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Show one, we must continue work on the Mechanism. . .and we shall be dowered with the Hold entire, and a King's ransom of credits each TwelveMonth to run i t . . ." "My father," whispered his daughter, looking into the man's eyes, "the good Igor and I have been pledged for these three TwelveMonths . . ." "The pledge has been loosed, my good daughter..." "Loosed!" "Aye, fair one. The Good Menachem knew of the need..." "And I am to be paired to a s t r a n g e r . . . a stranger who has seen so much of life...?" "Aye, my child, Armand has seen forty TwelveMonths of life this Spring. " And so the first time the young Anya had laid eyes on Armand was the day of their formal pledging. She met his parents then, too-a tall, gaunt, elderly pair of close to one hundred and ten years, silver-haired, and dignified, a glint of both craft and subtlety lighting their eyes, full of purpose and practicality, but understandably blind when it came to their only surviving son. They'd spent the morning of that day with Anya's father in his study, making sure their son's patrimony would not go into the maw .of His Grace's preoccupation-of which the old couple seemed to be very much aware. The deal was struck with the understanding that their son would be cared for in the style he'd grown accustomed to in exchange for the Needlesmith Hold being held in trust but managed by the young Anya and her father for a 102 |
