Bloodline (Whyborne & Griffin Book 5) Read Online Free PDF

to do it. I’ve decided to map all the lines of power
in Widdershins.
    “And finishing in the grand foyer, where there will be a
buffet and string quartet, along with a few more cursed objects to serve as
conversation pieces.”
    Have you found any interesting patterns? she
scribbled.
    I have. The line in the desert was straight. These seem
to curve. I’m not yet sure if they meet at a single point, or if they form a
web.
    “Now all we need,” Dr. Hart said, rubbing his hands
together, “is a few volunteers to select the appropriate items, write up the
descriptions to be used by the guides, and tend to the decorations.”
    “It seems to me,” drawled Bradley Osborne, “Miss Putnam is
the obvious choice. It isn’t as if she has anything else to do.”
    We both looked up from our notepads at the sound of Christine’s
name, to find Bradley smirking at us. Christine’s face went utterly white.
“Nothing to do? I’m working on the definitive book about Egypt’s Old
Kingdom!”
    “Which has been dust for four thousand years,” Bradley said.
“Hardly any rush.” He glanced at me. “Old Percy can help you. It isn’t as if
he’ll have anything better to do either.”
    “Hallowe’en is my birthday,” I objected.
    Bradley gave me a vicious smile. “And you’ve already had
your party, haven’t you?”
    Curse the man. Bradley had always aspired to high society,
and no doubt the newspaper reports of last night’s party had stung his pride.
Despite the delusions he entertained, none of the old families would even
consider putting such a newcomer on a guest list.
    I longed to lay claim to prior arrangements. But I could
hardly say I’d already made plans to spend the evening in the company of my
lover.
    So I could only sit and fume while the director beamed.
“Excellent suggestions, Dr. Osborne! The entire country is in the grips of this
Egyptomania, as the presses call it, thanks to our Nephren-ka exhibit. We’ll be
able to charge twice the admission if Dr. Putnam’s name is associated with the
event.”
    Christine’s teeth ground together. “Be that as it may, isn’t
this a job for the curators?”
    “That’s what will make this exhibit so special—headed
up by our own experts,” Dr. Hart enthused. “Dr. Putnam, Dr. Whyborne, I expect
a full report on your progress sometime in the next three days. Meeting
adjourned!”
    I sat still amidst the rustle of papers and gathering of
hats, feeling rather as if I’d been run over by one of Father’s trains. “But
it’s my birthday,” I repeated.
    “Sorry, old fellow,” Christine said, collecting her half of
our notes. “So much for your Hallowe’en plans of bobbing for Griffin’s apples.”
    ~ * ~
    I broke the news to Griffin that night, as we strolled
through town on the way to meet Guinevere. According to Griffin, the address
she’d given us belonged to one of the many saloons thronging the area closest
to the docks. The streets in this part of town lay dark, with only a few
gaslights to puncture the blackness of the night, and we’d never have found our
way without a lantern. The moon had already set, a wrack of clouds blocking out
most of the stars. Even the saloons seemed subdued tonight, only the occasional
burst of light and song from open doors, to vanish again when they shut. The
autumnal chill forced Griffin and me to huddle deeper into our coats and blunted
the edge of the fishy reek hanging over the docks.
    “Don’t worry, my dear,” Griffin said. “We’ll celebrate your
birthday afterward. I’ll have cake and wine waiting for your return.”
    At least he understood the interruption to our plans. “Thank
you. I can’t believe the director is forcing Christine and me to do this.”
    “These cursed items…are they actually cursed?”
    “No idea,” I said glumly. “I suppose I should try to find
out before we put them on display. Maybe I’ll discover one to make the
director’s mustache fall out.”
    He laughed.