Read Online Six Times Deadly: A Lawson Vampire Story Collection (The Lawson Vampire Series) by Jon F. Merz - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Jon F. Merz
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think she'd go back on her word. At least not yet.
But once we went our separate ways, anything was possible.
And something told me that I'd be dealing with her a lot sooner than I wanted to.
Her and her deadly new skill.
Rudolf The Red Nosed Rogue
If anybody had asked, I would have said that Talya in a white silk blouse and matching bikini panties would be a great Christmas present.
But Talya was currently man-tracking a Chechen drug lord in the frozen Siberian wilderness. So, the only thing keeping me company this Christmas Eve was a Bombay Sapphire and tonic.
And no one had asked anyway.
Outside the window, tiny white snowflakes drifted past, illuminated by the multicolored lights I'd strung up along the floor-to-ceiling windows in my Back Bay condo thirty floors up. From where I sat, Boston's skyline looked peaceful. Just the way it should.
The scent of pine hung in the air and I glanced at the tree I'd put up a week or so back. I needed a few more ornaments to fill it out, but I liked the shape.
And so did Dexter, the three year-old white cat I'd bought a few years after Mimi and Phoebe had both passed. As I watched, Dexter glided underneath the lowest boughs, brushing his fur against an ornament. Then he set up his ambush and waited for Desmond to wander through. Desmond had been my other acquisition; a silver tabby that was still getting used to having a home. It didn't help that most nights Dexter would pretty much play Prison Bitch with Desmond, while the smaller cat howled. My condo was starting to resemble an episode of Oz.
I took another sip of my drink and wondered about Talya. Siberia's no place you want to be in good weather. But in late December, it was even worse. The thought of her battling the elements in search of an elusive and deranged Chechen made me yearn to be with her.
But as much as we loved each other, we also knew each of us had their own life to lead. So when we were together, it was good. And when we weren't...well, we just weren't.
That sort of mutual respect worked well for our relationship. But it made the holidays a real pain in the ass. I'd already passed on attending Niles' annual holiday bash - too many folks from the Council there. And I'd never been one of their favorites. I do their dirty work - better, according to Niles, than any other Fixer they've got. So they tolerate me. But celebrating the season with me? That was pushing it.
Niles didn't care if it pissed them off. "Come anyway," he'd said. "Marty will be there and I'm sure she'd love to see you."
"I'm sure." Martina was the local armorer and she had a serious thing for me. But I wasn't interested in her, despite the fact that she was pretty top drawer herself.
I hadn't bothered calling Arthur. The grizzled old Fixer who now handled security at the Council building normally spent his Christmas camped out in front of a blazing fireplace with a big old bottle of his homemade drink Boomshanka. As he slowly "went on the piss," he'd spend his time thinking over past memories, ghosts and skeletons of his active duty years. Arthur had a lot of ghosts in his past, and he hadn't ever shared very many of them with me.
Sometimes, I think that was for the best.
Wirek was off in Maui surfing with the college librarian he'd somehow managed to hook up with at the grocery store. But that was Wirek. If it had a pair of breasts and a booty, Wirek was pretty much ready to go. A pulse was only a distant secondary consideration.
And people said my libido was out of control.
With the few friends I had off doing other things and Talya off chasing bad guys across frozen tundra, that left me pretty much doing nothing of importance, aside from seeing how much Bombay Sapphire and tonic I could drink before I passed out.
I was a half bottle in when my phone buzzed. Niles' number flashed on the screen. I picked it up.
But once we went our separate ways, anything was possible.
And something told me that I'd be dealing with her a lot sooner than I wanted to.
Her and her deadly new skill.
Rudolf The Red Nosed Rogue
If anybody had asked, I would have said that Talya in a white silk blouse and matching bikini panties would be a great Christmas present.
But Talya was currently man-tracking a Chechen drug lord in the frozen Siberian wilderness. So, the only thing keeping me company this Christmas Eve was a Bombay Sapphire and tonic.
And no one had asked anyway.
Outside the window, tiny white snowflakes drifted past, illuminated by the multicolored lights I'd strung up along the floor-to-ceiling windows in my Back Bay condo thirty floors up. From where I sat, Boston's skyline looked peaceful. Just the way it should.
The scent of pine hung in the air and I glanced at the tree I'd put up a week or so back. I needed a few more ornaments to fill it out, but I liked the shape.
And so did Dexter, the three year-old white cat I'd bought a few years after Mimi and Phoebe had both passed. As I watched, Dexter glided underneath the lowest boughs, brushing his fur against an ornament. Then he set up his ambush and waited for Desmond to wander through. Desmond had been my other acquisition; a silver tabby that was still getting used to having a home. It didn't help that most nights Dexter would pretty much play Prison Bitch with Desmond, while the smaller cat howled. My condo was starting to resemble an episode of Oz.
I took another sip of my drink and wondered about Talya. Siberia's no place you want to be in good weather. But in late December, it was even worse. The thought of her battling the elements in search of an elusive and deranged Chechen made me yearn to be with her.
But as much as we loved each other, we also knew each of us had their own life to lead. So when we were together, it was good. And when we weren't...well, we just weren't.
That sort of mutual respect worked well for our relationship. But it made the holidays a real pain in the ass. I'd already passed on attending Niles' annual holiday bash - too many folks from the Council there. And I'd never been one of their favorites. I do their dirty work - better, according to Niles, than any other Fixer they've got. So they tolerate me. But celebrating the season with me? That was pushing it.
Niles didn't care if it pissed them off. "Come anyway," he'd said. "Marty will be there and I'm sure she'd love to see you."
"I'm sure." Martina was the local armorer and she had a serious thing for me. But I wasn't interested in her, despite the fact that she was pretty top drawer herself.
I hadn't bothered calling Arthur. The grizzled old Fixer who now handled security at the Council building normally spent his Christmas camped out in front of a blazing fireplace with a big old bottle of his homemade drink Boomshanka. As he slowly "went on the piss," he'd spend his time thinking over past memories, ghosts and skeletons of his active duty years. Arthur had a lot of ghosts in his past, and he hadn't ever shared very many of them with me.
Sometimes, I think that was for the best.
Wirek was off in Maui surfing with the college librarian he'd somehow managed to hook up with at the grocery store. But that was Wirek. If it had a pair of breasts and a booty, Wirek was pretty much ready to go. A pulse was only a distant secondary consideration.
And people said my libido was out of control.
With the few friends I had off doing other things and Talya off chasing bad guys across frozen tundra, that left me pretty much doing nothing of importance, aside from seeing how much Bombay Sapphire and tonic I could drink before I passed out.
I was a half bottle in when my phone buzzed. Niles' number flashed on the screen. I picked it up.
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