Excellent. Three stories, all fun (for various definitions of 'fun'). The Scarlet Maiden - Modesty and Willie get caught up in a hunt for pirate treasure - the various interactions are beautifully foreshadowed, and we get to see Modesty and Willie playing some very odd parts. I liked 'Eeek!'. I knew who the old gentleman would end up hiring as soon as he mentioned mercenaries - lordy, what a pair of idiots. Made up for it a bit at the end, though. And Smiling Fred was neat - surprised the air was good, though, since he'd rotted into it. No fish - crabs maybe though. Then The Moonman - the gimmick was rather neat, though thinking it would be easier to get the list from Modesty than from Tarrant shows a distinct lack of knowledge of Modesty. Poor Varna - and Julia, though she seemed to handle it well. And a neat gimmick for the distraction, too. I rather like the director. Finally there's Some Flowers For the Colonel - an interesting contrast with the old fellow in the first story. And Modesty totally slipped up - remembered he was behaving like a jerk and not what he'd said about his skills (though he doesn't know much about horses, or something). Had me crying a little. And a faint echo of Cobra Trap, here - the thoughts were not new to her then! Three excellent stories, and all new to me. Yay! ( )