“Naw, I missed bingo,” she said in her best little old lady voice. “I would've come to congratulate y’all after. But seeing as I wasn't able to afford the five-dollar entrance fee…”
Darius reached in his pocket and slapped a crumpled five-dollar bill into her palm.
“You happy now?” he asked.
“Feels good to get this back after two weeks,” Aunt Letty said, licking her lips. “But see, there's a little thang you forgot about, boy. It's called interest. It starts accruing every day you don't pay me back.”
Darius folded his arms.
“Now,” Aunt Letty said. “I turned off my psychic powers tonight, but…sho’ly that can’t be the only five dollars you got in your pocket…”
“I already paid you!” Darius said. “Damn. That was the most expensive favor ever.”
“How else you gon’ pay for this chicken, boy?” Aunt Letty asked, grinning.
“Aww, that ain’t right,” Darius said, slapping her another five.
I laughed my ass off as Aunt Letty counted the money and tucked it into her shirt pocket.
“Now I can go to bingo all week,” she said. “Now get your black ass over here and take this chicken. It ain't gettin’ any warmer.”
Darius kissed Aunt Letty on the cheek and took the bags.
“They had a two-for-one special,” Aunt Letty said. “I picked up two Hot and Dark Buckets. Just how I like my men. Hot and dark. Ha!”
“Gaaaahdamn,” Darius said, shaking his head.
“Ooooh, Auntie,” I said. “You got somebody you want to tell us about?”
Aunt Letty cackled as she shuffled into the shop. Destiny and Darius followed her, talking loudly.
I grabbed the open/closed sign from the lobby and hung it on the door.
We were absolutely, with a doubt, one hundred percent CLOSED tonight.
I started to shut the door, but I felt someone watching me.
Harriet stood in the snow, shadows crawling around her.
She clapped.
“Thanks for your help,” I said.
Harriet nodded. Then she began to disappear.
“Wait,” I said. “Do you…want to come in?”
“I've got much to do tonight,” Harriet said. “I just wanted to stop by and tell you good job. Enjoy your victory.”
“The H. S. Jenkins Fellowship at Lakeway University wouldn't happen to be yours, would it?” I asked, cocking an eyebrow.
Harriet chuckled. “My assistants handle the administration of it. I can assure you that I had no influence in the matter. But you tell Destiny congratulations. The whole world will be watching.”
“Uh huh,” I said suspiciously.
“Aisha,” Harriet said. “Really good work. We’ll talk soon.”
And then she was gone.
I felt a pang in my stomach as I realized that Harriet and I would be talking soon.
And I would have to repay the favor for help she gave me tonight.
But that was a trouble for another time.
I'd dealt with enough trouble for today.
A thin dusting of snow fell from the orangish-black sky.
I was so done with the cold tonight.
And demons.
And dream jumping.
I shut the door.
“Y’all have better not have eaten all the thighs yet!” I said, jogging downstairs into the kitchen.
THE END.
Thanks for Reading
The third adventure of Aisha, Darius and Destiny awaits! And they’ve got even more swagger than Book 2!
Evil Waking, Book 3 in Aisha’s series, is now available.
Turn the page for a preview.
Preview of Evil Waking
CHAPTER 1
Ten feet.
That was the distance between me and a flesh-eating demon that wanted to rip my face off.
The Somnient stalked toward me, a stocky, compact beast that looked like a demonic pit bull with a cavernous mouth of spiky yellow teeth. The smell of sulfur and rotten eggs poured from its mouth, making me want to vomit. It dragged its gnarly claws, leaving a trail of melting snow and rocks behind it.
The beach around us was filled with snow-capped rocks. Running wasn’t an option.
Behind me, the ice cracked on Lake Linette, the city’s great lake that was oh-so-beautiful in the summer, but a major problem for me now because I had nowhere else to run. In the overcast sky, the lake was a gray wasteland, its waves frozen in mid-crest.
I stepped back, and my foot hit a rock. I tripped and stumbled, but I regained my balance, jumping onto the rock.
The Somnient growled, baring its teeth.
“Seriously,” I said. “You have nothing better to do than eat people’s minds from the inside out, do you?”
The Somnient roared.
“It’s negative bazillion degrees outside,” I said. “Shouldn’t you be hibernating?”
The Somnient closed the gap, pouncing onto a rock.
“I keep hoping that one of these days when I talk to you demons, that you’ll talk back, and we can conversate or something,” I said. “Actually, forget I said that. I don’t even want to know what your voice would sound like. It would probably sound like the apocalypse.”
I jumped backward, landing on another rock nearby. Needed to keep my distance.
I hadn’t seen a Somnient since I killed the demon king a while back. The demon population decreased since then, and Somnient sightings were down across the city, which meant I could spend less time demon hunting and more time doing things I loved, like being with my cousins, drinking Prosecco, watching Star Trek…
Any day I didn’t have to deal with these dream-eating demons was a good day.
