one frivolous feair"

"I didn’t until I lared

Felicity started to prattle "Why, Mr Rabiffano, I’ve hardly seen you out in society at all since I returned fro private balls about town so very undiscri these days They’ll let practically anyone attend Then again, you were at the Blingchesters last night, weren’t you? Talking to Lord Hoffingstrobe about his new dirigible?"

Biffy decided, under the circumstances, it was not too rude to interrupt her "Miss Loontwill, stop gargling, please I think you had better tellwarmed by multiple hot water bottles and then cleaned of brine in the plushest of the SS Custard’s bathhouses, Lady Maccon was once

"Alexia," Ivy reprimanded most severely once she was back in her friend’s presence, "you had my heart in my chest! You really did"

Alexia disposed of Ivy’s panic and solicitude by sending her off in search of co and obscure foodstuffs and took to her bed ers at bay Ivy had proved resourceful under such extre overboard After calling for help, she had extracted the two parts of the new parasol, coiling the grapple about the tip like yarn about a spindle She even spent ti to stomp on the instruction sheet before it flew overboard

"You see," said Alexia to her husband as Ivy dashed off to see about custard éclairs, "I told you she had hidden depths"

"Do you think it’s only saltwater immersion that has this kind of effect?" Lord Maccon was far more interested in their recent revelation Ivy’s peculiarities of character were nothing on his wife’s peculiarities of ability

Alexia was most decided on this point "No I believe it is any water Even moisture in the air narrows the scope Did you never wonder why the Kingair mummy’s effect was so wide in London and so s in Scotland Also, there must be some kind of proximity and air contact as well, for I was only affected by the preternatural mummy when I was in the sae into a ithin a larger-ranging area"

"We have always known preternaturals and supernaturals functioned differently Why should we not react differently to an alien agent in our midst? Werewolves are affected by the sun and moon; preternaturals are not"

"And it’s clear the water was not enforcing your fore in water Have done so many times"

"So it definitely limits preternatural touch"

"We know your abilities are related to ambient aether We should not be so very surprised"

Alexia looked at her husband "I wonder hoet I have to be"

"Well, , ill have to perforether" Lord Maccon waggled his eyebrows at her and leered

"Could soap be a factor?" Alexia illing to play his ga silly Do you think that’s why our Prudence hates bath night so e, that is an idea! Perhaps she feels a li others out of the aether that she relies upon that is shut off by water"

"Youwould be quite a torture, then She does always seem to notice when someone new is in the room before anyone else"