Chapter 8

I was right—he did have a clever mouth.

“You taste good, mate.” Bart flopped back onto the bed and patted the spot beside him. The bed wasn’t large—the room’s size precluded anything bigger than a single. I sank down beside him, snug against his side— 3

“Jefferson Albert Sebring,” Ludo snapped. “Do nottell me you’re thinking of Bart Freeman.”

I groaned, although not because Ludo had caught me out. What had possessed my mother to saddle me with a middle name like Albert?

“Just marginally. Weren’t you downstairs having breakfast?”

“It was too good to enjoy alone, so I brought a tray up for you.”

“Alone? We have a house filled with your side of the family.”

“True, but if you’ll recall, last night was New Year’s Eve. They’re all still asleep. And what do you mean, just marginally?”

“I was actually thinking of how we first met.”

“When you came to London to explain to MI6 how James Trevalyan managed to get his hand on your weapon?”