Free The Queen Is Dead (The Immortal Empire) by Kate Locke Page B

done with my own blood, and what had got Simon killed.
    “A couple of them were related,” Penny added. “If I remember correctly, there were at least two sisters taken, and another pair were brother and sister.”
    Vex glanced at me. “That supports your theory that these are unusual halvies.”
    It certainly did. Genetics was a grand thing.
    I frowned. My maternal sister had been experimented on. My paternal sister had given birth to a fully plagued child. I was a goblin.
    The blood rushed from my face.
    “Xandra?” Vex frowned. “What is it?”
    “What if Val wasn’t taken just because he stuck his nose in where he oughtn’t?”
    His mouth tightened. “This is not because of you.”
    “No,” I agreed. I didn’t feel the need to shoulder this particular responsibility. “But it might be because of my genes. What if Ophelia was taken because our mother was turned into a were?”
    “Your mother was what?” Penny demanded, wide-eyed.
    “My mother was bitten when she was pregnant with me.The change took. That’s how I became a goblin–because she was special even for a courtesan. Dede said someone had come for her before she went into Bedlam.” I didn’t mention her baby. That wasn’t something Penny needed to know. “Clearly some interesting genes run in both sides of my family, so maybe Val was taken to see if the pattern held true.”
    “If that’s the case, why haven’t they nabbed you?” Penny asked.
    “Church had plans for me,” I told her flatly. “I reckon I’m a little too high-profile for them. People are going to notice if I go missing. It would be in all the rags.”
    “Val’s a copper. Isn’t that high-profile too?”
    “Cops go undercover. Sometimes they go missing. Sometimes…” I stopped.
    “They die,” Penny finished, saying the words I couldn’t. “How much time does he have?”
    “I don’t know.” I hated feeling this helpless. “Depends on how usewids on hoful he is.”
    Tears filled her dark eyes. “We have to find him, Xandra.”
    I reached out and put my hand over hers on the tabletop. “We will.” Val’s disappearance might not have been my responsibility, but finding him was.
    I just hoped that when that moment came, it wasn’t in a goblin tunnel.

KNOW THYSELF; KNOW THINE ENEMY
     
    While in the Wellington Academy for Half-Blood Educa tion, all students have a small tracking chip injected beneath their skin. This is, we’re told, for our own safety. It’s nothing quite that simple. It’s an intrusion into our privacy, a way to keep tabs. However, it could also be quite useful in times of danger.
    I’d had my chip cut out of me shortly after Church’s death, and then I personally destroyed it. Right now, I was hoping that the people who had taken Val hadn’t decided to do the same thing. It was a slim hope, but all I had at that moment. I’d called the Yard, but they refused to give me details on Val’s case, or confirm that he was even on one that involved Freak Show.
    Had my brother been poking about off the books? Maybe Special Branch didn’t know any more about it than I did. I’dcurse Val for endangering himself with a secret investigation, but even I was aware of just how pot vs kettle that would be.
    Penny had a friend who was something of a techno-genius. Once she had dressed for the day–it took two hours for her to get ready–she climbed on the back of the Butler with me and we went to visit this friend while Vex took care of some pack business. I had called Ophelia and set up a meeting for later that night, so Vex decided he’d go to one of his clubs that evening and see if he could get information out of any of his cronies who took advantage of the feeding opportunities at Freak Show.
    He also had the horrible suggestion that he look into whether or not there’d been an increase in horror shows here or abroad. I refused to think of my brother being bled and fed on to death on a stage for the enjoyment of a bunch of sick aristos.