Laurell Hamilton - Affliction

Laurell K. Hamilton is the bestselling author of the acclaimed Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Novels. She lives near St Louis with her husband, her daughter, two dogs and an ever-fluctuating number of fish.

She invites you to visit her website at www.laurellkhamilton.org.

GUILTY PLEASURES

THE LAUGHING CORPSE

CIRCUS OF THE DAMNED

THE LUNATIC CAFE

BLOODY BONES

THE KILLING DANCE

BURNT OFFERINGS

BLUE MOON

OBSIDIAN BUTTERFLY

NARCISSUS IN CHAINS

CERULEAN SINS

INCUBUS DREAMS

MICAH and STRANGE CANDY

DANSE MACABRE

THE HARLEQUIN

BLOOD NOIR

SKIN TRADE

FLIRT

BULLET

HIT LIST

KISS THE DEAD

AFFLICTION

eSpecials

BEAUTY

This ones for Anita and me. Heres to another twenty years of facing our fears, solving mysteries, catching bad guys, and finding love.

Artists and their art, mirror and reflection, yin and yang, the push and the pull, separate but joined, in the end it becomes an act of co-creation, because to truly create art the artists themselves are re-created.

Were taught Lord Actons axiom: all power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. I believed that when I started these books, but I dont believe its always true anymore. Power doesnt always corrupt. Power can cleanse. What I believe is always true about power is that power always reveals.

Robert Caro

When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of mans concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.

John F. Kennedy

My gun was digging into my back, so I shifted forward in my office chair. That was better; now it was just the comforting pressure of the inner-skirt holster, tucked away underneath my short royal blue suit jacket. Id stopped wearing my shoulder holster except when I was on an active warrant as a U.S. Marshal. When I was working at Animators Inc. and seeing clients, the behind-the-back holster was less likely to flash and make them nervous. Youd think if someone was asking me to raise the dead for them that theyd have better nerves, but guns seemed to scare them a lot more than talking about zombies. It was different once the zombie was raised and they were looking at the walking dead; then suddenly the guns didnt bother them nearly as much, but until that Halloweenesque moment I tried to keep the weapons out of sight. There was a knock on my office door and Mary, our daytime receptionist, opened it without my saying Come in, which shed never done in the six years wed been working together, so I wasnt grumpy about the interruption. I just looked up from double-checking my client meetings to make sure there wouldnt be any overlap issues and knew something was up, and knowing Mary it would be important. She was like that.

Shed finally let her hair go gray, but it was still in the same obviously artificial hairdo that it had always been. Shed let herself get a little plump as she neared sixty and had finally embraced glasses full time. The combination of it all had aged her about ten years, but she seemed happy with it, saying, Im a grandma; Im okay with looking like one. The look on her face was sad and set in sympathetic lines. It was the face she used to deal with grieving families who wanted their loved ones raised from the dead. Having that face aimed at me sped my pulse and tightened my stomach.

I made myself take a deep breath and let it out slow as Mary closed the door behind her and started walking toward my desk. Whats wrong? I asked.

I didnt want to tell you over the phone with all the clients listening, she said.

Tell me what? I asked, and fought the urge not to raise my voice. She was about one more uninformative answer away from getting yelled at.

Theres a woman on line two; she says shes your future mother-in-law. I told her you werent engaged to my knowledge, and she said that she didnt know what to call herself since you were just living with her son.

I was actually living with several men, but most of them didnt have families to use words like son. Name, Mary, whats her name? My voice was rising a little.

Morgan, Beatrice Morgan.

I frowned at her. Im not living with anyone named Morgan. Ive never even dated anyone with that last name.

I didnt recognize it from your boyfriends, but she said that the father is hurt, maybe dying, and she thought hed want to know about his dad before it was too late. The emotion is real, Anita. Im sorry, maybe shes crazy, but sometimes people dont think clearly when their husband is hurt. I didnt want to just write her off as crazy; I mean, I dont know the last names of everyone youre dating.

I started to tell her to ignore the call, but looking into Marys face I couldnt do it. Id trusted her to screen callers for years. She had a good feel for distraught versus crazy. She give a first name for her son?

Mike.

I shook my head. Ive never dated a Mike Morgan. I dont know why she called here, but shes got the wrong Anita Blake.

Mary nodded, but her expression looked unhappy. Ill tell her that you dont know a Mike Morgan.

Do that. Shes either got the wrong Anita Blake, or shes crazy.

She doesnt sound crazy, just upset.

You know that crazy doesnt mean the emotion isnt real, Mary. Sometimes the delusion is so real they believe it all.

Mary nodded again and went out to tell Beatrice Morgan she had the wrong number. I went back to checking the last of my client meetings. I wanted to make sure that no matter how long it took to raise each zombie, I wouldnt be too late for the next cemetery. Clients tended to get spooked if you left them hanging out in graveyards too long by themselves. At least most of the meetings were historical societies and lawyers checking wills, with the families of the deceased either long dead or not allowed near the zombie until after the will was settled in case just seeing the loved ones influenced the zombie to change its mind about the last will and testament. I wasnt sure it was possible to sway a zombie that way, but I approved of the new court ruling that families couldnt see the deceased until after all court matters were cleared up, just in case. Have one billionaire inheritance overturned because of undue influence on a zombie and everybody got all weird about it.

Mary came through the door without knocking. Micah. Mike was his nickname as a kid. Morgan is her name from her second marriage. It was Callahan. Micah Callahans mother is on line two, and his dad is in the hospital.

Shit! I said, picking up the phone and hitting the button to put the call through. Mrs Callahan, I mean, Mrs Morgan, this is Anita Blake.

Oh, thank God, Im so sorry. I just forgot about the names. Ive been Beatrice Morgan for eighteen years, since Micah was twelve, and he was Mike to us. He didnt like Micah when he was a little boy. He thought Mike was more grown up. She was crying softly, I could hear it in her voice, but her words were clear, well enunciated. It made me wonder what she did for a living, but I didnt ask. It could wait; it was just one of the thoughts you have when youre trying not to get caught up in the emotions of a situation. Think, dont feel, just think.

You told our receptionist that Micahs dad was hurt.

Yes, Rush, thats my ex, his father, was attacked by something. His deputy said it was a zombie, but the bite isnt human, and its like hes infected with something from it.