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Alexia glanced under her eyelashes at the two e men and, in a not-very-subtle movement, tucked the tablet down the front of her dress Luckily for her, the Te

She went on, scanning for the two key Latin phrases "Stalker of Skins" and "Stealer of Souls," but there seehed her options, wondering if she should e-Wilsdorf As it turned out, the preceptor brought her ht to the source

She took her ti around to the subject First she asked him politely about his day and listened to the recitation of his routine--real y, ould want to attend ht green sauce The preceptor had cal ed the long skinny pasta "spa-giggle-tee" or so as there was pesto on top of it

Final y, she said, "I found an interesting tidbit in your records today"

"Oh, yes? I had heard Mr Lange-Wilsdorf brought theestured airily "Oh, you know, one of the scrol s It said soot a reaction The preceptor stood so fast that he knocked over the little stool he had been sitting on

"What did you say?"

"I believe the other term used in the document was ‘skin-stalker’ I see you have heard of these creatures before Perhaps you would care to tel h hiswhile his mind stil coped with the revelation "Soul-stealers are known to us only as legendary creatures, reatly feared by the supernatural for their ability to be both mortal and immortal at the same tih we have not yet encountered one in our recorded history You believe that is what your child is?"

"What would you do with one if you caught it?"

"That would depend on whether or not we could control it They cannot be al owed to roam free, not with that kind of power"

"What kind of power?" Alexia tried to sound innocent as she inched her free hand down the side of her srab it out from under her to use as a weapon if need be

"I only knohat is written into our Aan to quote, "‘Above al this, whosoever would be a brother, you and your profession and faith ainst those creatures that stand against God and lead a man unto hel fire, the vampire and the olf For those that walk not under the sun and those that crawl under the moon have sold their souls for the taste of blood and flesh Moreover, let no brother relax in his holy duty of pure watchfulness and firainst those unfortunates born to sin and damnation, the devil spawn in soul ess state And final y, the brothers are hereby commanded to fraternize only with the untainted and hunt down the sickness of spirit within those that can both walk and crawl, and who ride the soul as a knight wil ride his steed’ "

As he spoke, the preceptor backed away from Alexia and toward the prison door

She was taken by his expression, al the battle in the carriage, his eyes were no longer dead

Alexia Tarabotti, Lady Maccon, had engendered many emotions in people over the years--mostly, she admitted rueful y to herself, exasperation--but never before had she been the cause of such abject revulsion She looked down, e, infant, to be a soul-stealer Well, never you lanced away, her eye was caught by a flash of red coround The two young Templars see in fascination at the object trundling toward the noise and the tinny sound ofon?" de away from Alexia

Alexia seized the opportunity, stood up, and in one smooth movement, yanked the stool out from under herself and struck the back of the preceptor’s head with it

There was a dreadful crunching noise and Alexia gri your pardon," she said perfunctorily, leaping over his fal en foruards leapt to their feet, but before they had a chance to lock the door to Alexia’s cel , a large shiny bug, lacquered red with black spots, scuttled directly at theed out into the hal

Queen Victoria had been neither as i the term "soul-stealer" spoken in Lord Akeldama’s most salubrious tones "Oh, is that al ?" seemed to be her reaction Her solution fit the standards of al monarchs everywhere She made up her mind and then made it someone else’s problem In this case, however, Professor Lyal was pleased to find she had not made it his problem

No, instead, the queen had pursed her lips and delivered an unsavory verbal package into the elegant alabaster hands of Lord Akeldama "A soul-stealer you say, Lord Akeldama? That soundsLady Maccon wil be returned to active service as my muhjah as soon as she can be fetched home We expect Lord Maccon to have that particular task well under way It goes without saying, the Crown si to kil its nant she nant with You must put a stop to it"

"I, Your Majesty?" Lord Akeldama was clearly flustered by this direct instruction

"Of course, we require a new potentate You are hereby granted the position You possess the necessary qualifications, for you are a va to differ, Your Majesty It must be put to the hive vote, any new candidate to the potentate position"

"You think they wil not approve your appoint ood coha of the Shadow Council"

With that, Queen Victoria sailed out of the roohteousness

Lord Akeldaasted

"Congratulations,to stand shakily from the couch and approach his former master

Professor Lyal hurried over to his back for a while longer" He spoke the truth for, despite the fact that Biffy obviously wanted to walk on two legs, his brain seemed set on four, and he pitched forith a surprised little cry

Lyal caught him up and deposited him back on the couch "It wil take some time for your mind to catch up to your ht in his throat "How sil y of me not to realize"

Lord Akelda with hooded eyes as Lyal s man "She has placed me in a most insufferable position"

"Now you kno I feel most of the time," said Professor Lyal under his breath

"You are more than equal to the task,and ful of faith as they looked upon his forht Lyal , a newly made olf in love with a va than the pack’s Would even Lord Maccon be able to break such a connection?

"I rather think the queen is getting the better end of the deal," added Professor Lyal , inti, Lord Akeldaiht He had lost his lover and his comparative anonys, I am not even convinced the child of a preternatural and a il be a soul-stealer And if it is, wil it be the same kind of soul-stealer as it hen the sire was a vampire?"