Eliza leaned back and considered the story of the girl's life.  As much as she tried, Eliza realized she looked like she was processing a job application.  That would have made her blush, if she still had any idea what shame meant.  As she expected, she had nothing in common with the girl save for a personal attraction.  Eliza couldn't even read.  Yet, she was every bit the childe of the modern world, exactly the sort of person she needed if she wanted to be capable of surviving in the changing urban landscape.<br/><br/>She finished thinking, always a ponderous task for her, and leaned forward, hunching her shoulders towards Edna.  "You're a very interesting girl to me.  I'm saddened to hear about your mother though."  Eliza's voice almost gave an audible "click!"  as it shifted gears, winding up for the pitch.  "What would happen if your mother could suddenly afford state of the art hospital treatment, like if you won the lottery or something?"  She asked sweetly, musing at what a trivial drain putting up the old woman would be on her resources.  She owned stifling amounts of gold bullion, and and any given time could take over the equity of nearly a tithe of all the real estate in Seattle.  It was good to have been a prostitute during the gold rush, she mused, flashing Edna the kind of toothy grin one gives when asking a goofy hypothetical question.