Free Silent Blade by Ilona Andrews Page A

ring of keys.
    â€œHow’d you know they were in there?”
    Dash glanced at Piper as she leaned over the cart’s edge. “Because even shady mechanics are predictable.” Palming the key ring, he sauntered to the Cloud Chaser. “Let’s hope this baby holds some juice.” He swiped a thin layer of dust from the solar eye dome before yanking open the driver’s side door.
    He rifled through the keys. The sixth one in looked like a possible fit and he notched it into the ignition. A chuggish purr coughed from the engine before the Cloud Chaser settled on idle. “One of you hit the button by the doors. We need to get this outside before the sun sets.”
    Piper flew forward and kicked a boot against the appropriate button. When the noisy hoist rolled the metal doors upward, Dash settled behind the wheel and coasted the vehicle from the garage. He craned his head out the window. “Get your butts in here.”
    Mara fished inside her bag and pulled out several merca bills. She fanned them carefully on the mechanic’s chest before she raced outside and jumped into the passenger side. Shaking his head, Dash maneuvered the Cloud Chaser out the snug alley and exited onto the main street.
    He checked the gauges and decided to risk the mountains. Sun wouldn’t set for a couple more hours and the solar eye hopefully held its previous charge. Both factors should get them beyond the highest pass.
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    The Cloud Chaser’s warning light flashed thirty minutes after the sun sank below the horizon and several hundred feet shy of reaching Piaras’s summit. Uttering a few words that would earn blushes from even the dockworkers back in Volto, Dash swerved onto the twisty road’s shoulder. The vehicle collided with a low canopy of scrub pines before conking out.
    â€œWe’re stranded on the side of this mountain.” Mara’s voice came out a thin whisper. “Things just keep getting better and better.”
    He followed her horrified stare to the murky darkness pressing against the windshield. “Look at it as an adventure.”
    â€œShe doesn’t do adventure.” Piper crawled onto the center console. “Or fun and excitement.” She snatched a napkin from the cup holder. After a thorough inspection, she spread it out with a snap of her wrists and crawled beneath it.
    Taking the sprite’s cue, Dash reached for his seatback and fumbled it into a reclining position. He rotated his shoulders, seeking the softest part of the cushion, and stacked his arms behind his head.
    â€œHow can you two sleep?” Mara demanded.
    â€œSimple.” The seat’s rough upholstery scraped his knuckles when he adjusted the neck roll. “Lay back, close your eyes and pretend you’re not sitting on a lumpy foam block.” Shifting his head, he winked at her. “Give it a try.”
    â€œNo way.” Hugging her chest tight, she shivered. “Who knows what’s lurking out there.”
    â€œAnd staying up all night conjuring imaginary monsters helps how?”
    She gave him a fierce look, her eyes glittering. “Damn you, this is your fault.”
    â€œRacing the sun was obviously a mistake. Will my apology suffice? Or would you care for a pound of my flesh?”
    â€œDon’t tempt me.” One corner of her mouth quirked. “But I wasn’t referring to the solar dying on us. All your talk of orgeels has me seriously spooked. If anything taps against the windows, I’ll probably scream loud enough to scare a banshee.”
    â€œGood thing I didn’t tell you about the vertaglion, a fanged dragon-like beast living—”
    â€œStop!” Mara’s hands clamped over her ears. He laughed and she slid her hands free, glaring at him.
    â€œNot funny.”
    â€œYou stopped dreading on the orgeels.” He tipped his head in challenge. “Mission accomplished.”
    â€œYour asinine logic is