Fates edge, p.1
Fate's Edge, page 1
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Acknowledgements
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
EPILOGUE
Teaser chapter
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Ace Books by Ilona Andrews
PRAISE FOR THE NOVELS OF THE EDGE
BAYOU MOON
“A thoroughly entertaining blend of humor, action, misdirection, and romance.”
—Locus
“Solidifies the subgenre of romantic urban fantasy superbly . . . If you like urban fantasy with a strong edge of romance, Bayou Moon will leave you breathless.”
—SFRevu
“Megatalent Andrews returns to the world of the Edge, where magic, blood feuds, and danger await . . . [There’s] never a dull moment as Andrews thrusts her characters into an array of extreme dangers that are ferocious as well as creepy. When it comes to supernatural fiction, Andrews is always a guaranteed keeper!”
—Romantic Times (top pick)
“Even better than the first book! . . . With a great setting, a super action-packed plot, and fabulous characters, Bayou Moon is a thrill to read, and I highly recommend it!”
—Night Owl Reviews
“[Andrews has] the ability to build books that create action sequences that make you forget how to breathe, complicated but ultimately satisfying romance, biting humor, and worlds you would like to see for yourself.”
—Darkly Reading
ON THE EDGE
“A fascinating world combined with pulse-pounding action and white-hot romance makes On the Edge a winner!”
—Jeaniene Frost, New York Times bestselling author
of One Grave at a Time
“[An] engaging urban fantasy series opener . . . Andrews has created a complex plot and convincing characters that will keep the pages turning.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A great, fun romance, an offbeat mix of old-fashioned rural magics, contemporary life (complete with Wal-Mart and comic book shops), and magical sword-wielding warriors.”
—Locus
“The character development is flawless, the plot inventive, and the pace defies readers to put the book down . . . This one is a winner and shows there is still plenty of room for surprises in a genre riddled with tired replays.”
—Monsters and Critics
“A wildly entertaining world.”
—Darque Reviews
PRAISE FOR THE KATE DANIELS NOVELS
MAGIC BLEEDS
“Ilona Andrews is one of the few authors whose books just keep getting better. A series can sometimes stagnate . . . Ilona, though, has no such trouble.”
—Romance Reviews Today
“Ilona Andrews does it again . . . Magic Bleeds delivers on the promise of ‘one hell of a good read.’ You will not be disappointed!”
—ParaNormal Romance.org
MAGIC STRIKES
“Andrews’s crisp dialogue and layered characterization make the gut-wrenching action of this first-person thrill ride all the more intense . . . mesmerizing.”
—Romantic Times (★★★★★)
“Andrews blends action-packed fantasy with myth and legend, keeping readers enthralled.”
—Darque Reviews
“Ilona Andrews’s best novel to date, cranking up the action, danger, and magic . . . Gritty, sword-clashing action and flawless characterizations will bewitch fans old and new alike.”
—Sacramento Book Review
“Write faster . . . I absolutely love the relationship between Curran and Kate—I laugh out loud [at] the witty sarcasm and one-liners, and the sexual tension building between the couples drives me to my knees knowing I’ll have to wait for another book.”
—SFRevu
MAGIC BURNS
“Fans of Carrie Vaughn and Patricia Briggs will appreciate this fast-paced, action-packed urban fantasy full of magic, vampires, werebeasties, and things that go bump in the night.”
—Monsters and Critics
“With all her problems, secrets, and prowess both martial and magical, Kate is a great kick-ass heroine, a tough girl with a heart, and her adventures . . . are definitely worth checking out.”
—Locus
“[Magic Burns] hooked me completely. With a fascinating, compelling plot, a witty, intelligent heroine, a demonic villain, and clever, wry humor throughout, this story has it all.”
—Fresh Fiction
“The sexual tension Kate emits has me gritting my teeth.”
—SFRevu
“If you enjoy Laurell K. Hamilton’s early Anita Blake or the works of Patricia Briggs and Kim Harrison, you need to add Ilona Andrews to your reading list.”
