Twenty-Nine || Revelry

When they returned to town, Mint did exactly as she said she would and picked up a fresh change of clothes before immediately sequestering herself in the inn's washroom. Rue spent the interim waiting for her by heading down the kitchen and, with Mrs. Cartha's blessing – and, at the older woman's urging, a bottle of antibiotic unguent – cleaning out the wound on his hand in the kitchen's sink. He was impressed: the cut had been fine and deep, but Mint's quickly woven spell had managed to mostly seal it up. If it weren't for Mrs. Cartha's concern and urging he would have been happy to leave it alone, but she insisted he wrap a layer of cloth bandage around it just in case.

"I don't think that's going to be a problem, ma'am," he'd objected.

Mrs. Cartha waved away his words. "I've heard about what you two have been up to," she said. "I trust you'll manage to re-open it before the day is out."

"I'm doubtful of that."

"I should hope so," she said, and gave him a little sidelong smile, "but do an old woman a favor and don't make her worry any more."

He looked at her curiously. "You've been worried?"

"Of course. I'm attending to your laundry, dear. I've seen the abuse your clothes take."

So he humored her and bandaged the wound.

By the time he was upstairs again, the washroom door was ajar, as was the door leading into his room. He exhaled through his teeth and looked inside, and sure enough there was Mint, clean but damp, sitting cross-legged on his bed and thumbing through his diary.

"You could ask first," he said. "I'd let you see it."

"I could have," she said, "but that would've involved looking for you, and who has time for that?"

"We do."

"Bah." She flipped to the last page he had been writing in and stared at it for a few seconds, squinting at it as though somehow that would help her understand the words. When it didn't, she looked back to him and gently lifted the faded red ribbon from the page. "I was wondering about this, when I looked in here before," she said. "Red isn't really your color." She tilted her head. "This was Claire's?"

He nodded. Mint set the ribbon back in its place and closed the book. She sat there for a moment, looking at its battered cover, her expression slightly drawn as she tried to think. Something was on the edge of her mind, he could see that much, but abruptly her expression changed and she flashed him a smile, hopping to her feet and tossing the book down on the bed.

"Take a shower, get dressed," she said. "I want to see if Klaus got any more work done on the amulet before this evening."

"What's this evening?"

She chuckled. "You forget already? Victory party."

"You were serious."

"Of course I was serious. And you're the guest of honor." She paused. "The other guest of honor. The main guest of honor is me." Her grin broadened. "You're obligated to show up."

He made a sound somewhere between a sigh and a laugh.

"Really," she said.

"Mint..."

"Really."

He held up his hands. "All right, all right. If I'm obligated..."

"Good." She swept past him. "Now get cleaned up."

He took a couple of steps into his room before he stopped and turned, looking back as she unlocked her own room door. He toyed with the words for a few seconds, then gave up and simply spoke. "Hey, Mint?"

She was halfway to shoving her own door open when she heard him, and she looked over her shoulder. "Hm?"

"What were you looking for?"

"You're gonna have to be more specific."

"In my diary. I know you can't read that."

"Yeah, you know, I'm still a little wigged out that you can."

He watched her, his expression level and blank, and she sighed and properly faced him.

"I don't know," she said.

"Sorry?"

"I don't know," she repeated, her voice flat and humorless. "I mean... this last day or so, something's been bugging me about you. And I don't even mean the whole can't-remember-anything woke-up-in-a-coffin speaks-ancient-wizard-gibberish parts, either. Or, well, I do, but–" She cut herself off, scratched her neck, tried to put her thoughts together. "There's something really familiar about you."

He waited for her to continue.

"Your accent," she said abruptly. "It's Aeonic, isn't it?"

The statement caught him utterly off guard, and he was a few seconds before responding. "Th-that would make sense," he said slowly. "Why do you...?"

"Because you are so familiar," Mint said. "It's been bugging me almost since we met, and all this– this weirdness that you're giving off is reminding me of something. Or somebody. I've heard your accent before, and I just realized– it's Aeonic. How many other people could I have possibly met that speak ancient wizard gibberish?" She shook her head. "Whatever your deal is, I think I've run into it before. I guess I was... I don't know exactly what I was looking for, but I thought maybe you'd written or drawn something in there that would jog my memory."

He stared at her for several more seconds, his expression unreadable, until, finally, he spoke. "Huh."

"Huh?" She sounded almost indignant. "What d'you mean, huh?"