Now I had to figure out exactly how I was going to dismantle this demon before it made a mess of my client’s dream.
The bitter cold wind blew, damn near knocking me off the rock.
That’s the kind of winter we were having in Kemiston this year—it was cold, even in people’s freaking dreams.
A dreamlike voice spoke from above.
“Didn’t take this bad boy long to show up,” Destiny said.
She was watching the dream, even though she wasn't physically with me. On a day like this, I envied her for not having to do the hard work.
“Won’t take me long to get rid of him,” I said.
Reaching into the air, I felt dream ether pulsating all around me. It buzzed through my body.
I grinned at the Somnient.
“Last chance to repent for your foolish ways, talk to Jesus, or do whatever it is that you demons do to be saved,” I said.
Nothing. The demon didn’t even crack a smile.
“Okay,” I said. “Now it’s time for me to rip your face off.”
“Cuz, strike your pose and do a quarter turn,” Destiny said. “You know, like they do in the magazines.”
“Really?” I asked. “You're giving me posing directions while I fight?”
“Not me,” Destiny said. “It's the client’s photographer.”
I pulled the dream ether into my hands, and I willed it to become bright lines of light that swirled all around me like an overexposed photo.
I extended my hands as if I were shooting the light at the Somnient.
Winking, I willed the rock to disappear, knocking the Somnient onto its stomach.
“More,” Destiny said.
“More?” I asked. “That wasn’t good enough?”
“The wizard tech thingy won’t work right unless you keep going,” Destiny said. “He says to drag this fight out a bit more.”
“Has this photographer ever fought a Somnient before?” I asked. “I shouldn't let this thing live for too much longer.”
“Girl, will you just shut up and pose?” Destiny asked angrily.
Sighing, I composed myself.
The demon jumped to its feet.
I smiled, putting on my best confident smile, imagining myself in a photo shoot.
Because I was in a photo shoot.
Well, kind of.
A real life demon hunt slash photo shoot with no camera, that is.
Ever since we saved the city from a nightmare train hell-bent on death, we were minor celebrities. The city’s news magazine wanted to feature us. Darius was recording my every move with one of his wizard tech thingies that I had no idea how to explain.
“Time to have some fun with this,” I said.
I flipped into the air, spinning several times as I willed the dream ether to gather above me.
I stretched, hung in the air, holding out my hands.
“There you go, girl,” Destiny said. “Make the clouds gather around you. That would be hot.”
“Umm, that's a little too X-Men for me,” I said, sending a wave of ether into the Somnient, knocking it across the snow.
I flew through the maze of rocks, focusing my gaze on the snow.
A column of it rose high into the air, and I created an opening in the middle and willed it to spin over me.
I held up my hands.
“Yeah, baby,” Destiny said. “Make that snow fly around.”
“Your commentary is creeping me out,” I said, swinging my hands, burying the Somnient in a pile of snow.
“Blow some wind in your hair,” Destiny said. “You've got a few strands falling down over your eyes.”
“He doesn't like that?” I asked.
“It's not flattering,” Destiny said.
I swirled my arms and redirected the cold wind into my face, manipulating my hair. The wind was so strong, it pulled my weave ponytail back.
Yeaaaaah…I was wearing weave today. A girl’s gotta pull out her finest for a photo shoot. Don't judge.
“Looks good,” Destiny said. “Do that other thang that I like.”
“You mean this?” I asked.
I stomped the ground several times. The air pulsed around me in pockets.
I clapped my hands.
The pulsing air became sweltering pockets of heat.
I stomped and clapped in a hip-hop rhythm.
The demon circled me, unsure what I was doing.
I accelerated the rhythm and the pockets flared like subwoofers, bouncing to the beat.
I materialized a black fedora in my hand—Michael Jackson style—and I put it on my head, cocking it halfway.
“Can I finish this thing already?” I asked, turning around as I stomped.
I had a nice rhythm going. Too bad there was nobody around to record it.
“He likes this shot,” Destiny said. “Go ahead and finish.”
“The wooooooords I've been waiting to hear,” I sang.
I dipped, rolling my shoulders down, and I shimmied back up.
“You are sinspawn,” I said. “You have no right to exist in my world.”
The demon growled.
I cocked my fedora back, kicked out, spun, and pointed at the demon.
“May God grant you serenity upon your return to the underworld,” I said. “May one day you wake up and see the blessed goodness of the holy spirit.”
The demon leaped at me, but I snapped my fingers and pointed at it MJ style, and the pockets of air spewed fire, roasting the demon in place.
Circling up some dream ether, I sprinkled some into the air, keeping the demon in place.
Clapping and stomping, I said, “Be gone!”
The demon cried as if pierced by a knife. It screamed as the fire raged all over its body.
I jumped onto a rock and swung my hands up into the air, rotating my wrists like a dancer.
“Be gone,” I said again.
Holy light emanated from within the demon’s body, mixing in with the fire.
