macabre-lament:

     ❧∬ With a sigh the woman puts the pen and pad back into her purse, resting
               her elbows upon the counter. Her mauve eyes stared sternly at him, and her
               face became serious.

                                                            ❝ Spit it out. ❞

 「⚜ ✒」He gaped at her, blinking a moment before “spitting out”
      something else. “How long exactly could ye speak, my friend?
      You may ‘ave realized my reading’s that of a child in this era."