"I... I don't really know how to respond to that," he admitted.

She gaped, stammered, tried to formulate some kind of objection and then suddenly gave up. She leaned against the door frame and shook her head. "Yeah, okay," she said finally. "I don't really know what I was expecting."

"You can look through the book, if you think it'll help any," Rue offered.

She chuckled. "Clearly, this is going to bother me a lot more than it's going to bother you."

"So it seems." He disappeared into his room and came out a moment later with a fresh set of clothes and the diary. He handed the book over to her. "Still, let me know if anything strikes you."

Mint started to flip through the book as he headed off to shower. By the time he was out, she was already done with it and had placed it back on his night stand.

"See anything?" he asked.

"Naw. Too much stuff to go through." She grinned at him. "Don't worry. Middle of the night I'll wake up and have it figured out."

"If that's the case, I'd appreciate if you'd wait until the morning after to tell me."

She laughed. "No promises."

. .

By mid-afternoon, they returned to Klaus. The rest of the house was empty, and they had to let themselves in, but as soon as they were through the door they heard voices drifting up from the basement. Mint immediately dashed to the opposite side of the house to investigate. Rue was slower behind her, but as he descended the stairs he heard a distinct whoop of triumph.

"It's done!"

He turned at the base of the stairs to see Klaus leaning back in his chair, Prima standing next to him, and Mint holding up the phantomite amulet. A powerful grin stretched across her face as she flipped the amulet over in her hands, admiring the work that Klaus had done. Klaus, for his part, gave her a tired smile.

"Not quite," he said. "There's still a little detail work left to do. It won't take much longer at all, but somebody has been encouraging me to take a break."

"'Cuz you're tired," Prima chastised. "You've barely slept for the past few days."

"That's fine," Mint said, clearly not paying any further attention to the conversation. "When d'you think it'll be done?"

"After Klaus takes a nap," Prima said, folding his arms for emphasis.

"After Prima forces me to take a nap," Klaus said. He held out his hand, and Mint, somewhat reluctantly, handed the amulet back to him. "There's no change of plans. I hope you two are ready; we'll be breaking the seal tomorrow."

"And we'll be celebrating tonight," Mint said.

Klaus laughed. "I heard they were going to have a bit of a to-do at the tavern this evening! Was that your suggestion?"

"Sure was. You gonna be there? It's technically in honor of your, ah, recent research breakthroughs."

"Is that how you sold it?" Klaus laughed. "Mira was making plans for dinner, but I think I can stop by for a bit."

"Great!" She turned and headed for the stairs. Rue side-stepped to let her get by. "I'm headed there now to make sure everything's in order and nobody got the bright idea to serve pumpkins. Everything should be underway in a couple of hours. Artema, if you aren't there, I'll think of a way to make you regret it later."

"Understood," Rue said.

And Mint vanished up the stairs.

As Rue crossed the basement, Klaus laughed again. "She's in a good mood."

"We're getting the Relic tomorrow," Rue said. "I can hardly blame her."

"And yet, you aren't exactly exuberant."

Prima laughed. "I don't think he gets exuberant." He paused. "Oh, that's a fun word to say."

"Just nervous," Rue said. "It's– it's been a while."

Klaus nodded. "I understand. But – for what it's worth – I don't think you have anything to worry about."

"I have a couple of things to worry about," he said.

"Like last night?" Prima asked.

Rue hesitated. "Maybe."

"About that," Klaus said. "Do you mind telling me what happened? Elena and Mira aren't here."

Prima perked up slightly. "Why's that matter?"

"Rue and I have been working together for a few months," Klaus said. "And there are some conversations we've had that I haven't shared with the girls."

"Secrets?"

"Personal information," Klaus said. "Of a nature that I don't feel I should disclose without Rue's permission."

"Much appreciated, sir."

Prima cast about nervously. "Should I, um... should I be here, then?"

"You were with us yesterday," Rue said, giving him a faint smile. "I hardly think it matters if you hear about it again. Maybe you can help me tell him, in case I forget anything."

Prima puffed out his chest. "On it!"

Even with the reassurance that they were alone, Rue couldn't help but lower his voice slightly as he recounted to Klaus what had happened at the lake. It was perhaps force of habit; he had done the same when he told Klaus about his history even when they were in the middle of abandoned ateliers or camping in forests miles from civilization. He was mostly uninterrupted, with Prima providing a few bits of color commentary about how it had looked when he had seen it, but the recitation went quickly, and when he finished Klaus closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

"That's... a bit unsettling," Klaus admitted.

