The third claw of God

About “The third claw of God”

Counselor Andrea Cort receives a cryptic summons to the home world of the powerful Bettelhines. Upon arriving at Xana's orbital entry port, she is the target of a murder attempt. She then boards an elevator transport to the planet's surface, where she becomes trapped miles above Xana. There, she finds a corpse liquefied by a 15000-year-old weapon. Andrea must uncover the identity of the assassin or face a gruesome death. The story is part of a 2009 novel by Adam-Troy Castro.