Bitter Night by Diana Pharaoh Francis Page A
Authors: Diana Pharaoh Francis
Tags: Fiction, General, Science-Fiction, Fantasy fiction, Fiction - Fantasy, Fantasy, Fantasy - Contemporary, Contemporary, Magic, Witches, Occult fiction, supernatural, Science Fiction And Fantasy, American Science Fiction And Fantasy, Good and Evil, Soldiers
Ads: Link
behind her. Strengthening spells on it kept it from warping in its frame. It wasn’t the first door Max had slammed.
She turned just as enthusiastic clapping broke out, and someone with a death wish gave a low catcall.
“Shut up, Lise.”
“You are so smokin’ hot,” Lise replied with a leer. She and the three other Sunspears had joined Niko, Akemi, and Tyler at the cars. “Can I borrow that outfit when you’re done? You can still be in it if you want.” Her eyebrows waggled suggestively. “I’d never kick you out of my bed.”
Max’s teeth bared. “That’s because you’re a female tomcat. And you’re welcome to it if I don’t burn it first.” She glanced around the group. “You Sunspears will ride with the nest. Tyler is going to take Lise’s car, and Niko, you’re in Kamikani’s El Camino.”
Kamikani was Hawaiian, with smooth skin the color of aged mahogany and long, curly black hair. He wore a white T-shirt with the arms torn off and a pair of faded blue jeans with ragged white holes in the knees. He was only a couple of inches taller than Niko, and not quite as broad-chested. His 1969 El Camino was his pride and joy. He’d restored it himself and guarded it with his life. But at Max’s order, he swallowed and handed Niko his keys.
“Don’t scratch her,” Kamikani said in his quiet, musical voice. “I will hurt you.”
“Max isn’t Prime because she avoids trouble,” Niko said cheerfully. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you fix the car if anything happens. Or throw a hell of a funeral.”
Kamakani shook his head. “Damned haole.”
“That’s me.” Niko stretched out his arm. “White as alabaster. Beautiful as Michelangelo’s David, aren’t I?”
“Women don’t like corpses,” Kamikani said, shoving the arm away. “Or statues.”
“I manage all right,” Niko said smugly, twirling the keys around his finger. “I don’t need a pretty car to get them to look at me.”
“Baby, neither does he,” Lise said. “He’s gorgeous, he cooks like a pro, and he surfs. And just look at those eyesΓǪ. If I liked men, I’d fuck him every chance I got.”
Kamikani flushed.
Niko feigned hurt. “But not me? No wonder you like girls. Help me out, Max. You like men. Which of us would you curl up next to on a cold night?”
Max eyed him balefully. “I’m too much for either of you two pretty boys to handle. I’d snap you in half. Now, Sunspears’keep your weapons ready and the safeties off. Wear your radios and keep your cells handy. If we need you, you’ll have to come out and play in the dark. Hopefully not so long that it kills you.”
Unlike Shadowblades, who either melted into a pool of liquid carrion or exploded in flame under enemy sunlight, Sunspears could function for a while when exposed to darkness’and it didn’t matter what kind’a cave was just as bad as the night. They could last up to a few hours, depending on how much moonlight there was, how much sunlight they’d been exposed to recently, and how old they were. But eventually all of them would gradually freeze dry and crumble to dust. All of Giselle’s Spears carried flash bombs as part of their emergency gear, and all their bunks were wired with LED lights backed up by magic in case the batteries failed.
“Akemi, you have Giselle. There’s a place to hide the Tahoe up the canyon. I’ll hike back and meet you. Once you park, there’s no leaving until it’s over, so you’ll have to sit and wait in case things go well. If they don’t, you’ll likely be on your own. Don’t let them catch you. They’ll kill you for sure, and painfully.”
The other woman was still a moment, then her neck stiffened and she nodded. Good. Max had been training her for six years. Akemi was better than she knew.
Max grabbed a map from her glove box and spread it out on her hood, pointing at the area. “The Conclave is right around here.” She pointed to a spot east of Balboa Park. “It
She turned just as enthusiastic clapping broke out, and someone with a death wish gave a low catcall.
“Shut up, Lise.”
“You are so smokin’ hot,” Lise replied with a leer. She and the three other Sunspears had joined Niko, Akemi, and Tyler at the cars. “Can I borrow that outfit when you’re done? You can still be in it if you want.” Her eyebrows waggled suggestively. “I’d never kick you out of my bed.”
Max’s teeth bared. “That’s because you’re a female tomcat. And you’re welcome to it if I don’t burn it first.” She glanced around the group. “You Sunspears will ride with the nest. Tyler is going to take Lise’s car, and Niko, you’re in Kamikani’s El Camino.”
Kamikani was Hawaiian, with smooth skin the color of aged mahogany and long, curly black hair. He wore a white T-shirt with the arms torn off and a pair of faded blue jeans with ragged white holes in the knees. He was only a couple of inches taller than Niko, and not quite as broad-chested. His 1969 El Camino was his pride and joy. He’d restored it himself and guarded it with his life. But at Max’s order, he swallowed and handed Niko his keys.
“Don’t scratch her,” Kamikani said in his quiet, musical voice. “I will hurt you.”
“Max isn’t Prime because she avoids trouble,” Niko said cheerfully. “Don’t worry. I’ll help you fix the car if anything happens. Or throw a hell of a funeral.”
Kamakani shook his head. “Damned haole.”
“That’s me.” Niko stretched out his arm. “White as alabaster. Beautiful as Michelangelo’s David, aren’t I?”
“Women don’t like corpses,” Kamikani said, shoving the arm away. “Or statues.”
“I manage all right,” Niko said smugly, twirling the keys around his finger. “I don’t need a pretty car to get them to look at me.”
“Baby, neither does he,” Lise said. “He’s gorgeous, he cooks like a pro, and he surfs. And just look at those eyesΓǪ. If I liked men, I’d fuck him every chance I got.”
Kamikani flushed.
Niko feigned hurt. “But not me? No wonder you like girls. Help me out, Max. You like men. Which of us would you curl up next to on a cold night?”
Max eyed him balefully. “I’m too much for either of you two pretty boys to handle. I’d snap you in half. Now, Sunspears’keep your weapons ready and the safeties off. Wear your radios and keep your cells handy. If we need you, you’ll have to come out and play in the dark. Hopefully not so long that it kills you.”
Unlike Shadowblades, who either melted into a pool of liquid carrion or exploded in flame under enemy sunlight, Sunspears could function for a while when exposed to darkness’and it didn’t matter what kind’a cave was just as bad as the night. They could last up to a few hours, depending on how much moonlight there was, how much sunlight they’d been exposed to recently, and how old they were. But eventually all of them would gradually freeze dry and crumble to dust. All of Giselle’s Spears carried flash bombs as part of their emergency gear, and all their bunks were wired with LED lights backed up by magic in case the batteries failed.
“Akemi, you have Giselle. There’s a place to hide the Tahoe up the canyon. I’ll hike back and meet you. Once you park, there’s no leaving until it’s over, so you’ll have to sit and wait in case things go well. If they don’t, you’ll likely be on your own. Don’t let them catch you. They’ll kill you for sure, and painfully.”
The other woman was still a moment, then her neck stiffened and she nodded. Good. Max had been training her for six years. Akemi was better than she knew.
Max grabbed a map from her glove box and spread it out on her hood, pointing at the area. “The Conclave is right around here.” She pointed to a spot east of Balboa Park. “It
Similar Books