"But not the end of it," Rue said. "Somebody challenged Mint to a fight this morning."

Klaus looked up, plainly confused. "Is this related?"

"Not directly," Rue said. "The man who challenged her wasn't from Carona. He called himself Trap Master–"

"Rings no bells," Klaus said.

"–and he was... very well versed in magic. I went with Mint and he wound up ambushing her, and– the details aren't important. We both fought him." He paused for a moment, clasping his hands behind his back and looking slightly away. "I think he recognized me."

"But you didn't recognize him."

"I've never seen him before in my life."

"Not that you're aware of."

"Right."

"Hm." Klaus drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair. "What do you suspect?"

"I have no idea," Rue said. "He knew exactly who he was going after when he picked Mint, though. I don't know if it's related to the Relic or to something else, but given the circumstances..."

"We should all exercise caution," Klaus finished. He was quiet for a few seconds, deep in thought, before speaking again. "Do you suppose he may be related to your memory loss? To why you were entombed?"

Rue blinked. "I hadn't even considered that."

"How did he react when he saw you?"

"He didn't, at first. When he did, he was... surprised."

"Just surprised?"

"Then Mint tried to electrocute him," Rue said. "I couldn't really gauge his reaction after that."

"I see." Klaus mulled over the information. "But... I think I'll stand by my earlier statement. You shouldn't worry. We'll have the Relic by tomorrow, and if anybody else tries to act against you, they'll have to go through the Relic's power to do so."

"If he's after the Relic, he'll probably set up another trap at the lake altar."

"Which, between yourself and Mint, you should have no problem anticipating." His eyes flicked briefly to Prima. "Although perhaps the two of you should investigate before you take Prima with you. If this Trap Master is after the Relic, it wouldn't be a particularly good idea to have Prima out where he can be taken."

"Taken?" Prima yelped.

"Don't worry," Rue said. "We won't let anything happen to you."

"We'll just have to be careful," Klaus said. "Given we're this close to the Relic, we can't really afford to make mistakes, anyway."

"Yes, sir."

"In the meantime," Klaus said, rising from his chair, "I would also suggest you try to relax a bit. You haven't had much of a break since we got into town."

Rue nodded. "I can certainly try. Thank you, Doctor."

"Any time."

. .

Rue took Klaus' advice.

He returned to the inn, grabbed a book, and read for a little while. He lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling and succeeded at least at thinking of nothing in particular. He spoke to Mrs. Cartha on the way out the door after she insisted on checking his bandaged hand. The bandage itself was almost pristine, so she took the cloth back and gave him a clean bill of health. Feeling surprisingly rested and positive, he cut across town square and into the fine alley that led back to the tavern and, after a moment of mental preparation, into the tavern itself.

He had only been there once before, the previous day, when he had been in to speak to Belle and Duke, and it had been too early for much of anyone to be there. This time was an utterly different experience; even approaching the door he could hear vibrant conversation and laughter; opening it, he was greeted by a cascade of voices.

Mint had gathered up more than just the usual group for the tavern this time; the interior was packed, at places standing room only. The long meeting table already had most of its spots filled, and a few others lingering standing at the edges. Rue recognized Rod sitting at one end of the table, and he also saw the harbor master Davis in another one of the seats. Nearby, but out of the crush of the main crowd, was the trader that had brought him into town, Neil, and with him was the weapon dealer Tonio. There were other faces that he had only seen in passing, a few he hadn't seen at all, but of them the only one who stood out much was a red-garbed brunette, and only then because she was conspicuously in the corner of the tavern, watching the proceedings with an air of boredom and mild contempt. Clearly this revelry was interrupting an otherwise quiet drinking time.

"Hey, Artema!"

He swung around and saw Mint sitting at the end of the meeting table across from Rod, waving him over. She had a seat for herself, and just next to her was guarding another empty chair– by her gesticulation, it was reserved for him.

He raised his hand in greeting, then made his way toward her. The crowd moved for him, giving him a relatively easy passage to the chair, where Mint met him with a broad smile and shoved the chair back from the table with her foot.

"Siddown," she said, and not a moment after he had taken his seat she suddenly stood up, half-bowed, and spread her arm. "My friends!" she began, projecting her voice far more than she needed to. "Proof at long last that my mysterious partner exists!"

