Darkness on Fire Read Online Free Page A

snarled, “This better be damned important. If it isn’t, I will hunt you down like a rabid dog.”
    To his surprise, he recognized the caller immediately even though her voice was thick with fear.
    “Penn? It’s Jora. Can you let me in? Please?”
    “Sure thing.”
    He slammed the phone down and rolled off the bed, picking up his gun as he did. He unchained the door and threw it open. The Kalith female stood on the threshold, supporting a dirt bike.
    “I know you’ll think I’m crazy, but I need to bring this inside.”
    Penn stood back out of the way to give her room to maneuver. It had to be one of the stranger requests he’d ever had, but she didn’t seem the kind to panic easily. Once she was inside, he stepped outside briefly to survey the parking lot. There was no one in sight, but danger was out there somewhere. It would take a lot for a Kalith woman to risk being alone with a Paladin she barely knew.
    As he shut and locked the door, Jora leaned the dirt bike against the wall on the far side of the bed. She kept herself busy untying the pack she’d had lashed onto the back of the bike, probably needing the time to collect herself.
    When she lifted her bag onto the bed, there was no missing the all-too-familiar shape of a Kalith sword jutting out of the top. Interesting, but he wasn’t overly concerned about it. Even if she did go on the attack, no blade could outrace his bullets.
    Finally, she asked, “May I sit down?”
    It would have taken a lot harder heart than his to keep a woman standing, especially one who looked so totally spooked. He gestured toward the only chair in the room, figuring she wouldn’t much appreciate him telling her to get comfortable on his bed—not that the thought hadn’t crossed his mind.
    He filled the carafe from the coffeemaker with water, figuring Jora might benefit from a cup of hot tea. All the Kalith he knew preferred it to coffee. “Okay, who’s after you?”
    Her eyes jerked up to meet his. “I don’t know their names, but I know what they are.”
    He filled the two mugs the motel provided and added a teabag and sugar to each. “And that would be?” he prompted as he handed her the tea.
    “Evil,” she whispered, her pale gray eyes wide with fear. “I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true. There were two of them. I was still keyed up from meeting with you and couldn’t sleep. That’s the only reason I’m still alive. They were coming after me through the woods near my cabin.”
    “What do they look like?” He set his tea aside and picked up his gun.
    “I don’t know for certain, but I’m guessing they were Kalith. I never saw them, but I felt them coming and knew they intended to do me great harm.” She sounded defensive, as if expecting him to throw her assertions right back in her face.
    He gave her a hard look. “I read your reports. There’s no way even a trained geologist could know all of that for certain. I know, because my sister is one. That tells me that you have the gift to read the moods, for the lack of a better word, of rock formations. Maybe even more than that.”
    Jora immediately sat up straighter. “How did you know of this gift? I hadn’t been told that it was one that Paladins had.”
    “They don’t, but I know others from your world. Two of them have a variation of that same gift. Can you control the barrier, too?”
    She frowned. “I’ve never tried, but probably. I can ease the stress in deep formations when it builds up too much. But if I concentrate hard enough, I can feel the smallest vibrations, even footsteps, as long as the people walking are within my range. It doesn’t work in town or in crowds, because there are too many to distinguish. These two were coming directly through the woods, not following any trails. My cabin is the only dwelling in that area.”
    The glow of headlights swept past the window out in the parking lot. Penn pushed the closed curtain aside long enough to look out. Whoever it was