The Love of Danger

The Love of Danger

by Jeremy Zimmerman

Book 2 in the Kensei Series

Cover Illustration and Layout by Errow Collins

Copyright 2015 Jeremy Zimmerman

Cobalt City and many of its denizens are the creation of Nathan Crowder, used here with permission.

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my niece, Sierra. Her enthusiasm for life is a constant source of joy and inspiration.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1 - This is Halloween

Chapter 2 - Cape and Cowl

Chapter 3 - The High Life

Chapter 4 - Family Obligations

Chapter 5 - The Stand Up

Chapter 6 - Ghosts of the Past

Chapter 7 - Gods Among Us

Chapter 8 - Legacy

Chapter 9 - Love Stinks

Chapter 10 - The Devil, You Say

Chapter 11 - Opening Night

Chapter 12 - Cold and Dark

Chapter 13 - Walk of Shame

Chapter 14 - Missing Persons

Chapter 15 - Reaching Out

Chapter 16 - Hollowing Out

Chapter 17 - We Learned Something Today

Chapter 18 - It Got Awkward

Chapter 19 - This Looks Like a Job for Pajamas

Chapter 20 - Preemptive Strikes

Chapter 21 - A Break in the Case

Chapter 22 - The Future Soon

Chapter 23 - The Long Goodbye

Chapter 24 - Giving Thanks

About the Author

About the Illustrator

________________________________________

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

It has been a long strange road to reach this point, and it has been by standing on the shoulders of great people. Thank you to beta reading and other expertise Rain Donaldson, Tia Teresa Lopez, Michele Ray, Emma Sansone, Sol Foster, and Minerva Zimmerman. Also many thanks to Dawn Vogel and Lillian Cohen-Moore, who have been over this book many times and helped me look good.

Also many thanks to the generous financial support of Kickstarter and Patreon backers: Stephen Acton, Argents, Andrew When Will You Be Done With Book Three Cherry, Nathan Crowder, Dave Eytchison, Jack Gulick, John Nienart, Torrey Podmajersky, Sarah, Deb Schumacher, and Catherine Warren.

CHAPTER 1 - THIS IS HALLOWEEN

Jamie Hattori hated Halloween. It wasn't so bad if she didn't look out the windows of the minivan as her mom drove down the rainy streets of Cobalt City. The spirit of the minivan had enough power to keep most of the other spirits outside of the vehicle. Though not as powerful as a house spirit, the minivan was still a sovereign domain where the uninvited could not enter.

Huddled down in her hoodie with her eyes closed, Jamie almost felt safe. It didn't block out the sound of monstrous feathered wings she had constantly heard since she left her house, but it helped. She silently chanted the nembutsu to herself--Namu Amida Butsu--while counting through the prayer beads of her onenju in her sweatshirt pocket.

With all of her attention pulled away from the outside of the vehicle, she couldn't ignore the radio program her mom insisted on listening to: The Prather Program. Ever since her mom found out that Jamie was the superhero Kensei, she had become even more vocal in her support of anti-superhero pundit Lyle Prather. It was as though she thought it might convince Jamie to retire from being a masked vigilante.

For you listeners who didn't hear the news on my television appearance earlier, Prather said to introduce his next piece, Wild Kat and Velvet have reappeared in Cobalt City.

Jamie sat up and turned her attention to the radio. Her mom only shook her head and chuckled.

We haven't seen much of them since the team that called itself the Protectorate disbanded five years ago. The two women have focused their vigilante justice in Europe, which has granted our city a bit of respite. It's bad enough we have heroes like Stardust causing millions of dollars of property damage. But Wild Kat has claws that cut through chain link fences like butter. On more than one occasion, Velvet has tied up accused suspects with stop sign posts. We don't need women like this telling our citizens, our children, that might makes--

The radio went silent, and the engine stopped. Jamie glanced at her mother in confusion, her mom's dark skin and Halloween costume rendering her almost invisible in the darkness of the minivan.

We're here, her mom said. With a smile she added, Or have you decided to hang up your mask and become one of Prather's Everymen?

No, no, Jamie said, raising her hands and turning toward her door to get out. No. I can look up news about Wild Kat and Velvet later.

As she stepped out of the car, spirits flowed over her and obscured her vision. At the age of twelve, Jamie had developed the ability to see and interact with the spirits of the world around her.

The first time she had gone out for Halloween after that had been with other members of the Young Buddhist Association at her church. It had ended with her hiding in the basement of a stranger's house, screaming and sobbing hysterically. Since then, she had spent every Halloween hiding in her bedroom, with her eyes closed and MP3 player blasting. She'd be there that night too, but this year she had a girlfriend whose birthday happened to be Halloween. She was willing to brave the night for love.

With effort, Jamie focused so that the faces of the wind spirits, laughter spirits, parking spirits, and assorted spirits she couldn't identify almost faded from view. Visually they just became a blurry fog. Even then she could still hear the deep thrum of the wings in the air.

