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that she felt a certain unwilling attraction for him. I saw the letter he sent her after we had got her back; he promised her he would never again interfere with her or anyone she loved. I suspect, though, that she and Father have encountered him again since. There were some very odd aspects about that business a few seasons ago—you remember, Nefret, when they went out to Egypt alone and we were staying with Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Walter.” *
    Nefret gurgled with laughter. “Do you remember the night we let the lion out of its cage? Uncle Walter was absolutely furious!”
    “With me,” Ramses said. “Not you.”
    “It was your idea,” Nefret pointed out. “Well, never mind. But the villain in that case wasn’t Sethos, it was somebody else. I forget his name.”
    “It is difficult to keep track of all the people who have tried to murder Mother and Father,” Ramses agreed. “This villain was a chap named Vincey, and since Father shot him during their final encounter, we may reasonably conclude he was guilty of something. Father doesn’t kill people if he can avoid doing so. But I still think Sethos was involved in that business, in a manner I can’t explain.”
    Nefret scowled. “It’s ridiculous, the way we have to piece things together from bits of miscellaneous information. Why do Aunt Amelia and the Professor try to keep information from us? It’s dangerous, for them and for us. Uninformed is unarmed!”
    She gestured vehemently, sprinkling the floor with ashes. Ramses removed the cigarette from her hand and extinguished it in the bowl they used for a receptacle. Its original function had been to contain potpourri. His mother knew he smoked, though he seldom indulged in her presence, since she disapproved. He knew he did it because she disapproved. David did it because he did, and Nefret did it because he and David did.
    “I wonder if Sethos knew she would be there this afternoon,” David said.
    “I am convinced he did not know,” Ramses said. “Mother had had very little to do with the WSPU, and her decision to attend this particular demonstration was made on the spur of the moment.”
    “He must have seen her there, though.”
    “It is difficult to overlook Mother.” They exchanged knowing smiles, and Ramses went on, “However, by the time she arrived it was too late to cancel the operation. No, David, I’m certain the encounter was accidental. He’ll be careful to stay out of her way hereafter.”
    He fell silent. After a moment, Nefret said, “What does he look like? She’s a good observer; if she spent so much time alone with him, she ought to have noticed something .”
    “Not a great deal. His eyes are of an indeterminate shade; they can appear black, gray or hazel. The color of his hair is unknown, thanks to his skillful use of wigs and dyes. The only facts of which we can be relatively certain are his height—a trifle under six feet—and his build, which is that of a man in the prime of life and excellent physical condition. Though he speaks a number of languages, Mother is of the opinion that he is an Englishman. Not very useful, you must admit.”
    “Yet she recognized him tonight,” Nefret said.
    “That was odd,” Ramses admitted. “I would think she had invented it, but for the fact that something unquestionably struck her at the time. She started to ask me if I had noticed anything unusual, and then thought better of it.”
    “You didn’t?”
    “I had not seen the fellow for years, and—”
    “That’s quite all right, my boy, you needn’t make excuses. Six feet tall, in excellent physical condition . . . Hmmmm.”
    “Just what are you suggesting?” Ramses demanded, stiffening.
    She put a slim hand on his shoulder. “Calm yourself, my boy. I assure you I meant no insult to Aunt Amelia. But if she was attracted to him, however unwillingly, the counterreaction will be even stronger.”
    “What counterreaction?” David asked.
    Nefret gave him a kindly smile.