BONDS OF JUSTICE

“No. I think I’m maturing with age.”


“Well, stop it.” In spite of his teasing words, her responses, he caught the edge of fear in her eyes. “Don’t worry, kitten. The cop knows what he’s doing.” Max Shannon, Lucas thought, might appear nonthreatening with that easy smile of his, but it was deceptive—the cat had sensed the truth, sensed the hunter that lurked beneath the human skin. “He won’t stop until he brings down his prey.”





CHAPTER 19


No one ever expects betrayal. No one.





—From the private case notes of Detective Max Shannon


Making it back to the Duncan building by five, Max and Sophia managed to round up the other four people who’d appeared on the surveillance footage.

The intern, Ryan Asquith, was unable to provide any useful information, but Marsha Langholm was far more forthcoming. “Detective,” she said. “I’ll get straight to the point. While I did see Edward for a brief period this morning so he could sign a contract, I was in a private meeting at the time of his murder, and I’d rather not—”

Max held up a hand. “Sascha told us she was with you.”

A slight nod. “In that case, you’ll understand the need for discretion.”

“The Councilor wasn’t aware Sascha was in the building?”

“I have no way of knowing that.”

An artful dodge, but Langholm’s loyalty to the Duncans—even to the extent of protecting one who had defected—was clear. “You’re one of Nikita’s highest-ranking people,” Max said. “Is there anything you can tell us that might help with tracking down the person or people behind these murders?”

The woman didn’t pretend not to understand. “I knew Vale didn’t commit suicide—it was simply not in his psychological profile.” A pause. “I can’t give you names or any concrete details, but there have been ongoing . . . ripples from Sascha’s defection.”

Tapping Max’s foot beneath the table in a silent signal, Sophia put down her organizer. “Surely no one holds the Councilor responsible for her daughter’s so-called flaw? In any case, I thought it was common knowledge that Nikita severed all familial ties with Sascha.”

Marsha responded directly to Sophia. “There were questions after Sascha left the Net, but they calmed once it became clear the Councilor was going about her business as normal. Eventually, Nikita’s business association with the changelings began to be considered an asset because they are an unusually difficult market to capture.”

Max sat back—it was clear Sophia knew precisely the right questions to ask. But he couldn’t resist tapping at her foot in playful response. She put the high heel of her pump over the front of his leather shoe in silent reproof.

“What’s changed?” In sharp contrast to her foot, Sophia’s fingers lay unmoving on the glass-topped table.

He remembered those same fingers weaving through Morpheus’s fur, remembered, too, the expression of discovery on her face, as if she’d never before petted a living creature. He wanted to share a thousand other pieces of his world with her—but to do so, he’d have to plumb her secrets, discover everything the Justice Corps kept hidden. Because he wasn’t letting this J disappear into the dark.

“The Councilor hasn’t changed her business practices.” Marsha Langholm’s voice broke into his thoughts. “However, there have been certain subtle changes in the PsyNet.”

“The political winds are shifting,” Sophia murmured.

“No,” Marsha Langholm said to Max’s surprise. “I’d say it’s more of a split. The lines are very, very fine, but the division is starting to take form. Nikita stands on one side, those who support Pure Psy on the other.”

Max decided to reenter the conversation. “Explain Pure Psy to me.” Sophia had told him what she knew about the group—including the extra intelligence Nikita had sent her, but this was an opportunity to get the perspective of another powerful Psy.

“Of course you wouldn’t have heard of it,” Marsha said, and it was—no doubt about it—condescending. “Pure Psy’s guiding aim is to strengthen and preserve the integrity of Silence, a concept they term Purity. They’ve come to believe that contact with the other races is contaminating us—and that that contamination is a direct cause of the rise in defections and whispers of rebellion.”

“So Nikita is considered a problem—because of her increasingly strong ties with the changelings.” Sophia’s tone was as pragmatic as Marsha’s. “How about other businesses? Are they pulling back from their non-Psy connections?”

“Some are considering it—while Nikita has recently entered into another construction deal in partnership with DarkRiver and SnowDancer.”