Free Changeless: The Parasol Protectorate: Book the Second by Gail Carriger Page A

northward.”
    “Northward to where, exactly?”
    Professor Lyall sighed. “I believe he has gone to Scotland.”
    “He did
what
?”
    “And he did not take Tunstell with him.” Professor Lyall stated the obvious in clear annoyance, pointing to the redhead who
     was looking ever more guilty and ever more eager to continue chewing rather than participate in the conversation.
    Lady Maccon worried at that information. Why should Conall take Tunstell? “Is he in danger? Shouldn’t you have gone with him,
     then?”
    Lyall snorted. “Yes. Picture the state of his cravat without a valet to tie him in.” The Beta, always the height of understated
     elegance, winced in imagined horror.
    Alexia privately agreed with this.
    “Could not take me,” muttered the Tunstell in question. “Had to go in wolf form. Trains are down, what with the engineer’s
     strike. Not that I should mind going; my play’s finished its run, and I’ve never seen Scotland.” There was a note of petulance
     in his tone.
    Hemming, one of the resident pack members, slapped Tunstell hard on the shoulder. “Respect,” he growled without looking up
     from his meal.
    “Where, precisely, has my husband taken himself off to in Scotland?” Lady Maccon pressed for details.
    “The southern part of the Highlands, as I understand it,” replied the Beta.
    Alexia recovered her poise. What little she had. Which admittedly wasn’t generally considered much. The southern Highland
     area was the vicinity of Conall’s previous abode. She thought she understood at last. “I take it he found out about his former
     pack’s Alpha being killed?”
    Now it was Major Channing’s turn to be surprised. The blond man practically spat out his mouthful of fritter. “How did
you
know that?”
    Alexia looked up from her cup of tea. “I know many things.”
    Major Channing’s pretty mouth twisted at that.
    Professor Lyall said, “His lordship did say something about dealing with an embarrassing family emergency.”
    “Am I not family?” wondered Lady Maccon.
    To which Lyall muttered under his breath, “And often embarrassing.”
    “Careful there, Professor. Only one person is allowed to say insulting things about me to my face, and you are certainly not
     large enough to be he.”
    Lyall actually blushed. “All apologies,
mistress.
I forgot my tongue.” He emphasized her title and pulled his cravat down to show his neck ever so slightly.
    “
We
are all his family! And he simply left us.” Major Channing seemed to be even more annoyed by Alexia’s husband’s departure
     than she was. “Pity he didn’t talk to me beforehand. I might have given him reason to stay.”
    Alexia turned hard brown eyes on Woolsey’s Gamma. “Oh yes?”
    But Major Channing was busy puzzling over something else. “Of course, he might have known, or at least guessed. What
did
they get up to those months without an Alpha to guide them?”
    “I don’t know,” pressed Alexia, although his talk was clearly not directed at her. “Why don’t
you
tell
me
what you were going to tell him?”
    Major Channing started and managed to look both guilty and angry at the same time. Everyone’s attention was on him.
    “Yes,” came Lyall’s soft voice, “why don’t you?” There was steel there, behind the studied indifference.
    “Oh, it is nothing much. Only that, while we were on the boat and for the entirety of the journey over the Mediterranean and
     through the straits, none of us could change into wolf form. Six regiments with four packs, and we all grew beards. Basically,
     we were mortal the whole time. Once we left the ship and traveled some ways toward Woolsey, we suddenly became our old supernatural
     selves once more.”
    “That is very interesting given recent occurrences, and you didn’t manage to tell my husband?”
    “He never had time for me.” Channing seemed angrier than she was.
    “You took that as a slight and did not make him listen? That is not only stupid but