A package arrives in the mail for Ariadne, a week after they encounter one another in a bookshop in Paris. There is no return address, though the package itself is postmarked Beijing, China. Inside the box there is a small book wrapped in brown butcher paper and twine. Ariadne should be able to recognize it fairly quickly; even the smell of it still recalls that day and the bookstore where Arthur had purchased it. On top of the book there is an envelope -- fine linen paper of the palest eggshell color; inside the envelope there is a notecard complete with note in small, tight handwriting.
It reads:
I first read Donne on my twenty sixth birthday. Figured you would appreciate the early start. Enjoy.
It reads:
I first read Donne on my twenty sixth birthday. Figured you would appreciate the early start. Enjoy.
-A.
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