Bitter Night by Diana Pharaoh Francis

kitchen and a slide-out that provided a small lounge. The table and two small couches on either side plus the swiveling driver and passenger seats provided all the furniture.

    Max grabbed a cherry Gatorade from the refrigerator and guzzled it, tossing the empty bottle into the trash and heading out the door. A quick scan of the warehouse floor told her that Oz had taken one of the RVs and three cars. Niko and Akemi leaned against her pickup, and Tyler sat smoking a cigarette on the hood of her Tahoe. One of her Shadowblades, Tyler was tall and lanky with long, wispy blond hair, hazel eyes, and a close-trimmed mustache and beard. He was loose-jointed like a ballet dancer and rarely spoke unless he had something worthwhile to say. All three of them looked at Max as she came out.

    “Who do we have left?” she asked Niko as she tossed her pack onto the passenger seat of her Tahoe.

    “Us three, and Oz left four Spears. They are still on patrol.”

    “Go get ‘em,” Max ordered, and went to Giselle’s RV. She hammered the door with her fist, then vaulted up inside without waiting for a reply.

    Giselle sat in lotus position in her chair, her eyes closed, the fingertips of both hands pressed carefully against her face. She looked very witchy, wearing a sleeveless maroon silk blouse and matching pants, both batiked with a complex pattern that Max assumed had magical properties. Cuffs of silver chased with gold and copper circled her biceps and ankles. They were set with disks of black-veined turquoise and jellow jasper, the stones gleaming with subdued spell fire. A matching, wide, flat collar circled her neck, and twisted wire earrings holding round beads of turquoise and jasper dangled nearly to her shoulders. Her feet were bare but for three toe rings on each. On the right was a copper band set with an oval sunstone, a plain gold band, and one of iron set with amber all the way around. On the left was a silver band set with pearls, a platinum band set with black opal, and a thin band made of jet sandwiched between bloodstone. Each bit of stone and metal enhanced Giselle’s magic.

    She opened her eyes slowly and lowered her hands. “You know I could have been in the middle of a spell. If I had been, breaking my concentration would have been fatal to both of us.”

    Max shrugged. “And that’s bad because ΓǪ? Besides, you’d be stupid to waste your strength now right before the Conclave. You aren’t that dumb, but if you were, you’d use a proper spell web to contain yourself, and you’d be the only one dead.”

    Giselle sighed, unfolding her legs. “You really know how to give me a headache. Your attitude hasn’t improved. Does that mean you are going to keep fighting me?”

    “It means I still want you dead.”

    “Color me stunned. Should I call CNN?”

    Max’s mouth twitched. “Sun’s almost down. Are you ready?”

    “What have you planned?”

    “I’ll scramble the nest out of here and start them north. They’ll find a shopping center somewhere up on 15 where they can wait for us to catch up. Just in case we need the hospital truck.”

    “Sounds good.”

    “I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to hear you say so. Now, you’ll ride with Akemi. Niko, Tyler, and I will shadow you in the cars. I’ll drop the Tahoe and stash my gear as near to the Sagrado as I can before meeting you at the parking lot. You’d better pray there’s no trouble. There’s too few of us to handle a major attack.”

    “It’s Conclave. The law calls for peace from dusk to dawn.”

    “You witch-bitches only obey the laws you can’t get away with breaking,” Max said.

    Giselle shrugged. “No one can get away with it at a Conclave.”

    “Famous last words. You’ll excuse me if I plan for the worst.”

    “That’s what makes you the best.”

    “Fuck you. I’ll stir the hive. You’ve got five minutes.” Max didn’t wait for Giselle to reply. She stepped down out of the RV and shut the door hard