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“That much I surmised,” he answered, as it was precisely what he suspected “From whom? Your parents?”

She blushed again, and he narrowed his gaze Ah, she did not wish to give details Why was that? What more could there be?

She offered, “I … lost both my parents in the last two years … only a bit apart from one another” She looked down at her clasped hands and then took in air to add, “The guardian their joint will installed to look out for me was unconcerned with me Well, at least he has been unconcerned with ht he was sickly, and since I was happy going on as I was …” She hesitated

Was she afraid of telling hied to make you take this drastic step?”

She chewed her bottom lip “Well … he has decided to scurry me off to an outlandishly terrible place”

“Why would he do that suddenly?”

“Well … we suspect he wants to e”

He watched her and believed soht he could see her busy mind at work, perhaps ready to fabricate a tale from some truth He wasn’t yet sure just as truth and asn’t He said, “Why would he want to do that all of a sudden?”

“That is the thing I don’t know,” she said and frowned

That, he decided was a truth, at least in her eyes “It seems odd that he should suddenly, just before you reach your e”

“It does, and yet that hat his recent letter advised me … in so many words He wrote that he would soon arrive to collect me and take me off and settle me securely That says it all, doesn’t it? He wants to er, in fact”

Ah, another truth Perhaps her guardian was in need of funds suddenly and saw this as a way to it Blackguard Well, he was not about to allow such a thing fro on his watch

Would she, he wondered, trust him with her true identity? He didn’t think so He leaned towards her and asked, “Just who are you, Felicia? Who are your people? Tell me, and let me help you”

“I can’t You are too good, and I don’t wish to drag you into this Scott will see to e,” she said, her chin up proudly