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"No, this is the way to the palace," she said with ex-
aggerated forbearance. "It's a daytime shortcut when
I'm open. If you want to go the other way, go way back
to City Hall, take a left, then five or six more lefts, and
a few rights after that. It should only take you a half-
day or so to get there." She stepped back into her shop.
Phineas followed her, suddenly earnest. "I'll take
the shortcut, then, thank you. Where do I go, right
through this door?" he asked, pointing to an opening
in the back of the shop.
"Yes, then just crawl out the window there. You'll be
on Mulberry Street -- or is it Strawberry Street? I can
never remember. Keep going until you get to the statue
of somebody or other. Or maybe it's a tree, sometimes
they look so much alike, don't you agree? Anyway,
just go past that and turn right. You'll see the palace at
the end of the street." She held out her hand, palm up.
"That'll be ten copper."
"Ten copper?!" he cried. "For letting me crawl out
your window and telling me that trees and statues look
alike?"
"It's a long way back to City Hall." She smiled.
"The fact of the matter is," noted Phineas unhappily,
"I don't have any cash at the moment."
She looked at his feet. "As I was saying, that's a fine-
looking boot you have there."
"Yeah, it sure was," he muttered to himself as he
pulled it off and handed it to her, secretly slipping the
rat bone into the cuff of his sleeve. "It used to be part
of a matched set."
She rubbed the toe reverently. "This will be a superb
place to keep my money
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