A little ripple of laughter crossed over the table, and Rue looked at Mint sideways.

"What have you been saying about me?" he asked.

She sniffed, feigning offense. "You assume I've been saying much of anything," she said. "But don't be rude! Say hello to the crowd."

He looked out across the table. "Hello."

"Rue Artema, ladies and gentleman!"

Another ripple of laughter. He couldn't help but smile.

"I've been regaling these fine folks with tales of our impressive feats," Mint said, settling back into her chair. "But – and I don't understand this myself – they actually want to hear you tell your version of events." She shrugged. "Crazy, right!"

From somewhere at the back of the back of the table, an elderly man held up a cup and shouted, far too loudly; "She tells us you went n' fought Wylaf!"

"Well," Rue said, "I wouldn't say fought–"

"Been attacked by zombies!"

"Almost got eaten by a skeleton monster!"

"Survived the trials of Mel's atelier!"

He blinked. "I– I don't think any of that happened."

Mint scratched her neck and looked off somewhere toward the ceiling. "Well," she said, "I wasn't there for those particular escapades, I might have... embellished, a little bit..."

"Then set us straight," Rod said. "Let's hear what really happened. All of it," he added, pointedly glaring at Mint. "This one is prone to embellishing quite a few things."

"Oh, hardly!"

Rod ignored her. "Go on," he said. His voice was assertive but oddly soothing, recognizing that Rue wasn't exactly the extroverted showman that Mint was. They were words enough to calm down the immediate chatter, and when things fell quiet, Rue nodded.

"All right."

As it turned out, Rue's oration was calm and even, and he tended to downplay a lot of events. When he did, Mint would oftentimes interject or throw out an obvious stage-whisper in order to 'clarify' the situation. Rue didn't object; quite the contrary, the two of them started to get into a rhythm, working in tandem to relay the story. Rue provided the underplayed baseline narrative over which Mint would add her own increasingly ridiculous exaggeration, playing up the crowd. The patrons were largely accustomed to Mint's antics, but when juxtaposed to Rue's level-headed explanation – which, as time wore on, slowly took a tone of almost flippant disregard for Mint's interruptions – they took on a new life.

The alcohol helped, too.

Eventually they ran out of stories that they could bounce off of one another, at which point Rue took over the narrative entirely. Word that he had been assisting Klaus before their arrival in town had apparently gotten out, and some people started asking about that– whether they had encountered anything particularly interesting or noteworthy, whether they had almost gotten killed, how Klaus had earned his limp. These stories, without Mint's assistance, were much more subdued, but Rue had gotten into his own cadence by then and that, coupled with the stories themselves being new, held the attention of the gathering surprisingly well.

Late afternoon bled into evening. The alley visible outside the windows darkened and turned golden. The eastern sky, just peeking over the town wall, faded slowly to indigo. Rue gladly ceded storytelling duties to Mint, who was almost visibly itching to get back in the limelight. She was just about to launch into the story of when she had Belle had first met when the door flew open.

Duke stood in the egress, breathing hard, and looked quickly around the tavern.

"Hey, everybody!" he shouted, or tried to; his breath caught in his throat and dispelled most of his voice. He tried again, the results not much better, and his words were lost to the mutter of voices around him. Most of the patrons didn't bother to look up, and the few who did went back to what they were doing quickly.

Rue noticed, though. Duke had plainly run all the way to the tavern, and he wasn't wearing his usual outfit; it was something more comfortable, more casual. He must have run all the way from his hotel room.

Something was wrong.

Rue stood up, but before he could try and catch everybody's attention again there was a powerful thump from near the kitchen, and a surprisingly throaty shout: "Everybody, quiet!" The barkeep, Jargen, slammed a thick glass against the table again, wielding it like a judge's gavel, and at his command the bar fell silent.

Duke cleared his throat. "There's something going on in the square," he said. He hadn't quite recovered his voice, but in the heavy silence that fell on the bar it carried clear. "Whole town's being called out."

Inquiries, quiet murmurs, uncertain shuffling. Duke looked quickly over the group, and his focus settled specifically on Rue and Mint.

"You two," he said. "You're gonna wanna see this."

They exchanged a glance, and then moved. The rest of the tavern patrons moved aside, letting them out first. Duke stepped out of the tavern to give them space to leave, and as soon as they were out he immediately fell in alongside them.

