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He had me there “I wish I’d killed fifty more of them!”

“Anyway, the sister’s even prettier”

“How the hell would you know?” I tried to roll over and gave up

“Saw them both on a balcony yesterday”

“Yes?” I ave hih my squint

Snorri shrugged and bit into the pear he’d stolen off erous way to talk about the queen if you ask h a full mouth

“Queen?” I rolled back to face the wall “Ah shit”

NINETEEN

I hobbled behind Stann as he led the way to Queen Sareth’s personal chaed for her roouarded

It struck h the underbelly of the castle, down steps and into a long corridor where kitchen stores lay stacked ceiling-high in stockrooht and left, but I had told Stann to leadto the delicacy hich I needed to walk We ascended by a narrow stair, surely a servants’ passage for the delivery of meals to the royal quarters

“The queen asks that you be discreet if questioned about any visits,” Stann said, holding the lantern high in a long less passage

“Do you knohat discreet means, boy?”

“No, sir”