Edged Blade by J.C. Daniels Read Free Book Online Page A

we all looked at his name.
    Abruptly, Justin grabbed the sheet of paper and wadded it up. He threw it into the kitchen and I heard the recycler kick on, chewing up the bit of paper. “Nice aim,” I said absently. “So this guy loses it and they figure it out then?”
    “Basically.” He shrugged. “It’s all about that door—the one Paddy told you about. Vampires keep their mental doorsclosed. The feedback they need from each other is subconscious. They have to actively seek each other out otherwise. When they started tracking up this guy’s line to find out why he went unstable, they couldn’t find Icarus.”
    “Nobody reported him missing?”
    “Nope.” Justin settled back on the couch, his face grim. “Apparently, he’s known to go into seclusion for short periods. The vamps he’s closest to, his servants, they all assumed he’d taken some me time.”
    Puffing up my cheeks, I blew out a breath. “Okay.” I thought back to what Justin had said just a minute or so back. Death isn’t an option for some . Blocking back the fear that tried to build up inside, I stared hard at the name of the missing vamp. “So this…anchor is gone. How do they know he’s not dead?”
    “They’d feel it.” Paddy’s gaze came back to me. “There’s not a void there. It’s a disconnect. A death feels different, and they can adjust. It’s how they work. The power flow works around it—the same way a river would adjust to rocks pilling up to block the flow—or those rocks being yanked out the way. They’d adjust—stronger vampires would feel and stabilize the younger ones. But there was no warning, no backlash, no surge to warn them of Icarus’ disappearance so nobody knew to stabilize the younger ones.”
    “Are they looking for him?”
    Paddy nodded. “Abraham’s been off on a search for over a month.” He gave me a thin smile. “That was when I heard about this—for the record, his hunts have never lasted more than a week. He’s just that good.”
    “You sound jealous.”
    Paddy chuckled. “I can’t help but admire the man’s skill. But…” He sighed. “I like having a pulse.”
    “A pulse is nice.” Brooding, I stared down at the floor. “Is it the same with the vamp from Whittier?”
    “Nope.” Justin flicked me a look. “That one’s dead. Missing—but dead. Isaac Whittier reported his disappearance and subsequent death to the Assembly three days ago.”
    “No idea where he is?”
    “Just that he’s dead. They all felt it. Nobody lost it, though, from what I heard.” Justin shrugged and rose to pace. When he passed by me, there was speculation in his eyes, but I pretended not to notice. I hadn’t killed the idiot. If I was going to kill a vampire, it would be for something more important than him staring at me.
    “Any guess on how many shifters have gone missing?” I asked, focusing on the next matter.
    “That’s harder to say. And….” Paddy’s brown eyes moved to Justin.
    Justin had stopped by the wall, studying my weapons, but when I shifted my attention to him, he looked at me.
    Arms crossed over his chest, he pinned me with a hard, direct stare.
    “You’re not the only one who’s been in touch with Nova lately, Kit. I hear tell a couple of cats went missing in Georgia.” His eyes gleamed. “I need you to talk to Chang for me.”
    I gaped at him.
    “ What ?”
    Justin shook his head. “He won’t talk to me, you know that. All I need is some concrete info on where they were, where they were going and I can move forward. We can move forward.”
    “You woke me,” I said slowly. “You came here and woke me up all so I could go and talk to Chang?”
    “Well, no. I woke you up because we need you on the job.” He gave me a charming smile and added, “Come on, Kit. He’ll talk to you. You know he will.”
    “No.” Hands on my hips, I glared at him. “I don’t know that.”
    He cocked a brow.
    I shoved my hands threw my hair.
    He was wrong. Mostly. I didn’t