Sheena's timely appearance almost gave her the distraction she needed to get away, but Valdis couldn't just abandon the woman to the monks' curiosity. They seemed a bit taken aback by Sheena's abruptness, not quite apologetic, but probably close. For a moment, she felt quite satisfied to hide behind her friend and hope the monks decided to leave.

"Knowledge is without bounds," one of them replied, "Curiosity leads to new discoveries and the truth."

"Curiosity also killed the cat," Valdis mumbled so only Sheena might hear.