—LoveVampires
MAGIC BITES
“Treat yourself to a splendid new urban fantasy . . . I am looking forward to the next book in the series or anything else Ilona Andrews writes.”
—Patricia Briggs, #1 New York Times bestselling author of River Marked
“Andrews’s edgy series stands apart from similar fantasies . . . owing to its complex world-building and skilled characterizations.”
—Library Journal
“Fans of urban fantasy will delight in Ilona Andrews’s alternate-universe Atlanta.”
—Fresh Fiction
“A unique world laced with a thick plot full of strife, betrayal, and mystery.”
—Romance Junkies
Ace Books by Ilona Andrews
The Kate Daniels Novels
MAGIC BITES
MAGIC BURNS
MAGIC STRIKES
MAGIC BLEEDS
MAGIC SLAYS
The Edge Novels
ON THE EDGE
BAYOU MOON
FATE’S EDGE
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
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South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the authors’ imaginations or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
FATE’S EDGE
An Ace Book / published by arrangement with Ilona Andrews, Inc.
PRINTING HISTORY
Ace mass-market edition / December 2011
Copyright © 2011 by Andrew Gordon and Ilona Gordon.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors’ rights. Purchase only authorized editions. For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN : 978-1-101-54596-6
ACE
Ace Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ACE and the “A” design are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
http://us.penguingroup.com
To Anastasia and Helen
Acknowledgments
Fate’s Edge was a fun book to write, but even the fun books take a lot of work. We’re grateful to Anne Sowards for continuing to edit us and to Nancy Yost, our agent, for continuing to represent us despite our best efforts to drive them both to an insane asylum.
We’d like to thank the following people for making the book a reality: production editor Michelle Kasper and assistant production editor Andromeda Macri for bringing it all together, editorial assistant Kat Sherbo for heroically dealing with our ornery e-mails and keeping us on schedule, artist Victoria Vebell and cover designer Annette Fiore DeFex for creating a gorgeous cover, interior designer Kristin del Rosario for making the book look beautiful between the covers, copy editors Sara and Bob Schwager for making sure the narrative was consistent, and publicists Rosanne Romanello and Brady McReynolds for tirelessly promoting the book.
Special thanks go o
Finally, we’d like to thank our readers for following our stories.
PROLOGUE
IF she had only one word to describe Dominic Milano, it would be “unflappable,” Audrey Callahan reflected. Stocky, hard, balding—he looked like he had just walked out of central casting after successfully landing the role of “bulldog-jawed older detective.” He owned Milano Investigations, and under his supervision, the firm ran like clockwork. No emergency rattled Dominic. He never raised his voice. Nothing knocked him off his stride. Before moving to the Pacific Northwest, he’d retired from the Miami Police Department with more than a thousand homicide cases under his belt. He’d been there and done that, so nothing surprised him.
That was why watching his furry eyebrows creep up on his forehead was so satisfying.
Dominic plucked the top photograph from the stack on his desk. In it, Spenser “Spense” Bailey jogged down the street. The next shot showed Spense bending over. The next one caught him in a classic baseball-pitch pose, right leg raised, leaning back, a tennis ball in his fingers. Which would be fine and dandy, except that according to his doctor, Spense suffered from a herniated disk in his spine. He was restocking a warehouse when a walk-behind forklift got away from him, and the accident caused him constant, excruciating pain. He could frequently be seen limping around the neighborhood with a cane or a walker. He needed help to get into a car, and he couldn’t drive because the injured disk pinched the nerve in his right leg.
Dominic glanced at Audrey. “These are great. We’ve been following this guy for weeks, and nothing. How did you get these?”
“A very short tennis skirt. He hobbles past a tennis court every Tuesday and Thursday on the way to his physical-therapy sessions.” The hardest part was hitting the ball so it would fly over the tall fence. A loud gasp and a run with an extra bounce in her step, and she had him. “Keep looking. It gets better.”
