Hands Sent on Her Errand
After the kill question comes the practical assignment: go to the Baroness, take off your hat, say something in French. The substitution is the point. She does not need a corpse. She needs a man who will become ridiculous on a walk with the children listening. The instrument is being calibrated, not loved.
Key Insight
Small public tasks are how a person is trained for larger ones. The hat is easier to defend later than a crime, which is why it is more useful. If you cannot refuse the hat, you have already answered the kill question in miniature.
“go to the Baroness, take off your hat to her, and say something in French.”Full analysis
