<strong>Ruth</strong><br/><br/>That's the trouble with cutting to the chase: it often leads to your opposing party doing the same. It wasn't an offer she'd considered for long the first time and her thoughts on the idea haven't changed any.<br/><br/>"You've got a lot to offer, Esther, and you're great company," at least when she's in a good mood, "but you and I both know that'd go bad. How long you figure before someone comes knocking with a hole in them I could patch up and you don't want it patched? That'd be the end of that, we all go away pissed and maybe somebody's dead."<br/><br/>Ruth takes a perch on a corner of the desk, more leaning against it with one leg hooked over the edge - the front edge, not so far from Esther's chair - than really sitting on it. A couple of playing cards are trapped under her flank. The opposite side from her shotgun; wouldn't want to give the wrong impression, make an unintentional threat. Be fucking suicidal to even imply she'd think about threatening Esther in her own fucking compound. "It's the same reason I've always turned down Cringe's offers to join<em>her</em>group, too. And she's been more blunt about her continued interest."<br/><br/>She only lets that idea idle in the air for a few moments, long enough for it to sink in that there's some competition going on for the doc's services, before she goes on: "If you're saying you can't help, that's fine. But we both know if I take a shotgun to Cringe or her people you're going to have a dead doctor in your hold, and how's that any good for you? So if you can't spare a couple bodies to keep an eye on my two people, might be in my best interests to just move on."<br/><br/>Leaning back a little, Ruth adds, almost talking to herself. "I hear prismatic pack's back in town. Maybe I should take her up on her offer next time she invites me on the crazytrain out in the dust. They certainly seem to have a good time of it."<br/><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">OOC</div><div class="spoiler_body">Manipulation roll. Result: 7 (http://elliquiy.com/forums/dicebot.php?r=46143)</div></div>