It was a mutter, a sullen one, and she adjusted her coat so that the fabric was stretched taut across her shoulder blades for an instant. Beneath the embarrassment and the sudden burst of temper, her emotions were protesting the idea that she should just leave. But she'd not force her presence on anyone, and certainly not anyone who made it so plain that they hated her. The apprentice inclined her head in Elspeth's direction in a stiff fashion, then acknowledged the gentleman with the spectacles.
"I bid the both of you a good evenin', and I'm sorry for all the fuss." Not that it mattered to her, certainly. Had she been this way with Mr. Fry? If so, Fox pitied the man. She turned and managed to find a gap in the crowd that was big enough to allow her to escape being stared at, then made use of it.
The cost of the beer would have been worth the lack of humiliation.