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

you return to your supernatural state?” the scientific side of Alexia instantly wanted
     to know.
    “Excellent inquiry.” The dewan disappeared out the door, presumably to send a runner to find out the answer to that question.
     Normally they would have had a ghost agent handle such a job. Where was she?
    “And the ghosts?” Lady Maccon asked, frowning.
    “That is how we know the extent of the afflicted area. Not a single ghost tethered in that zone has appeared since sundown.
     Every one has vanished. Exorcised.” The potentate was watching her closely. He, of course, would assume Alexia had something
     to do with this. Only one creature had the inherent power to exorcise ghosts, as unpleasant a job as it was, and that creature
     was a preternatural. Alexia was the only preternatural in the London locale.
    “Gods,” breathed Lady Maccon. “How many ghosts lost were in the Crown’s employ?”
    “Six worked for us; four worked for BUR. Of the remaining specters, eight were in the poltergeist stage, so no one misses
     them, and eighteen were at the end stages of disanimus.” The potentate tossed a pile of paperwork in Alexia’s direction. She
     flipped through the stack, looking at the details.
    The dewan came back into the room. “We will know your answer within the hour.” He resumed his pacing.
    “In case you are curious, gentlemen, I spent the entire day asleep at Woolsey Castle. My husband can attest to that fact,
     as we do not maintain separate bedrooms.” Alexia blushed slightly but felt her honor demanded she stand up for herself.
    “Of course he can,” said the vampire who currently was no vampire at all but a natural human. For the first time in hundreds
     of years. He must be absolutely shaking in those hugely expensive Hessian boots of his. To face mortality after so very long.
     Not to mention the fact that one of the hives was in the afflicted zone—which meant a queen was in danger. Vampires, even
     roves like the potentate, would do almost anything to protect a queen.
    “You mean, your werewolf husband who sleeps daylight solid. And whom I highly doubt you touch while you sleep?”
    “Of course I do not.” Alexia was taken aback that he need ask. Staying in contact with Conall all night, every night, would
     cause him to age, and while she abhorred the idea of growing old without him, she wasn’t about to inflict mortality on him.
     He would also grow facial hair and come over more than usually scruffy of a morning.
    “So you admit you could have snuck out of the house?” The dewan stopped pacing and glared at her.
    Lady Maccon made a clucking noise of denial. “Have you met my staff? If Rumpet didn’t stop me, Floote would, not to mention
     Angelique running about fussing over my hair. Sneaking out, I am sorry to say, is a thing of my past. But you are welcome
     to blame me if you are too lazy to try and figure out what is really going on here.”
    The potentate, of all people, seemed a little more convinced. Perhaps it was simply that he did not want to believe she had
     access to such an ability.
    Alexia continued. “I mean, really, how could one preternatural, however powerful, affect an entire area of the city? I have
     to touch you in order to force your humanity. I have to touch a dead body in order to exorcise its ghost. I could not possibly
     manage to be in all those places at once. Besides which, I am not touching you right now, am I? And you are both mortal.”
    “So what are we dealing with? A whole pack of preternaturals?” That was the dewan. He was prone to thinking in numbers, the
     consequence of an overabundance of military training.
    The potentate shook his head. “I have seen BUR’s records. There are not enough preternaturals in all of England to exorcise
     so many ghosts at once. There are probably not enough in the civilized world.”
    Alexia wondered
how
he had seen such records. She would have to tell her husband about that. Then she returned her