"What's going on?" Rue asked.

"A guy just showed up out on top of the harbor gate," Duke explained. "All 'hear ye, hear ye' about it, too. On orders from East Heaven Kingdom."

Mint's step faltered; she almost tripped. She managed to catch herself and easily pulled back to her place in the group. When she spoke, her voice was thin. "This guy," she said. "What's he look like?"

"You'll see in about ten seconds."

She broke into a run.

"Mint!" Rue shouted. "Mint, wait!"

She was clearly not going to wait, and he took off immediately after her, down the alley that opened out into town square. She had taken a sharp turn in the direction of the church, briefly leaving his sight, but as soon as he was out in the open he saw the flare of her deep blue shirt between the much more subdued colors of the townsfolk. He took off after her immediately, slipping through the growing crowd, and finally caught up to her as she emerged on the edge of the gathering. Through coincidence or design, she happened to have taken a spot right next to Belle.

"What's going on?" Mint whispered.

Belle shot her a fast glance. "Nobody's said yet. They're waiting for most of the town to show up."

Mint looked up, and after a moment of searching she visibly froze. Rue sidled up alongside her and quickly followed her gaze.

There.

He stood on top of the harbor gate, at just about the center of the arch. He had chosen the spot for height and visibility, but Rue doubted it was a coincidence that he had chosen the harbor gate rather than the forest. He was positioned just before the steps of the church, ensuring that the holy building, gilded by the sunset, shown brilliant and pure behind him, making him appear far more grandiose than he was.

Not that he didn't evoke a certain sense of awe, himself. He was almost completely draped in dark, black and brown and maroon, from the high-collared tailcoat to the heavy gloves to even his face, obscured as it was by a strange mask. The only part of him that wasn't obfuscated was his hair, which stood out stark white against the dark of his outfit. He was not particularly tall or muscular, but the way he carried himself, even simply standing there, exuded a subtle and quiet power.

He was the main representative, clearly, taking the front and center stance as he looked down at the burgeoning crowd, but he was not the only one. Standing behind him, to his right, was another man, blond and sharply dressed, his posture impeccable. He stood tall, eyes closed, hands clasped behind his back, almost perfectly still.

To the dark man's left was a girl, a young teenager, dressed in white and blue, strawberry-blond hair cut shut above shoulder length. She stood with practiced poise, but also a hint of impatience, her fingers drumming along the edge of a large and slightly frayed book she had clasped under her arm.

"I'm not crazy, right?" Belle whispered. She was leaning over to speak to Duke as he returned to his post next to her. "You see this, too."

How could they not? The majority of the town was gathered now, all of them looking up to the strange, silent group standing over them.

"I see it," Duke said. "You don't think–"

"Silence, please!"

A single, powerful word and the stream of whispers and conversation in the group went quiet. The dark man at the head of the group stepped forward, leaning on the railing. His gaze swept across the gathering, as though taking stock of the crowd, and he seemed satisfied.

"In the name of East Heaven Kingdom, I command your attention to the heir apparent, Maya East Heaven!"

His voice was not particularly deep, but he was clearly an orator and accustomed to projection. His words siphoned down the alleys, rebounded across the opposite gate, thrummed through the walls of the buildings, and Rue found himself suddenly cold.

"Oh crap," Mint breathed. "It was him."

Rue looked over to her quickly, bristling, keeping his voice quiet and low. "What about him? You know him?"

She didn't have a chance to respond. The man had stepped back, and in his place the girl stepped forward.

"Citizens of Carona!" Maya called. Her voice had none of his power behind it, but in the wake of his words it still carried clear. "It has come to the attention of our kingdom that there are some among you who seek to unearth a Relic located on this island."

Quiet, confused chatter erupted in small pockets across the ground, brief murmurs and questions. Maya allowed a few seconds of it as the gravity of the accusation settled on the town before she continued.

"As you may or may not be aware, the Kingdom of East Heaven has been tasked with a great responsibility to keep such dangerous artefacts out of the hands of those who would misuse them. While I don't doubt the color of your character, this particular Relic has been decreed too dangerous to be allowed to come into contact of those without sufficient training to handle its power. The risk it poses is simply too great, and as the heir of East Heaven it has fallen upon me to guard this Relic against its pursuers."

"You little bitch!" Mint hissed. "How the hell did she learn about this?"

