[A studious person of interest such as, say, Wysteria's solicitor who has been working with hopeless diligence on the issue of dissolving a previously established nuptial agreement (having been no direction to not do so) might pause here helplessly over Val's chosen phrasing—struck by a momentary dual joy of being relief of a long shouldered burden and the abject misery of a considerable number of hours wasted.

But Wysteria's solicitor isn't on the line and she shares in no such pause herself.]

Spite seems like a very poor reason to keep an animal, Valentine.

[Obviously she is the expert on the morality of animal husbandry in this conversation. It has nothing to do with the impulse to eat Val's definitely-a-cousin's goat on account of the same motivation.] As for the rug, I doubt it's worth very much but it may be worth something.

But any inquiries of sale—of the rug or anything else in the house—would have to pass through your solicitor. Or, I suppose, made to look like articles of your uncle's estate rather than of this one. He, your legal advisor, will recall the specificity surrounding the property and all items associated with it. I won't bore you with the details. But if enough bits and bobs were to be successfully liquidated, I imagine it would be possible to consider hiring someone on... Or if the money came from somewhere else, of course.