Southwest Nights (Semiautomatic Sorceress Book 1) by Kal Aaron (large ebook reader txt) 📕

Nelson was Illuminated.” She gestured at the ship with the binoculars. “Would one of us use such a cumbersome way of transporting shards? One prone to interception by the Shadow authorities?”

“It depends on how and what they’re using to conceal their trail.” Lyssa shrugged. “Taking advantage of cumbersome Shadow methods makes it far less likely that an Illuminated sniffing around is going to figure out what you’re doing. I’m half-surprised they’re not boxing them up and shipping them through the mail. How often do Sorcerers expect UPS to drop off that kind of package?”

“That would be amusing, but my point stands. I suspect this Nelson is nothing more than another middleman.” Aisha sounded disappointed. “He might be using the mask to deceive fools into thinking he’s a Sorcerer, so they’ll give him more favorable treatment. The trail might take us farther. There is a rogue at the end of this. I’m certain of that, but they might not come to the port today.”

“Then we’ll have to hand it off to another Torch or Eclipse.” Lyssa frowned. “I don’t think our Elders want us going overseas and making a mess. We’re not the only Torches in the world.”

“’Making a mess?’” Aisha chuckled. “Making a mess in pursuit of justice is most commonly called virtue, Corti. To stand idle while the wicked infect the world with their diseased souls is the rankest sort of cowardice. The Society might have problems, but we also have power we can use to help clean up the darkness.”

“You know what? I can’t find anything to disagree with there, Aisha, but that doesn’t mean our Elders are going to want us to follow up if this is too far outside our regions. Let’s not worry about it for now. Let’s concentrate on grabbing whoever shows up. If they’re a Sorcerer, then it’s our lucky day.”

Aisha wrinkled her nose. “There is no luck in one of our kind betraying the Society.”

“I guess you’re right there, too.”

Lyssa leaned over the handlebars of her bike, watching the orange and red of the dawn sun push back her natural ally, darkness. From this distance, the ship in the channel looked both massive and small, depending on what she focused on. The sailors on it were specks without the binoculars, but the water under and around it reminded her that humans always bowed before nature in the end.

“I assume you’ll show less restraint when we encounter the rogue than you did with me,” Aisha said. “Although I’ll again admit my mistake, this will not be a situation we can solve by talking.”

“I don’t like killing people.” Lyssa kept her voice steady. “Contrary to what you might think, I only kill when necessary, but as a Torch, not killing isn’t always an option. If he leaves me no choice, I’ll do what I need to.”

Aisha fell silent with a thoughtful look on her face. She continued to scan with the binoculars before speaking again. “Were you holding back with me?”

She sounded disappointed. Lyssa took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Running from the truth wouldn’t help.

“A little, but only a little,” Lyssa said. “I thought about using a showstopper for a second if it makes you feel better.

Aisha looked up at Lyssa, her brows lifted. “That would have been rather extreme.”

“Were you holding back with me?” Lyssa asked. “You know I have that capability. It could have easily gotten that bad.”

“On some level, perhaps I was holding back.” Aisha returned to looking through the binoculars. “It’s not just that I wanted to kill you. I wanted to humiliate you and then kill you. That required more artistry and less efficiency.”

“And now?”

“We need to work together on this job. Our duty comes before our personal feelings. I only regret that I was not clear-headed in my hatred. I don’t want my actions to weaken the Society, even indirectly.”

Lyssa smiled. “I know you hate me, but I don’t hate you. I… You know what? Forget it. We both screwed up back there, and we’re a little singed from it, but it’s nothing bad.”

“It’s frustrating.” Aisha narrowed her eyes. “I thought I had been handed a perfect opportunity for revenge.” Her voice softened. “But it didn’t feel right. I ignored my instincts because it was perfect. I don’t like making mistakes.”

“We all make mistakes.” Lyssa smiled.

Aisha scoffed. “Some more than others.”

Lyssa chuckled. “Sure, but next time, maybe ask a couple more questions before you attack someone. Just a crazy idea I came up with.”

“If you were a rogue, I could have died.” Aisha scowled. “I realized that on the way here. I made a mistake by exposing myself and talking instead of immediately following up my attack.”

“That little delay might have stopped both of us from killing one another.” Lyssa shrugged. “Maybe that was you listening to your gut. Instinct’s a good thing to develop as a Torch.”

“Just so you know, if you ever do go rogue, I’ll kill you without a second thought, friend.” Aisha delivered the line in a low, pained tone. “Don’t let yourself be killed by anyone else before that time. The only one allowed to kill you is me.”

Lyssa chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll even go so far as to say I’m honored.”

“Humans are bizarre,” Jofi said. “I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand your kind.”

Lyssa ignored him to smile at Aisha. Her way of saying “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to try to kill you” and “Be careful and take care of yourself” might be twisted, but Lyssa would accept her intentions for what they were.

“Ah.” Aisha smiled wickedly. “They’re unloading it now. The blue one. The ID matches.”

“Get ready to get back on the bike, and remember the plan. We try to take them on the road after they leave the port.” Lyssa nodded. “Less chance of collateral damage that way.”

“And if that doesn’t work?”

“Then we improvise.” Lyssa shook a finger. “But we keep it under control. If we find a rogue at the end,