Ure Infectus (Imperium Cicernus Book 4) Read Online Free Page A

setting and leaning close to the concrete
surface to get a clearer image.
    Even though the rain had washed much of the microscopic
evidence away, there was a distinct pair of boot-shaped silhouettes surrounded
by a fine, roughly-circular cloud of carbon particles. The only truly
remarkable aspect of the carbon was that it was pure carbon; there was
essentially no other element present in that particular layer of
nearly-invisible debris.
    “Thank you,” Masozi said, knowing she had risked too much
already. She removed the monocle and returned it to Angelica, who accepted it
and resumed her duties.
    The Investigators’ offices were not far from the main
government building where the assassination had taken place, so she had simply
ridden with a uniformed patrolman en route to what was supposed to be her
biggest assignment yet. So she decided it best to walk back to the office,
which might let her compose her thoughts as she considered the disturbing
events of the evening.

Chapter III: The Working Man
    Jericho had already switched conveyances six times over the course of nearly half an hour when his handheld link vibrated within his pocket. He had not expected any inbound communications, so he was more than slightly apprehensive as he entered his password to the data pad. The device also doubled as his sole connection to the vast information grid which pervaded every aspect of life in a city like New Lincoln—a grid which Jericho believed humanity could very well do without.
    The author of the message was familiar to him; it had been sent by his most recent operator, Wladimir Benton. Jericho had not yet transferred the agreed-upon sum of money to Benton’s account, but he still had half an hour remaining in their agreed upon window so he cautiously opened the message.
    The screen was filled with a series of images taken by what looked to be the government building’s security cameras, and each of the images was centered on a tall, athletic, almost black-skinned woman likely in her early thirties. She was wearing a nearly skin-tight bodyglove with the badge of an Investigator situated over her left breast.
    There was an attached video file, and he opened it to see that same woman moving between a pair of forensic examiners who were collecting bits of shattered glass from the pavement where he had landed after executing his contract. His lip quirked in amusement as she took a forensics monocle from one of the examiners and before kneeling beside the very spot where he had landed after taking his very own leap of faith from the Mayor’s high-rise office. She looked intently at the patch of concrete before standing and returning the monocle to the examiner, and the video froze on a close-up image of the Investigator’s strong, yet surprisingly feminine, features.
    The image minimized and a flood of text began to stream across the pad’s screen, including her name, birthdate, period of employment, civil record, legal record, and anything else a person might wish to know about another. Most of it was utterly uninteresting—until it came to the section regarding familial ties, where a particular name was highlighted which caught Jericho’s attention.
    He considered the implications of that connection as the woman’s record disappeared and was replaced with a line of text, which read: The info’s free, my main man. But if you be wantin’ a Guardian Angel package it’s gonna cost you standard. You want I should pop a halo up on her, just tack the cheddar onto my other order and she’ll be under my Papa Benton’s wing before dinner—AJ
    It really wasn’t a question in his mind of whether or not he should do as Benton suggested. Thankfully for Jericho, he had just enough money left in the contingency fund he had established for that night’s contract that he could cover a Guardian Angel package. That package included, among other things, full-time surveillance of her person, as well as a comprehensive analysis of each