Dark Game (Merikh Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

and he is our tormentor.”
    I smiled. “Aren't we in a delightful mood today?”
    “It's Wednesday, the worst day of the week.”
    “How so?”
    She looked at me like I was the biggest idiot in town. “Well, Monday is hellish but at least you expect it. It's the death of the freedom of the weekend. Tuesday is when your hangover finally goes away, so that's not too bad. Thursday is when you start feeling the anticipation and making plans for the weekend, and Friday goes by in a blur as the glorious moment of your emancipation rushes ever closer. Wednesday is just blah.”
    “You're overthinking it.” I liked her, despite the melodrama. She was only a few years younger than me but she'd come from a completely different world. I was raised in a monastery and my purpose had been drilled into me from the moment I could understand the concept, whereas she was having to find it herself. I found it fascinating how she was having to slowly tease out the fundamental truths of her life, and I almost wished I could have stuck around town longer if only to see who she'd become.
    It didn't hurt that she was almost painfully cute.
    “You can't overthink these things. Time is precious and we're wasting it in here.” She gestured at the old stone building, dismissing it with a wave. “I left home to see the world. Now I'm going to grow old in here, and probably end up marrying Stevie.”
    “That would be amazing,” I said, and laughed as I dodged her kick. “I'm sure you'll have adorable children.”
    “Patty,” Stephen's voice called out over the intercom. “Please come to the manager's office. Patty.”
    She pushed herself into a crouch and peeked over the counter to check whether he could see her. When she was sure it was clear she stood and spun on her heel to look down on me again. “You get back to work, slacker. That machine isn't going to fix itself.”
    I put a whine in my voice. “But I don't wanna.”
    “That's not what I expect to hear from a company man, Mark. I expect results.” She spun in place again and stomped off, leaving me alone with the mystery of the ATM and a cold rear from sitting on the polished stone floor.
    “I think she likes you.” Mouse's voice made me jump. I’d forgotten I had the earpiece in. I reached into my pocket and thumbed an answer on the Blackberry.
    -- It will have to go unrequited then. We're out of here as soon as we can be. --
    “You've still got two days. You should ask her out.”
    -- And go where? The diner? --
    “I'm sure the kids have places they can go to get into mischief.”
    -- Maybe next time, after we deal with all the supernatural stuff. Oh, and kill her councilman. --
    “In all seriousness, you should think about it. You're a good looking guy, about her age, and you need to get laid.”
    -- No, I need to get back to work. Speaking of which, don't you have a job, too? --
    “Just think about it.”
    I didn't answer her, choosing to let my silence do the talking for me. It wasn't that it was a bad idea; it was just a foreign one. I’d only been on a date with one girl, and that had been a training mission we’d turned into something else. And when we were caught, she'd kicked the crap out of me.
    Mr. Davids, the owner of a curio shop that catered to tourists, had entered the bank while I was talking to Patty. Most of his business was in cash, and he came in every morning to deposit the previous day's earnings. With the recent surge in crime I thought it was risky for an old man to wait overnight, but the thought never seemed to occur to the shop owner. He stood in line and waited for one of the tellers to finish getting ready, a smile permanently etched on his face.
    The second customer of the day was Joe, the owner of the used car dealership on the edge of town and one of the only local businessmen still making decent money. People called him Slimy Joe behind his back but he didn't seem to mind. He had a smile on his face too, though unlike Davids his eyes