An Extract from This Month's Release: Home by Dawn
Home by Dawn
Written on December 11, 2015, for the March 17 entry of 366 Days of Flash Fiction, this is for mothers everywhere—no matter how kick-ass your children are.
“Did you know they were coming?” Tanka whispered. “Did you?”
“No,” Haikan whispered back. “Now shut up.”
Tanka shut, peering out over the wall at the approaching shadows.
“They’ll make the gate in five,” he said.
Haikan glanced around.
“We can’t run,” she said. “Nowhere to go.”
She hefted the rifle, shucked the mag and checked the rounds, reloaded and prepared to fire. Beside her, Tanka did the same.
“We can take ’em,” he said, surprised when Haikan lowered her rifle and crawled back from the wall.
“You got silver?” she asked.
Tanka shook his head.
“Only the blade.”
“Then, no, we can’t. Come on, we’ll use the side gate to slow ’em down.”
Use the narrow tunnel formed by the arching servant’s gate to limit how many they had to face at once, she meant. It was as good a plan as any. They wouldn’t reach the house in time.
Instead, they ran for the gate, Haikan making a quick and shallow cut across her thigh, using the scent of blood to draw them.
“Oh, heck,” Tanka grumbled, and did the same.
The first howl split the air, seconds later, and they reached the arch seconds after that.
“Now, we can take ’em,” Haikan said, putting her back against Tanka’s.
They fought from the shadows, moonlight flashing from their blades. Six to a hunting pack, three apiece. Piece of cake…if cakes had fangs and claws and wanted to eat you before you could ice them.
Take them, they did, just before dawn.
“Better get back to bed before mum wakes up,” Haikan said, and Tanka nodded.
But mothers are cannier than any werebeast, and theirs met them at the door.
“And what sort of homecoming do you call this?” she demanded.
“I love you, mama,” the pair chorused, and their dam gave the sort of humph that said she still wanted to be annoyed, but couldn’t.
“Breakfast’s almost ready. Get cleaned up.”
Cover art is by Jake at JCaleb Design, and links to 366 Days of Flash Fiction can be found on Books2 Read at: https://books2read.com/u/b6MrN0
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