Dominic flipped through the stack. The next photo showed Spense with a goofy grin on his face carrying two cups of coffee, maneuvering between tables at Starbucks with the grace of a deer.
“You bought him coffee?” Dominic’s eyebrows crawled a little higher.
“Of course not. He bought me coffee. And a fruit salad.” Audrey grinned.
“You really enjoy doing this, don’t you?” Dominic reflected.
She nodded. “He’s a liar and a cheat, who’s been out of work for months on the company’s dime.” And he thought he was so smart. He was practically begging to be cut down to size, and she had just the right pruning shears. Chop-chop.
Dominic moved the coffee picture aside and stopped. “Is this what I think this is?”
The next image showed Spense grasping a man in a warm-up suit from behind and tossing him backward over his head onto a mat.
“That would be Spense demonstrating a German suplex for me.” Audrey gave him a bright smile. “Apparently he’s an amateur MMA fighter. He goes to do his physical therapy on the first floor, and, after the session is over, he walks up the stairs to spar.”
Dominic put his hands together and sighed.
Something was wrong. She leaned back. “Suddenly you don’t seem happy.”
Dominic grimaced. “I look at you, and I’m confused. People who do the best in our line of work are unremarkable. They look just like anyone else, and they’re easily forgettable, so suspects don’t pay attention to them. They have some law-enforcement experience, usually at least some college. You’re too pretty, your hair is too red, your eyes are too big, you laugh too loud, and, according to your transcripts, you barely graduated from high school.”
Warning sirens wailed in her head. Dominic required proof of high-school graduation before employment, so she brought him both her diploma and her senior-year transcript. For some reason, he had bothered to pull her file and review the contents. Her driver’s license was first-rate because it was real. Her birth certificate and her high-school record would pass a cursory inspection, but if he dug any deeper, he’d find smoke. And if he took her fingerprints, he would find criminal records in two states.
Audrey kept the smile firmly in place. “I can’t help having big eyes.”
Dominic sighed again. “Here’s the deal: I hire freelancers to save money. My full-time guys are experienced and educated, which means I have to pay them a decent wage for their time. Unless there is serious money involved, I can’t afford for them to sit on a tough suspect for months, waiting for him to slip up. They get four weeks to crack a case. After that, I have to outsource this kind of stuff to freelancers like you because I can pay you per job. An average freelancer might close one case every couple of months. It’s a good part-time gig for most people.”
He was telling her things she already knew. Nothing to do but nod.
“You’ve been freelancing for me for five months. You closed fourteen cases. That’s a case every two weeks. You made twenty grand.” Dominic fixed her with his unblinking stare. “I can’t afford to keep you on as a freelancer.”
What? “I made you money!”
He held up his hand. “You’re too expensive, Audrey. The only way this professional relationship is going to survive is if you come to work for me full-time.”
She blinked.
“I’ll start you off at thirty grand a year with benefits. Here’s the paperwork.” Dominic handed her a manila envelope. “If you decide to take me up on it, I’ll see you Monday.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“You do that.”
Audrey swiped the file. Her grifter instincts said, “Play it cool,” but then, she didn’t have to con people anymore. Not those who hired her, anyway. “Thank you. Thank you so much. This means the world to me.”
“Everybody needs a chance, Audrey. You earned yours. We’d be glad to have you.” Dominic extended his hand over the desk. She shook it and left the office.
A real job. With benefits. Holy crap.
She took the stairs, jogging down the steps to burn off some excitement. A real job being one of the good guys. How about that?
If her parents ever found out, they would flip.
AUDREY drove down Rough Ocean Road away from Olympia. Her blue Honda powered on through the gray drizzle that steadily soaked the west side of Cascades. A thick blanket of dense clouds smothered the sky, turning the early evening gloomy and dark. Trees flanked the road: majestic Douglas firs with long emerald needles; black cottonwoods, tall and lean, catching the rain with large branches; red alders with silver-gray bark that almost glowed in the dusk.
