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"But why? What does he ith ed "I don’t know Nor do I care He told me that if I procured you for him, and you turned out to be all he hoped you would be, he would ave ht me here, to the heart of the Nephiliister what I’d lost for him before"

"You contacted hiht of the openin the drawing room, Nate’s flushed face, his claim that he hadn’t opened it Soe "You let hi to betray us? But you could have stayed! You would have been safe!"

"Safe, and powerless Here I’m an ordinary human, weak and conteht hand when he rules the British E’s ridiculous"

"I assure you it isn’t By this tiham Palace The Empire will bow before his rule"

"But you won’t be beside him I see how he looks at you You’re not a disciple; you’re a tool to be used When he gets what he wants, he will throw you aside like rubbish"

Nate’s grip tightened on the knife "Not true"

"It is true," Tessa said "Aunt always said you were too trusting It’s why you’re such an awful gambler, Nate You’re such a liar yourself, but you never can tell when you’re being lied to Aunt said--"

"Aunt Harriet" Nate laughed softly "So unfortunate the way she died" He grinned "Didn’t you think it was a bit odd that I’d sent you a box of chocolates? So I knew she would?"

Nausea gripped Tessa, a pain in her sto there "Nate--you wouldn’t--Aunt Harriet loved you!"

"You have no idea what I would do, Tessie No idea at all" He spoke rapidly, almost fevered in his intensity "You think of me as a fool Your foolish brother who needs to be protected froe of I heard you and Aunt discussingofyou could be proud of me for But now I have Now I have," he snarled, as if completely unaware of the irony in his words

"You’ve ht to be proud? I’m ashamed to be related to you"

"Related toYou are no part of me From the moment Mortmain told me what you really are, you were dead to me I have no sister"

"Then why," said Tessa in a voice so quiet she could barely hear it herself, "do you keep calling me Tessie?"

He looked at her for a moment in stark confusion And as she looked back at her brother--the brother she had thought was all she had left in the world--so moved beyond Nate’s shoulder, and Tessa wondered if she was seeing things, if perhaps she was going to faint

"I wasn’t calling you Tessie," he said He sounded baffled, alripped her "You’re my brother, Nate You’ll always be my brother"

His eyes narrowed For a ht perhaps he had heard her Perhaps he would reconsider "When you belong to Mortmain," he said, "I shall be bound to him forever For I am the one who made it possible for hi beyond Nate’s shoulder ain, a disturbance of the shadows It was real, Tessa thought Not her i toward theain Sophie, she thought She hoped the other girl would have the sense to run away before Nate ca, then," he said to Tessa "There’s no reason toto hurt you--"

"You cannot be sure of that," Tessa said The figure behind Nate was al in its hand Tessa fought to keep her eyes locked on Nate’s face

"I am sure" He sounded iure exploded intoobject rose above Nate’s head and ca to the ground The blade rolled from his hand as he struck the carpet and lay still, blood staining his pale blond hair

Tessa looked up In the di over Nate, a furious expression on her face The remains of a shattered lamp were still clutched in her left hand

"Not a fool, perhaps" She prodded Nate’s recu moment, either"

Tessa could only stare "Jessamine?"

Jessamine looked up The neckline of her dress was torn, her hair had co bruise on her right cheek She dropped the laain in the head, and said, "I’ht, if that’s what you’re so pop-eyed about It wasn’t me they wanted, after all"

"Miss Gray! Miss Lovelace!" It was Sophie, out of breath fro up and down stairs In one hand she held the slender iron Sanctuary key She looked down at Nate as she reached the end of the corridor, her ht?"

"Oh, who cares if he’s all right?" Jessa to pick up the knife that Nate had dropped "After all the lies he told! He lied to ht--" She flushed dark red "Well, it doesn’t htened and whirled on Sophie, her chin held high "Now, don’t just stand there staring, Sophie, do let us into the Sanctuary before God knohat coain"