Don't make a career out of underestimating me." — Claire de Haven

I never knew her in life. She exists for me through others, in evidence of the ways her death drove them

Looking back, I know that the man possessed no gift of prophecy; he simply worked to assure his own future, while I skated uncertainly toward mine. It was his flat-voiced "Cherchez la femme" that still haunts me. Because our partnership was nothing but a bungling road to the Dahlia. And in the end, she was to own the two of us completely.

Downtown, a dress for Meg- I do it every time I kill a man.

Cherchez la femme, Bucky. Remember that.

Call me Dudley. We're of equal rank. I'm older, but you're far better looking. I can tell we're going to be grand partners.