Page 303 of Kingdoms of Night

“They’re cops,” said the guard.

“Do I look like a cop?” Loren indicated her tight dress.

He barely gave her curves a glance. Yeah, definitely gay. He held up a radio and began to speak into it in rapid Spanish. The gist of it was a call for backup.

Nia gave Loren atold you solook. Then she sprang into action.

As a fighter, Nia was something to watch. Too bad she didn’t trip over her heels.

Loren twisted the bodyguard’s arm, which was harder than it looked because she could barely wrap her hand around it. He went down before she could apply pressure. Loren looked up to see Nia standing over him.

“I totally had that,” Loren said.

“You’re welcome,” said Nia.

“I don’t need you to rescue me. I’ve rescued you a bunch of times.”

“I didn’t realize we were keeping count.”

“This was supposed to be a girls’ night out for me, and you totally took over like you always do.”

“Excuse me? I wanted to go to a classy restaurant. But look, here I am in this dive with you while you dance with every sleaze on the floor.”

“I didn’t realize you had an issue with my choice in men. At least it didn’t take me a couple of centuries to make a choice.”

“You can be a real bitch sometimes.”

“Takes one to know one.”

“Both you bitches need to die.”

A single gunshot whizzed between them. The bullet’s wind lifted Nia’s hair. The impact into the wall set bits of plaster onto the sides of their cheeks. Loren turned a murderous gaze on the new bad guys in the hall.

“Did you just call my best friend a bitch?” demanded Nia.

“Did you just shoot at my best friend?” demanded Loren.

Loren pulled her cane from her bag. With a flick of her wrist, it turned into a sword. Then she unleashed holy hell. She could rip her best friend a new one. But the hell would anybody else.

When all the bad guys were down, Loren returned to her bestie. There was a graze on Nia’s cheek.

“You okay, babe? I could call Gwin. I’m sure there’s a ley line nearby. She can heal that right up for you.”

“It’ll be healed by morning. We should probably stay out that late, otherwise Zane will be pissed.”

“He’ll blame me.”

“He’ll blame us both.”

The two stared silently. Then they burst out laughing. Then they were wrapped tightly in each other’s hugs.

“I’m sorry,” Nia said. “I wasn’t trying to undermine you.”

“I know how you get about stolen artifacts.”

“We good?”

“Of course.”

“Let’s go grab us a virgin sacrifice.”

The adventure is just beginning for Loren in

“Her Knight,”

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