"Please don't tell my mother it's going to take getting someone else's babies spirited away to find out if her own baby was spirited away," he said, covering his eyes. "She's going to get all moral."

"Well, presumably we'd keep their mother with them," Marcello replied. "It's just a question of keeping them away from their asshole father."

"Look, do I actually have to talk to this bloke or interact with him at all to do this whatever-I'm-meant-to-be-doing?" he asked. "Because I gotter say, from the general portrait we're building here, I don't much care for him."

"Of course not," Marcello replied. "I don't much care for him either, now. Before, I didn't have much of an opinion. Do you want to speak to him? Do you think it would help?" He raised an eyebrow. "Are you a good liar?"

"When I don't give a shit what someone thinks of me, yes," he replied. "And I already don't care what this bloke thinks of me. What do you want me to find out? I kind of doubt he's going to spill his guts to the countess's brother-slash-nephew."

"You don't need to find out anything," Marcello replied. "Just size him up? It's...well, people know Bonet arrested him and accused him of kidnapping Acorn. You can even tell him you heard it and how ludicrous you think it was, if you think it will help you get anything out of him. Chat him up about it?"

"I can try," he said seriously. "Does Niabheara know I'm meant to be doing this or is this between you and me?"

"I'm going to talk to Niabheara about it," Marcello answered. "I don't think it's safe to keep secrets. The only reason I'm asking you not to tell your mother yet is because I think Niabheara ought to tell her, and because I want to know a bit more, and hopefully have Acorn back first."

Starling nodded, solemnly. "Aye, I think it'd probably be better to get Acorn back first. Mum's apt to be a lot more understanding if she's got her kid back, too." He snarled. "Gods but my sister gets herself into the damndest situations!"

Marcello shook his head. "They're not her fault," he said. "I mean--" he tugged on his earring. "This one might be a little her fault, but if she weren't Countess, no one would be trying to do this to her. She has a lot of people who are jealous, or wish her ill, or have vendettas against her father, or want some of her money, or I-don't-know-what to contend with. "