Beating Heart Cadavers Read Online Free Page A

practical.”
    “Right, but –” He broke off, suddenly uncertain.
    “Do you have a soft spot for the Mare-folk, Matthew?”
    “What? Of course not. I just – if it was something that should have been done, I'm sure my father would have done it years ago.”
    “Yes. Perhaps.” Ratsel gave a tight smile that couldn't mask his displeasure. “Actually, speaking of the late ambassador, I had wondered if you moved into his estate quite yet?”
    “No, not yet.” Caine fidgeted. “I hadn't been planning to accept the job, so there was no point in moving in. Maybe you'd agree with my decision now.”
    “Matthew,” Ratsel chided convivially, “I have the utmost confidence in you as ambassador – even more now that we've spoken and I've heard your views. I wouldn't want you to simply jump at my suggestions without giving them the proper time and thought. That's not what leaders do.”
    Caine nodded, visibly more relaxed, and Ratsel continued.
    “I only asked about the estate because there were some papers and things that Ambassador Caine had in his possession at the time of his death, and I was hoping to send some men over to collect them.”
    “If you tell me what they are, I could get them for you.”
    “No, no … that's quite alright. Actually, we're afraid that they might be difficult to find, given that he probably had a safe place for them, due to their importance and all. I could have my men do a quick sweep of the place and be out before you even knew.”
    Caine shifted.
    “You'd search the house, you mean?”
    “We could do it while you're there, if that would make you more comfortable,” Ratsel said, chuckling a bit. “I promise that any skeletons we uncover in the closets will remain a secret between just us.”
    He smiled widely, but Caine didn't return the sentiment. He was fidgeting with the material of his uniform, his eyes suddenly very far away.
    “Why don't you tell me what you're looking for, and I'll see if I can find it for you?” he said. “I know my father. He doesn't hide things.”
    “Of course,” Ratsel said. Caine didn't have to guess how irritated he was. “I see.”
    He showed Caine from the room a moment later, and the younger man was escorted to the lift by two silver-uniformed officers. Though Caine considered how greatly Ratsel's anger could affect his position, it didn't compare to the uneasiness that the thought of having someone go through the ambassador's estate brought on. And while the Spöke might have thought that Caine was harboring some concern for the well-being of his father's old possessions, Caine couldn't have cared less if they overturned every drawer in the house and left all the objects of sentimental value ruined in the process. Because he didn't care about what skeletons they might uncover in his father's closet, but he did care about the one that they might find in the backyard. And he was quite certain that they would realize who had put it there.
     

Ch. 4
     
    It was mid-spring in East Oneris; perhaps the nicest time of year, most would agree, when the sky finally turned from grayish-white to a pale, almost saturated sort of blue. In the residential parts, the grass turned green and transplanted trees could be seen in bloom, and the stepping stones leading up to the university were littered with pink and white tepals from the magnolias. Halfway down the path, the sunlight spread a warm touch over the top of Mason's head, and he paused to look up at the sky. After a lengthy winter, it was finally partly sunny. No, he decided, giving the sky another look – partly cloudy.
    He continued to his department and descended the steps in the lecture hall to reach the metal desk at the front. Placing his briefcase atop it, he snapped open the locks and shuffled through the papers that he had graded over the weekend. Fifty-two students had failed the exam, which was hardly a surprise considering that half of his class never showed up for lectures. Everyone had