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Their host sighed, and then suddenly a voice hissed, "Quiet!" and they all fell silent. There was no sound that they could hear from the street outside, but they were all well-trained in the rules of the curfew, so it didn't take much to make them pay attention.

After a few minutes, their host sighed. "Okay, for now," he said.

"What was it?" Carly whispered, not sure if it had been their host who had said "Quiet!" or if there was a fourth person in the room with them.

"A patrol," their host replied wheezily. "They didn't stop. We shouldn't be making so much noise, though."

"You're the one who was talking," the tall man rumbled, chuckling.

"And I'll resume, if there aren't any more interruptions. A man can't hear himself think around here." He let out a long sigh. "Where was I?"

"The streets," the tall man said. "You were telling us about the streets."

Something in his tone made Carly pay attention, though she tried not to tense up or make any noise. The tall man had tried to sound casual, but she suddenly got the idea that he was actually interested in the subject. It was almost as though he took the whole thing seriously.

"I'll back up a little," their host said, "and I hope everybody can manage to stay awake this time."

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