Kelley Armstrong - Otherworld Tales 2005

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Introduction
Welcome to Otherworld Tales 2005. In 2005, I decided to forgo my annual online
novella and, instead, explored some back-stories too short to warrant their own
novel or novella. I polled readers, and the top four character choices each got their
own story, as did the top four events. The remaining four I chose myself.
Most of these are past events related or alluded to in the novels. As such, they
function more to fill in gaps, rather than as true stand-alone “short stories.” Some
dramatize back-story events, such as Eve’s death in the compound. Some simply
expand on a character, giving him or her a voice, like Jeremy reflecting after
sending Elena and Clay to Toronto in Bitten. Others do both, as in the tale of
Aaron’s vampire “rebirth.”
As with all my online fiction, I consider these pieces “works-in-progress.”
That means I’ll likely return to them later and tinker. It also means you may find
typos, plus factual and grammatical errors. If you do, please let me know.
I hope you’ll enjoy these stories as much as I enjoyed telling them.
Contents
Rebirth (Aaron) 3
Infusion (Malcolm) 23
Demonology (Talia) 48
Birthright (Logan) 68
Case of the Half-Demon Spy (Adam) 84
Expectations (Lucas) 99
Territorial (Marsten) 116
Ghosts (Jeremy) 131
Escape (Eve) 141
Wedding Bell Hell (Paige) 153
Adventurer (Kenneth) 178
Bargain (Xavier) 184
Rebirth
England
1802
Aaron stumbled from the tavern and gasped as the first blast of cold air slapped his face. He
paused in the doorway and took a deep breath, letting it wash some of the toxins from his lungs .
. . and maybe a few from his bloodstream as well. Geoffrey jostled him from behind, and Aaron
gave him a good-natured shoulder that sent his friend staggering back.
“Move it, you big ox,” John said, kneeing Aaron in the rear.
“Just push me out of the way.” Aaron shot a grin over his shoulder. “Or maybe you should
squeeze past instead. You’re skinny enough.”
Aaron stepped onto the cobblestone street and stopped for another gulp of fresh air. Not
exactly fresh, he thought with a grimace. The narrow street stunk of shit—horse shit, dog shit,
human shit—that’s what came of living so close you couldn’t take a crap without piling it on
someone else's. Give him farm life any day. There was plenty of shit there too, but at least there
was room to spread it around.
He squinted up and down the street, his ale-soaked brain struggling to remember which way
they’d come. That was another problem with towns. You couldn’t see a damn thing. The
buildings not only crowded your view, they crowded out the moonlight. The few lanterns
dotting the street added more smoke than light.
“Inn’s this way,” Geoffrey said, smacking Aaron’s arm. “Come on before the mistress locks
the door.”
Aaron grunted. She’d locked them out the last time, and it had been a long, cold night on
the street. Aaron and Geoffrey came to the city for a weekend every other month, bringing
goods to market. They’d finished their work this morning, but their families didn’t expect them
back until Sunday night, knowing that any young man willing to stay home and help his parents
on the farm deserved time now and then to sample the cosmopolitan treats he was missing.
One of those “treats” peered out from an alley as they passed. She met Aaron’s gaze and
batted her lashes in what he supposed was meant to be a come-hither look, but seemed more like
soot caught in her eyes. She couldn’t have been more than thirteen, the bodice of her dirty dress
stuffed to simulate the curves she wouldn’t see for another few years . . . if she lived that long.
Aaron reached into his pocket, walked over and pressed a few coins into the whore’s palm.
A look, part relief, part trepidation sparked in her eyes, then they clouded with confusion as he
walked back to his friends.
John bumped against him. “How drunk are you? You forgot to take what you paid for.”
“Oh, Aaron never has to pay for it,” Geoffrey said. “A tart sees him coming and she closes
her purse and opens her legs.”
“If you don’t want it, I’ll take it.”
John started to turn, but Aaron grabbed his shoulder and steered him forward.
“What?” John said. “It’s paid for.”
Kelley Armstrong Otherworld Tales 2005 4
摘要：

IntroductionWelcometoOtherworldTales2005.In2005,Idecidedtoforgomyannualonlinenovellaand,instead,exploredsomeback-storiestooshorttowarranttheirownnovelornovella.Ipolledreaders,andthetopfourcharacterchoiceseachgottheirownstory,asdidthetopfourevents.TheremainingfourIchosemyself.Mostofthesearepastevents...

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