“Fewer candles flickered. Fewer words were spoken. Fewer breaths were taken.”

“How did you get in here?” Sterling asked, wishing his words didn’t sound quite so slurred. He was having more difficulty than usual bringing his shadowed world into focus. Damnation, why hadn’t he lit more lamps or poured himself fewer snifters of brandy?“Not important,” Jack Dodger said. “What is important is for you to realize that you can do nothing to keep us out if we decide we want in.”

“But life was precarious and opportunities were never guaranteed.”

“Shewondered if any of them had truly understood the costof what they were asking of each other.”

“Her features were exquisite perfection, carved by nature with obvious care and never altered by the harshness of life.”

“They were bound together by the things they’d done. Things the nobility could never comprehend being desperate enough to do”

“I’d close those eyes again if I were you.”Sterling jerked his head to the side to discover his worst nightmare sitting there.Swindler’s gaze bore into him.“It would be unfortunate if Graves misjudged the seriousness of your injury, and you were to suddenly expire on the spot. Frannie would be terribly disappointed,” Swindler said.”