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“No,” I say, “it is detestable”

“It is our finest vintage, dominus Thessalonica ’35”

“How e for your taste buds Is the cellar in the same place? I’ll pick my oine, since you seem incapable of basic competency”

I stalk past him and throw open the cellar door, which is located in themerman statue

Rounding the corner at the cellar’s bottoht to the back and find Glirastes waiting for ne He pops it as I enter “I believe charave,” he says His hug isfriend, you’re a sight for weary eyes Don’t make that face, these walls down here are quite impenetrable to that little spy trinket Quicksilver is such an idiot Mass-produces everything, no individual artistry Very gauche in his spirit selection as well We haven’t much time, so let us be quick”

I sit and share the chae of questions When I have finished, he leans back and traces the rine flute with his pinky “That is quite a tale All that to come here All that to confront your needians, boy? Don’t you kno this quest for revenge will end? What if he recognized you!”

“Wrecking balls seldom stop for conversations,” I say

“Yes You can practically see that Red girl hanging in his eyes, can’t you? Gorydamn Nero Couldn’t just slap her on the wrist I blame him for all this Him and that idiot Fabii And that idiot Bellona Frankly, your ranks are replete with idiots So ht suspect if they were a little poorer, a little ht have had the co each other in an operatic game of eed Not a bit They still bicker Carthii and Saud Votum and everyone And you expect thehs “You’ve always been a romantic”

“I thought it was a fellowship of two,” I reply

“Oh, shut up You could have contacted rief “You could have let me know you weren’t dead”

“You have to understand what I saw” He raises an eyebroays curious about Palatine gossip, especially the firsthand sort It’s not his most noble quality “I saw Aja hacked to ribbons and Octavia ripped here to here” I trace the path Darrow’s blade , and watched as Darrow pulled his tongue out I saw odfather ally with Darrow for the briefest flicker to down Lilath au Faran’s ships before they destroyed my home”

He shudders

“I saw all those people with all their plans strangled by the webs they wove I wanted out To his credit, Darrow spared me, and sent me aith Cassius”

“All this tiht have,” Glirastes says “I would not have helped hiht he murdered you”

I’m not sure if I believe that, but he does “So I disappeared,” I say