Shadowrun - Novel - 18 - Worlds Without End.pdf

Shadowrun Caroline Spector - Worlds Without End
"Oh, some of the runners stayed with her," he said
casually.
"But you didn't volunteer for that duty," I said.
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WORLDS WITHOUT END
"Don't be ridiculous," he said. "I'm far too valuable
to be tied to one spot like that. Besides, as long
as she's there, they can't get through."
"Not there, at any rate," I said. "And you're sure
the creatures were driven back in Maui?"
"Of course," he said.
And how I wanted to believe him.
I stared into the fire. Long ago, according to our
legends, Thayla's voice had driven the Horrors off.
She had sacrificed herself for her people, like any
great monarch would. Perhaps Caimbeui was right.
Maybe he had accomplished it. Maybe he had driven
them back. For now.
I relaxed a little. Maybe now there would be time
to plan. To prepare. To warn those who needed to
know.
The telecom beeped, startling me out of my
thoughts.
"Who could be calling at this hour?" I wondered
aloud.
"It might be for me," he said. "I left this number."
Oh, splendid, I thought. Just what I need,
Caimbeul's little friends with my restricted number.
"Hello," I said into the old-fashioned videoless receiver
I'd had installed in this room.
There was a long pause, then a loud burst of
static. I jerked back, dropping the receiver onto the
floor.
"Aina," I heard. The sound filled the room. An
impossibility. And, oh sweet mother, I knew that
voice.
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Caroline Spector
"Aina," it said. "I have come back. I have come
for you."
Then the line went dead.
"What was that?" Caimbeui demanded.
The room was cold. Colder than the dead of winter.
Colder than the grave. For I knew from long experience
that there were things worse than death.
"That," I said, my voice shaking, "was the past
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