Free Hunters in the Night by Ramsey Isler Page A

Newton said. “See you in a
few hours I guess.”
    “Yeah.”
    I
made my way home in a stupor. My initial excitement at being home gradually
gave way to a sense of exhaustion. I was tempted to tap into the Rift for a bit
of extra energy, but I fought off the urge. A good bit of sleep in my own bed
should do the job.
    I
got back to my building and exchanged some pleasant nods and smiles with the
few neighbors I’d had a chance to meet when I moved in. I’d been gone for so
long I didn’t even remember their names, but they seemed nice. The building
where I stayed was one of the most secure in the city since a number of United
Nations and NATO staff stayed there temporarily or semi-permanently. My
neighbors were quiet, nondescript people who just happened to have dangerous
secrets tucked away in their heads. As I approached the door to my place, I
made a mental note to try to get to know them a little better. Then I heard a
cough from the other side of the door.
    Someone
was in my apartment.
    Out
of reflex, I immediately reached into the Rift. My fight-or-flight instincts
kicked in. But nightcrafters never run from anybody, so a fight it would be.
Besides, it had been a while since I’d been in a good fight. I kind of wanted
one.
    I
used my lock-picking spell to quietly open the locks on my door, then I paused
for a moment as I tried to figure out the best spell to use next. I didn’t want
to kill anybody, so the potentially lethal spells weren’t an option. I also
didn’t want to damage any of my stuff, so that limited my selection too. I
decided on a simple illusion: a spell that would send billowing smoke under the
door and hopefully draw the intruder out into the hallway, where I could freely
beat the crap out of them.
    I
was just about to cast the illusion when the door opened, and Dominique was
standing there.
    I
spent of couple of seconds gawping at her until my brain caught up with the
situation. “You really shouldn’t try to sneak up on a nightcrafter like that,”
I said. “You could get hurt.”
    Dominique
raised an eyebrow. “Who said I was sneaking?”
    “You
entered my place uninvited and unannounced. That’s sneaking.”
    “No,”
Dominique said. “That’s surprising. If I wanted to be sneaky, you’d have never
known I was here.”
    I
rolled my eyes, stepped into my apartment, and closed the door. Everything
seemed to be where I left it, but I inspected the area carefully to make sure.
“So why are you here? Can’t you just torture me at the office tomorrow?”
    “You
won’t be going back to the office. Not for a while, at least.”
    “Am
I laid off or something?”
    “No,”
Dominique said. “Quite the opposite actually. You’re going back out to do more
field work.”
    “More field work? I must have impressed you.”
    “No,”
Dominique said. “You’ll find I’m hard to impress. However, your performance in
Europe was . . . satisfactory.”
    “Good
enough for government work?” I said.
    “Something
like that.”
    “So,
what do you want me to do?”
    “I
want you to close that damn thing. Permanently.”
    I
plopped onto my couch and took my shoes off, trying to ease the stress I felt
building up again. “You’re referring to the Rift,” I said. “You want me to
close the Rift, which has existed for who knows how many centuries.”
    “Yes.”
    “I
don’t know how to do that,” I said.
    “But
you know someone who might.”
    “I
have no idea what you mean,” I said.
    “I’m
talking about the man who taught you everything you know about nightcrafting.
Kellar was his name, wasn’t it?”
    I
laughed. “You’ve lost your damn mind.”
    “You
said he left you with memories for a reason,” Dominique said. “Maybe he wants
you to find him again when you’re ready.”
    “Even
if that’s true,” I said, “I doubt he’d just waltz into your office and help you
destroy the craft he’s devoted his life to.”
    Dominique
crossed her arms. “I’m not saying that