Quoted By:
>HIIIIII ELLERY
"And anyways," you say, "you probably just feel weird because you are weird. You know, as a person."
"...I always <span class="mu-i">really</span> appreciate your company, Lottie."
"Thank you." You curtsey.
"So why the fuck are you <span class="mu-i">in</span> my—"
"The Madrigal you freaked out about isn't Madrigal. I mean, not even a little bit. She's someone totally different. The real Madrigal's still probably kidnapped."
Fake Ellery's restraining himself: his eyes flick over you, and he bites the inside corner of his lip, but that's all. "I, um, I see."
"Are you going to vomit again?" you say sweetly.
"No— <span class="mu-i">no.</span> Go to hell. I just— thanks for the news. Good to know. I won't waste my time..." He rubs his forehead. "Well, you delivered it. Um, the news, I mean. Isn't it time to—"
"To what?" you say sweeterly. "Because also I investigated Headspace today, and I thought you'd like to—"
"<span class="mu-i">Today?</span> Since <span class="mu-i">before</span> I last— or after? How- how- how—"
"After, of course, or I would've told you about it." Is that not straightforward? "Anyhow, I utilized my unparalleled skills of detectiving to infiltrate their 'inner sanctum,' as it were, that sinister conglomerate of spheres, which house entire—"
"You got onto the <span class="mu-i">campus?!</span>"
"Aha!" you say. "So you've been there! See! I've known all this time that you were embroiled in—"
"I fucking told you I was a freelancer! It's not a <span class="mu-i">secret—</span> stop making that <span class="mu-i">face,</span> Lottie. It wasn't a secret. I have seen it a couple times. Last I checked, it wasn't illegal to have a <span class="mu-i">job,</span> so unless you—"
"A couple times?" You stroke your chin. "So you were not trapped there for, perhaps, a decade?"
"No?"
"You were not on a ration of addictive stimulants..."
Ellery makes a 'why am I tolerating this' sort of face.
"Okay," you say. "But did you at least know about how <span class="mu-i">weird</span> it is in there? I can detect if you're lying."
"No you can't." He shifts his legs. "And... sort of. It hadn't gotten that weird before I left, but, uh— I mean, you could see the signs. I guess. In retrospect. It's not like it was affecting me personally, really, I just—"
"Did <span class="mu-i">you</span> have a contract?" you say. "Because I think all these people—"
"Did you not hear the thing about the lawyers? They're all sons-of-bitches?"
"So yes?"
"I couldn't talk about it if I had one, so." He raises his eyebrows. "That's it."
You nod sagely. "I see. Did Casey Kemper write the contact? Or give you it? Because—"
"Casey Kemper," says Ellery, "is not a lawyer."
"Okay, so who—"
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