When Gods Die

THE SEBASTIAN ST. CYR MYSTERY SERIES

What Angels Fear

WHEN GODS DIE

A Sebastian St. CyrMystery

C. S. HARRIS

New American Library

Published by New American Library,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014, USA

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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:

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First published by New American Library,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Copyright © The Two Talers, LLC, 2006

All rights reserved

  REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Harris, C. S.

When gods die: a Sebastian St. Cyr mystery/C. S. Harris.

    p. cm.

ISBN 1-4295-0223-1

1. Great Britain—History—George III, 1760–1820—Fiction. 2. Nobility—Crimes against—Fiction.

3. London (England)—Fiction. 4. Regency fiction. gsafd I. Title.

PS3566.R5877W475 2006

813'.6—dc22    2006011779

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

For Jon Stebbins, with thanks

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Author’s Note

Acknowledgments

A WRITER ALWAYS HAS MANY PEOPLE TO THANK, and this is especially true for me with this book, which wound its way to publication in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina’s destruction of my New Orleans–area home. I am especially grateful to:

My editor, Ellen Edwards, who has been incredibly understanding and cooperative in working with me through all the disruptions of hurricane, evacuation, and rebuilding, as well as providing me, as always, with her wise and thoughtful suggestions. This book would have been less without your input. Thank you.