"To that end, we will be posting guard at the Relic's resting location until we can determine a more permanent means of safeguarding its seal," Maya continued. "We are only a small contingent, and our presence should have no affect on the day-to-day proceedings of your township. However" – she added a sharp, deadly emphasis to the word – "if you insist on disrupting our current operations, we will have no choice but to respond to hostility in kind."

She stepped back. The dark man stepped forward, his eyes scanning the crowd.

"So has Her Highness decreed," he said. "Until our work here has come to an end, we will be maintaining our outpost in the ruins called Old Carona. Henceforth, Old Carona and its surrounding area are to be frequented by the representatives of East Heaven Kingdom." He inclined his head slightly. "We bid you good evening, and farewell."

He turned to face the other two and motioned to the second man, receiving a deep bow in response. All three of them faded into a pale flash, teleporting away.

The town square suddenly erupted in conversation: "What is this?", "Look, they aren't anywhere near the town–", "What are they talking about, a Relic?", "If we ignore them, we'll be fine", "We aren't part of East Heaven, what right do they have!"

Rue moved to speak, but suddenly Belle's hand was on his shoulder and she jerked her head toward the hotel. He shot a quick glance to Mint, she nodded, and the two of them, led by Belle and Duke, made their way through the crowd and into the lobby of the hotel. Duke swung the door shut behind them, muting the din outside.

Mint took a few steps forward, shakily, and then turned to face the others. Her full attention quickly fell upon Rue.

"Artema–"

"I know him," Rue breathed.

She stopped immediately. Then she exhaled. "Well," she said lightly. "That answers the first question."

"My turn," he said sharply. "How do you know him?"

Mint frowned, trying to think of how best to start. "We call him Doll Master. He's a member of the royal court," she said. "The archmage of East Heaven... and, much as I hate to admit it, he's easily the most powerful sorcerer in the court, and probably the kingdom." She gave Rue an opportunity to interrupt, but he met her with silence– a dangerous, bladed silence that carried through his posture, his expression, his eyes. She paled slightly, but refused to let his sudden intensity unnerve her. "He's the guy I couldn't think of," she said. "You remind me of him."

The statement was almost a physical blow. Rue jolted suddenly out of himself, his entire stance broken, and he blinked quickly, trying to clear his head. The thoughts weren't connecting properly; all he could muster in response was a low, quiet, "What?"

"That face you were just making?" Mint continued. "Totally Doll Master."

"That's not–" He shook his head. "I mean–"

"Actually," Duke said mildly, "we... we kind of saw it, too."

"That's why I had him call you guys out," Belle said. She cast a narrow glance at Mint. "Although it's not just you. That Maya girl..."

Mint clenched her teeth. "Yes, my... dearly beloved sister," she snarled. "How she wound up out here..." She shook it off. "No, never mind. This isn't her idea."

Duke tilted his head. "How do you know that?"

"She's my sister, I know her pretty well," Mint said. "She follows. She doesn't lead. Somebody else put her up to this, or convinced her to come along, or decided that maybe waving around an East Heaven scion would give them a little more leverage." She closed her eyes. "If anybody up there is responsible, it's Doll Master."

When she looked up again, her gaze turned straight back to Rue.

"Speaking of."

Rue stepped back, looking between the three of them, and held up his hands. "Hold on," he said. "Just– just wait a minute, what are you on about?"

"Don't see too many people with hair like yours," Belle said.

"Same body type, too" Duke added.

"And his voice," she continued. "I almost thought you were calling out the town, before we actually went outside."

Rue looked helplessly between them, then back to Mint. "And you were saying–"

"He's got your accent," she said. "Moves like you, too. I saw him around the palace a lot– he's on the king's council, and he gave us a couple of magic lessons. The way you gesture– I couldn't think of it before, but it's him. No doubt."

Rue turned away from them. His mind was spinning.

"I think they're related," Belle added. "Like– an uncle, or a first cousin."

"Closer than that," Duke said. "Dad, maybe?"

"Doll Master isn't that old," Mint said. "I don't think, at least." She looked over to Rue, calling to his back. "This make any sense to you?"

He closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to his temples. Then, slowly, he nodded. "Yeah," he said finally. "Yeah, actually, it does. That would... that would help explain a lot."

Mint stepped forward. "Explain what now?"

"We've met," Rue said. "Three years ago. He's the man who was looking for me. He killed Claire."