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Madame Lefoux acted as midwife In her scientific way, she was unexpectedly adept at the job When the infant finally appeared, she held it up for Alexia to see, rather proudly as though she’d done all the hard work herself

"Goodness," said an exhausted Lady Maccon, "are babies custo?"

Madame Lefoux pursed her lips and turned the infant about, as though she hadn’t quite looked closely before "I assure you, the appearance improves with time"

Alexia held out her arms--her dress was already ruined anyway--and received the pink wriggling thing into her embrace She sirl"

"Why isna she crying?" co? Aren’t all bairns supposed to cry?"

"Perhaps she’swith parents like us"

Lord Maccon looked properly horrified at the idea

Alexia grinned even more broadly as she came to a wonderful realization "Look! I’s of revulsion at all She must be human, not a preternatural How marvelous!"

A tap ca out He’d decided to stop worrying about the child and was crouched down cooing over her andsilly faces

Professor Lyall looked in He’d apparently found the tia and into perfectly respectable attire He caught sight of his Alpha, who looked up and beahter!"

"Felicitations, my lord, my lady"

Alexia nodded politely from her makeshift bed in the corner of the octoainst a pile of cords and springs, and there was so into the small of her back "Thank you, Professor And it would appear that she is not a curse-breaker"

The Beta looked over at the child with a flash of acadeht preternaturals always breed true"

"Apparently not"

"Well, that is good news However, and I do hate to interrupt the blessed event, but, my lord, we have several difficulties at the moment that could very ht repair to a more hospitable venue?"

Lord Maccon crouched over his wife and nuzzled her neck gently "My dear?"

Alexia stroked his hair back froive it a try I would dearly love to be in my own bed"

Lady Maccon had to hold on to both her newborn child and Biffy as Lord Maccon carried her and Professor Lyall carried Biffy back up to the castle At which juncture Conall declared that Woolsey smelled rotten

Professor Lyall opened his ht a sharp look fro that his Alpha would find out soon enough on his own, the Beta carried Biffy down to a cell, tended to the pup’s still-angry burns with a pat of butter, and chivied him in with the Duke of Hematol as the best of a bad lot of options

Upstairs it was decided that Madame Lefoux should also be locked up

"Put her into the one next to the countess and Quesnel," suggested Lady Maccon snidely to her confused husband "Now, there will be an interesting conversation cohtfall"

"The countess? Countess who?"

Alexia conte Quesnel out--after all, the boy hadn’t done anything wrong--but fro hient of chaos even at the best of tih without his help Plus, she suspected the best thing for him at the moment was some time with his maman

"But I just delivered your child!" protested Madarateful I aive credit where it was due "However, you rah the streets of London in ato have to pay for your criusted

"At least this way you are near your boy He was terribly upset by the attack," yelled Lady Maccon as her husband hauled the struggling inventor away

Which hen Lord Maccon discovered the reason behind the funny s in his castle

He came back upstairs fit to be pickled "Wife!"

Lady Maccon had vanished

"Floote!"

"She’s gone upstairs, sir To your chambers"

"Of course she has"

Lord Maccon stormed upstairs to find his wife abed, the babe asleep in the crook of one arm The child had already proved herself perfectly capable of sleeping through both her ood survival trait, thought Alexia, wincing as Conall cloeon!"

"Yes, well, where else was I supposed to stash them?"

"The countess swarmed?" The earl leaped to the only possible conclusion "And you invited them in? Here?"

Alexia nodded

"Great Wonderful! Brilliant"

Lady Maccon sighed, a kind of sad, quiet noise that calravated matters "I can explain"

Conall caer dissipated by her uncharacteristic meekness His wife must be very tired

"Very well, explain"

Alexia relayed the events of the night, and by the ti pack-versus-octo to do noondered her husband Even saying it, Alexia could tell fro up to the truth--for better or worse, Woolsey Castle now belonged to the Westminster Hive Or rather, the Woolsey Hive