Silver Bullet (Exiles of Ambercross 1 Read online

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  "I'm gonna need a hand, Marco." There was a small gathering of early risers in front of Academy’s doors. The truck lurched into park and idled. "It’s my mom’s birthday. She wants a weight set.” Casey’s mother was a sedentary alcoholic. The only weight she’d lift were vodka bottles. “Can you come in and help me?"

  He glanced back at Lyrene, who smiled provocatively back."Don't worry about me, Marcaius. I'll be just fine." She eased back into Marco's back seat. "You two have fun."

  Don’t make me vomit. Casey walked through the doors calmly, Marco close behind. “What are we really doing?” He asked.

  “I’m not doing this unarmed.” Casey said.

  "You think that Antonio is back at your house?"

  "No. I know Tony’s back at my house. The faerie don’t stop hunting, right? She’s out there calling him right now, letting him know we’re on our way.” She paused at a display and selected a very heavy box. Marco picked up a similar box and whistled.

  “Not that I think it’ll do any good. It’s a toy.”

  “I’d get a real one, but the waiting period’s too long. Can you melt the copper off these?” Casey held up a box of five hundred copper jacket BBs.

  “Yes, I can. That won’t get Tony. I don’t even think it’ll get Lyrene. It’s a toy.”

  “Story about my ex and his brother, mkay?” she pulled a box of CO2 canisters down, then turned around and headed for the check out line. “Their dad bought them BB guns for their birthday. Jack tripped and shot Tom in the chest. He’s still got the BB in his lungs. It was too much trouble for them to pull it out. This?” She held up her first selection. “Is much more powerful than what they had.”

  “Okay. Good to know. Never piss a writer off. They start getting creative.” He paused beside a display and pulled a box of free weights down. He carried it as if it were empty.

  She smiled. “I have two problems, though. First one is Tony. He’ll have a real gun.”

  “If he does, it’ll never fire again. What’s the other problem?”

  “I’m a bad shot. A really, really bad shot.”

  “Broad side of a barn?”

  “I’ll miss it every time.”

  He considered this. “Most of my defensive tactics are long distance. Magical lightening is a good idea at fifty feet and a real bad idea at ten. They’re going to want us in close quarters. They’ll pull us into your house before they take their shot. If they don’t, I’ll provoke them into doing it. You’ll be using that toy at point blank range.” Marco set the weights on the counter and took the other boxes from Casey. “I have one condition before I let you do this.”

  “What?”

  “When we’re done, I take you to Republic of Texas. Dinner. Steaks. Tea. Conversation.”

  Casey smiled. That was one of the more expensive restaurants in Corpus Christi, right on top of the Omni hotel. And technically, Marco was much older than she was. By a few centuries. “You’re buying?” she said.

  Marco’s answering smile was radiant. “Always.”