Dark Light by Randy Wayne White Page B

dangerous thing.
    Fontana did not move, did not even unfold his arms. He watched her with that dark, unnerving intensity that sent thrill after thrill through her.
    More energy swirled in the room; not green ghost light this time; something else, something she had never seen before. She heard several startled gasps and murmurs around her.
    A churning river of dark, pulsing shadows appeared. A few inches across and a yard long, it flowed and undulated in a curious wave pattern.
    Elvis quivered with excitement. He was still fully fluffed, but his second set of eyes winked open. They glowed like warm amber.
    Simon, Jeff, Andy, and Mitch were dumbfounded. Everyone else, with the exception of Ray, who was smiling, seemed speechless.
    â€œI’ll be damned,” Simon breathed. “That’s dark light. The rumors are true.”
    â€œJeez,” Jeff whispered. “No wonder he was able to take down Jenner in that duel.”
    â€œWhat the hell is dark light?” Runtley demanded, pushing through the staring onlookers. “Some kind of secret alien technology?”
    â€œNo,” Ray said calmly. “It’s dissonance energy like ghost light. But it comes from the dark end of the spectrum. Very few hunters can pull it.”
    The river of night flowed around one of the four ghosts, forming a whirlpool. The green ghost was sucked into the spinning darkness and disappeared.
    One by one the balls of glaring ghost light were drawn into the whirlpool and extinguished. When the last one disappeared, the dark waves of psi evaporated.
    Fontana walked straight to Sierra and swept her up in his arms. Elvis bounded up onto his shoulder.
    â€œWe’ll be leaving now,” Fontana said to the crowd.
    The four hunters from the Green Gate sent up a rousing cheer. Everyone else joined in. Someone opened the door.
    Fontana carried Sierra out into the hall. The door closed behind them.
    Sierra managed to find her voice. “You can put me down now.”
    â€œYou’re not very heavy.” He went toward the elevator.
    â€œNo, wait,” she said. “I don’t like elevators. Please.”
    He set her on her feet. They started down the stairs.
    She gave him a sidelong glance. “What’s with that dark light thing? Another mysterious Guild secret?”
    Fontana put one hand on her arm to help her keep her balance.
    â€œLet’s just say that the Guilds have traditionally preferred to play down the fact that some hunters can work energy from different points on the spectrum.”
    â€œRight,” she said, excitement humming through her. “A red-hot Guild secret. I knew it. You do realize that it will probably show up in the Curtain tomorrow?”
    â€œYes.”
    He sounded far too unconcerned.
    She shot him another searching look. “But?”
    He smiled slowly. “But it will be in the Curtain . Who, besides your readers, will believe it? None of the mainstream media will take it seriously.”
    She sighed. “You have a point. Runtley will probably give it a headline like ‘Guild Discovers Secret Alien Technology.’ ”
    Fontana’s smile widened. “I’m counting on it.”
    They reached the lobby. Fontana pushed open the glass doors and allowed her to move past him into the damp, foggy night.
    â€œThere’s a reason the Guilds keep their secrets,” he said. “Unusual talents of any kind tend to make people nervous.”
    She could not argue with that statement.
    â€œI realize that,” she admitted.
    â€œWhen the exotic talents in question belong to hunters, the fear factor is multiplied several times over,” he said.
    â€œOkay, I get that. The Guilds have enough public relations problems as it is. I can see why the organizations prefer not to advertise a lot of unusual para-rez talents.”
    â€œI’ll let you in on another little secret. The Guild researchers have reluctantly concluded that alien psi can