Something I'd said had made him smile, replacing the pained expression. The guilty knot in my chest eased. I listened to his answer.

I noted he hadn't said he didn't [i]want[/i] to return. In fact he technically hadn't even said he wouldn't return, if called. Only that he expected punishment if he did.

Though my understanding of Wolfe's relationship with his Mistress remained somewhat vague, a few things were becoming clear. Wolfe did not seem overly fond of his Mistress, but he also clearly respected her. And feared her. And it seemed that fear was the primary, and perhaps the only, reason he had been so willing to cooperate. His mistress had promised some punishment if he failed, and as long as he was certain she would deliver on that promise he was unlikely to return willingly to her side.

"I see," I said without any particular inflection. I wasn't sure I wanted to know what past punishment had earned the bitter tone in his voice. I could only wonder why he had stayed, afterwards.

"In that case we should definitely discuss our disguises," I added after a thoughtful pause. "Did you have anything in mind?"