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She looked more closely at her friend Was that fear?
His face was honestly serious, and he said, "My dove, I do not knohat is transpiring here Me, ignorant! Please take the gravest of care in this matter"
Miss Tarabotti no the real source of her friend’s trepidation Lord Akelda on For years, he had held the trump card in everypossession of all pertinent facts before anybody else Yet at this moment, he was as mystified as she
"Promise me," he said earnestly, "you will see what information you can extract froo into that hive"
Alexia s?"
He shook his blond head "No, sweetheart, to better yours"
CHAPTER THREE
Our Heroine Heeds So who stood before him "Miss Tarabotti What did I do to ? I have not even had my second cup of tea yet" He loonored his unfortunate choice of greeting and swept past hi, and the fact that the dooras quite narrohile Alexia’s bosoht her into intimate contact with the earl Alexia was eled a little bit, clearly a reaction to the repulsive state of the man’s office
There were papers everywhere, piled in corners and spread out over what ht have been a desk--it was difficult to tell underneath all the muddle There were also rolls of etched metal and stacks of tubes she suspected contained more of the sa; froent one She counted at least six used cups and saucers and a platter covered in the ree joint of raw meat Miss Tarabotti had been in Lord Maccon’s office once or twice before It had always appeared a tad htly as this
"Good gracious les Then she asked the obvious question "Where is Professor Lyall, then?"
Lord Maccon scrubbed his face with his hand, reached desperately for a nearby teapot, and drained it through the spout
Miss Tarabotti looked away froht Who was it that had said "only just civilized"? She closed her eyes and considered, realizing it must have been she She fluttered one hand to her throat "Please, Lord Maccon, use one of the cups My delicate sensibilities"
The earl actually snorted "My dear Miss Tarabotti, if you possessed any such things, you certainly have never shown them to me" But he did put down the teapot
Alexia looked more closely at Lord Maccon He did not seeup at the front, as though he had been running his hands through it repeatedly Everything about his appearance seeht, it also looked as though his canines were showing--a certain sign of distress Alexia squinted to make certain She wondered how close they were to full moon The worry in her dark eyes, expressive even in their soullessness, softened her teapot-inspired disapproving expression
"BUR business" Lord Maccon endeavored to explain away Professor’s Lyall’s absence and the state of his office in one curt phrase He pinched the bridge of his nose between thuer
Alexia nodded "I did not really expect to find you here,at this hour?"
The olf shook his head "I can take the full sun for a few days running, especially when there’s such a less title, you know? We can do things regular olves cannot Besides which, Queen Victoria is curious" In addition to being BUR’s supernatural liaison and Alpha of the Woolsey Castle pack, Lord Maccon was an agent of Queen Victoria’s Shadow Parliahastly," said Alexia baldly
"Gee, thank you very much for your concern, Miss Tarabotti," replied the earl, straightening up and widening his eyes in an atte to yourself?" asked his lady guest with all her customary bluntness "I have not slept since you were attacked," said Lord Maccon
Alexia blushed slightly "Concerned for ? Why, Lord Maccon, now it is I who a investigations, for the most part Any concern you may note is over the idea that someone else may be attacked You can obviously see to yourself"
Miss Tarabotti was torn between being crushed that he did not care one fig for her safety and pleased that he trusted in her coathered up a small pile ofone roll of thin metal, she held it open to examine with interest She had to tilt it away from the shadows in order to istration permits," she reht have had a permit?"