Victoria examined the case of whiskey critically, and picked three bottles out of it. At least this would tide them over another day or two. Then she turned her gaze towards the men, “Alright then. You get started on the dishes. You gon and get a couple empty bottles, and start watering down this whiskey. Should be able to get three more bottles outta that.”<br/><br/>“Water it down?” he asked, incredulously “This is good whiskey!”<br/><br/>“Exactly. It would be a damn shame to waste good whisky on poor miners. And I don’t need ‘em getting used to the good stuff, just to bellyache when the regular stuff comes back in a day or so. ‘Sides, watering it down will make it last a little bit longer.” The man still looked aghast, as if she were explaining to best way to choke a puppy. “Go on now,” she instruct with a flick of her wrists, and she smirked as he grumbled but got to work. She put two of the remaining bottles up in a cupboard, and took the last one with her, with a couple glasses, and let Missy lead her upstairs to a table. She poured a couple drinks, while she waited for Missy to speak.<br/><i><br/>
“You’re very good at that, you know. Your -erm modulation as it is.”</i><br/><br/>“My what now?”<br/><br/><i>“Ya’ll,” she mimicked, “hush it! I could hardly tell the difference from you and, say, that one-armed man.”</i><br/><br/>“Oh.” She drank half her glass in a swallow, wondering if this was more idle prater, or if Missy Huntington would get around to making her point already.<br/><br/><i>“Tell you what, you drop yours…”</i>And then the tone changed, slowed, with softer vowels and looser consonants. “<i>And I’ll drop mine. Figger it’s more honest this way."</i><br/><br/>“Dis what you want den, chere?” It was French, but not quite. It was southern, and yet it wasn’t. A smooth creole accent, with delicate lilts. “Soft and meek, eager to please my master lest I get the whip again.” And with a snicker, it was gone again. “I left all that behind in Louisiana, ‘cause, ain’t no one gonna listen to me if I speak like that.”<br/><br/>“Now, I know you didn’t come here to talk accents, but business. So, what is your business in Onyx Landing?”