In a blink of an eye, I materialized above the demon, high in the sky, rotating with golden dream ether swirling around me. In a graceful swipe of my hands, I sent the ether flying at the demon.
“Be gone!” I shouted.
The demon shattered into a million pieces as if its body were made of glass. The shards crashed into the snow.
I landed on a rock, hands tugging the collar of my leather jacket. I couldn't see myself, and I'm no judge of my facial expressions, but I'm pretty sure the look on my face right now was damn sexy.
The holy light disappeared, leaving me alone on the snowy beach.
“Girl,” Destiny said. “The director is gushing right now.”
“I bet he is,” I said.
The sky faded. The clouds disappeared, leaving behind only darkness and shadows.
The snow turned black as the rocks.
The dreamscape was dissolving.
“Are we done here?” I asked.
“Done,” Destiny said.
Finally.
“I thought you'd never say the word,” I said.
“I thought you’d never leave a dream exactly when I told you,” Destiny said, laughing.
“Let's take a look at these photos, shall we?” I asked.
I closed my eyes and jumped out of the dream.
Want more? Grab your copy of Evil Waking today!
Author’s Note
Thanks for reading Nightmare Stalkers.
This was an important novel for me for a couple of reasons.
The tarot card reading in this book actually happened
Everything I am about to tell you is one hundred percent real. Keep this in mind as you read this section.
I had never touched a tarot card in my life before writing this book. I still haven't, actually.
I did a virtual tarot card reading for Aisha. At the point in the story where it happens, I decided to let the tarot card reading change the story, and that I would go with it no matter where it took me.
Now keep in mind what I'm about to tell you.
I went to a tarot card website and I literally did “eenie meenie miney mo” on a list of cards.
Wherever my finger went became the prophecy for the book.
Temperance.
Four of wands.
Eight or swords.
Ace of coins.
The star.
I made up the reading, added some dramatic flair, and then I went on my way.
I do this kind of thing all the time when I write, since I usually write wherever my characters tell me to go. And sometimes that involves going to see weird and unfamiliar places.
As I was writing the prelude to the final battle—where Aisha tries to teach Allegra to look inside herself, something very weird happened in my personal life.
Through a random string of events, I stumbled across my biological father on Facebook.
This is a big deal for me. I’ve only met my biological father once. I've had a lot of questions about it. I always thought that he abandoned me. I bore a lot of resentment about that. But as I've grown older, that resentment has washed away. At this point in my life, I just want to understand.
Anyway.
So I found my father on Facebook.
And it scared the hell out of me.
Should I reach out? Should I not?
This happened New Year’s Day. I couldn't think straight. Couldn't stop thinking about it. It tore me up and ate at me all day.
At first, I said I wasn't ready. That I would do it some other time.
I was lost. I didn't know what to do.
At this exact same time, I was trying to do some work and clear my mind. I was around Chapter 34 or 35 of this novel.
In order to write the ending, I had to look back over what I had written.
I looked back at that scene I just told you about.
I almost fell out of my chair.
The part where Aisha tells Allegra to ask herself the tough questions, then get out of her way and listen?
I hadn't been doing that.
But when I read it, it was like medicine for my soul.
I asked myself, “What should I do?”
And I listened.
I slept on it.
And when I revisited it the next morn
ing, my heart pointed me in the right direction.
You see, Aisha’s tarot reading was for me.
I couldn't have known this when I wrote the tarot scene. But it was my soul’s way of preparing me for what was about to happen in just a few short days.
So I reached out to my dad.
I didn't fret over it.
I didn't think too much about what I was going to say.
I kept it simple. And I hit send.
As I write this author’s note, that was about ten minutes ago…
Will he respond?
Maybe, maybe not. But I'm at peace with either scenario. The outcome doesn’t necessarily matter. What matters is that life has an uncanny way of putting you in the right place at the right time.
This is why I write books.
To learn about myself. To save myself. Sitting down in my chair to write is as sacrosanct as prayer for me. I'm honored that you choose to spend your time reading my work.
As for my father and what happens next, that's a topic for another author’s note. Hell, maybe even a novel someday.
Nightmare Stalkers wasn't coincidental. It was exact book that I needed to write at this point in my life. And for that, I am grateful.
Meet Michael La Ronn
Science fiction and fantasy on the wild side!
Michael La Ronn is the author of many science fiction and fantasy novels including the Modern Necromancy, The Last Dragon Lord, and Sword Bear Chronicle series.
In 2012, a life-threatening illness made him realize that storytelling was his #1 passion. He’s devoted his life to writing ever since, making up whatever story makes him fall out of his chair laughing the hardest. Every day.
Learn more about Michael
www.michaellaronn.com
[email protected]
Look for These Other Series by Michael La Ronn
Modern Necromancy (Urban Fantasy)
Death Marked
Death Bound
Death Crowned
Standalone Urban Fantasy
Magic Souls: An Interactive Urban Fantasy
Nightmare Stalkers (Magic Trackers Book 2) Page 15
