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"Tarquin Blackas dead, this I knew perfectly well But a great remnant of me existed still, and that reed only to be with Aunt Queen, with Tommy, with Jasmine, with all my beloved witnesses, my irreplaceable and adored kith and kin
"No, I wouldn't let go of o quietly from my place at Blackwood Manor and from all those whom I so loved!
"No -- not without a struggle would I leave them, not without the noblest atte as I could
"As for Mona, ain or let her hear my voice over a phone Never would my evil touch her, never would my true fate be known to her Never would my pain be mixed with her pain
"An hour must have passed as I stood there, my back to the door, unable to move I tried to breathe deeply I tried not to clench e
"It was over and done with, this transfor gently and with great conviction and love those who loved me with all my heart
"Finally, I lay down on the bed, ht, andexhaustion, and fell into a mortal sleep
"It h it did seeain, and that I didn't care
"The early light awakenedwater
"At once I pulled all the draperies and their under curtains, and was soon in a sweet chilled darkness Then I crawled under the bed, and soon lost consciousness
"The following evening I had a temporary passport, money in my pockets, a new American Express card and the tickets to commence the journey As soon as I reached London I realized I had to chart a different course for home, so I made stops in Nova Scotia, Canada, and finally Newark Then at last I was bound for New Orleans
"During all this time, I practiced, fearfully,crowds like a swa this or that victim for hours before the opportuneit at the same time There was no doubt in reeable And in , I made no blunders I made no kills I never spilt a drop
&n
bsp; "Oh, it was an agony of fear and pleasure, drifting through a hu airports became hellish, like vast sets for so as addicted to the hunt as to the blood
"Finally, I came down the concourse in New Orleans and Aunt Queen opened her arms and then Nash did the same and then my lovely Jasmine andhim to me totally And then there was Tommy, my reserved thirteen-year-old uncle, who Tommy