Marcello shivered with the chill as she climbed back up to the room she was sharing with Niabheara. She looked uneasy still from her meeting with Maalech, and rubbed at the sleeves of her dress.

"Love?" she asked hesitantly as she opened the door. "I've seen them."

Niabheara was not immediately visible. She had curled up on the floor between the heavy headboard of the bed and the wall. It was a struggle, even as small as she was, to wriggle herself out of it. The rims of her eyes were, for a change, bright pink, and the corners of her mouth turned down. "What does he say?" she asked, voice hoarse.

"Darling?" Marcello asked, as she came up to her. "Are you all right?" She dropped down to her knees. "Wat are you doing back there?"

"I wanted to be alone for a while," she said simply, pushing herself up with both hands. Her foot, asleep, twisted at a boneless angle, but she managed to stumble out of the gap. "Is Morgana . . . " She looked toward the door.

"Alone behind the bed?" Marcello asked, raising an eyebrow. She reached for Niabheara's hands to help her up. "Meg was still with him when I left. I..." Her voice caught.

"I don't know what's to be done with him," she said. "He's a monster. He doesn't deserve to live."

Marcello winced. "He says he's changed," she said. "Morgana seems to believe him. I...I don't know. I can't-- I can't talk about... about killing anyone."

"Neither can I. That's the trouble. But I don't . . . " She rubbed her throat and looked away from Marcello. "This is not going to be like Auberon where he goes on getting away with it for ages and ages and no one e'er does anything against it because they're too afraid. I gave him so many second chances. I didn't want to believe."

"This is different," Marcello said pleadingly. "He-- no one would have given what he was a second chance. This is...he's not that person anymore. I don't think. I think..." She fidgeted with her hands, and started to keen quietly, agitatedly.

Niabheara's mouth turned down. She folded Marcello up in her arms and pulled the girl's head down to her shoulder, rubbing her back. "Darling, I don't know. Can we be sure about that? I can't afford not to be sure."