Taking a deep breath, she continued walking. The parking lot of Bifrost Roller Rink was packed, and Jamie's mom had parked at the far edge of it. Kids of varying ages wove through the cars in costumes and blocked cars trying to drive through. Under the illumination of a street light, Jamie's mom looked at her.

You okay, sweetie? her mom asked as she put on her pointed witch hat, the dagged sleeves of her black dress rustling in the wind. You're looking a little punky.

Her mom had learned about Jamie's power recently, but Jamie was certain that if her mother knew what Jamie was experiencing, she'd be taken back home. So she lied. Uh, you know. School. Lots to do.

Her mom didn't look convinced, but nodded. Okay. A few steps later she added, Did I tell you that Grandma Brown is coming into town this week?

Jamie stopped. No?

Her mom turned back toward her. Yeah, she's coming up for Thanksgiving. And your birthday.

Thanksgiving is almost a month away. And my birthday is ... Thanksgiving.

She just wants to see more of you. See how you've grown.

Jamie suspected this had to do with her maternal grandmother having similar powers to her own, but she couldn't say that in the middle of the parking lot. Instead, she just followed her mom to the rink.

They paid for admission to the skate rink and entered the cacophony of screaming children and pop music. Even with all the noise, Jamie felt more comfortable with the spiritual mob forced to remain outside the rink by the building's spirit. Jamie had barely entered and pulled back the hood of her jacket before someone skated up to her and picked Jamie up off of her feet.

Hey goofy, Jamie's girlfriend, Parker Fiorenza, said before setting Jamie down and kissing her on the lips.

Jamie kissed back until she remembered that her mother was right there, then broke off and laughed awkwardly. Even shouting she could barely hear herself yell back, Hey you.

Parker turned to Jamie's mom. Hi, Mrs. Hattori.

Parker, I told you to call me Gloria. Mrs. Hattori is my mother-in-law. What are you dressed as?

Parker stepped back to show off her paisley jumpsuit with bellbottoms. Her short unnaturally red hair was feathered back and a lightning bolt zigzagged across her face.

Gloria only shrugged and looked confused. Are you a disco dancer?

No, Parker said, looking stunned and hurt. Ziggy Stardust.

Right. Because your roller derby persona is David Bowie related. Major Tom...?

Tomboy, Parker said.

How is derby going for you, I heard you got hurt at your last bout?

Parker's face lit up. It was awesome! I fell onto my side. She gestured from her armpit to her hip. And I bounced! They carried me out of the rink on a board with my head strapped down so I couldn't do anything with my neck. At the hospital they thought I might have broken ribs and perforated my spleen. It was so much fun. I was crying so hard! And Jamie! Jamie vaulted the wall and came running for me when it happened. I thought she was going to beat the crap out of the girl who got me with a can opener.

Gloria's expression darkened. Someone had a can opener on the rink?

Jamie jumped in to explain. It's a type of hit. When someone hits you with their shoulder in your solar plexus so that it lifts you off the ground and throws you back.

And you jumped into the rink after that? Jamie's mom asked.

With a grimace, Jamie said, Yeah. I ... I'm a little protective.

The three of them stood in an awkward circle, skaters passing them as they looked at one another in silence. Jamie had tried to warn Parker that Gloria hated hearing about Jamie getting into fights, but Parker apparently didn't remember.

Gloria broke the silence with, Where are your moms at?

They're dressed as Mario and Luigi, Parker said.

Who are Mario and Luigi? Gloria asked.

Parker froze, mouth open in surprise before pointing toward her mom and step-mom on the other side of the rink. Jamie saw that they were talking to Cole Washington, owner of the rink, and his daughter Tera. As Parker had predicted, Cole was wearing the same Mr. T costume he wore every year, while Tera was dressed in a black and red jumpsuit with a bow over one shoulder and a quiver of arrows over the other.

Cole had once been a superhero named Midnight Thunder, chosen by the god Thor to be his avatar in the 70s. Now he was an old, overweight black man with a heart condition. Jamie suspected, but had no proof, that the mantle of Thor had passed to his daughter. Because Cobalt City was the sort of place where a black derby girl from New England with dreadlocks could be chosen as the physical manifestation of a Norse god.

That's cute. Their costumes match, Jamie's mom said, looking at Parker's mom and step-mom. I love it when couples do that. You guys should have coordinated costumes. You could have been the spiders from Mars or something, Jamie. Well, I'll go spend some time with the grown-ups. You girls have fun.

When Gloria was out of earshot, Parker said, Your mom fails at pop culture.

Jamie shrugged. I get the impression she was more of a bookworm at our age. Plus, she freaks out any time she hears about me getting into a fight, so she may not be on top of her game. She probably only kept her cool because you were here.

Parker wrapped her arm around Jamie, causing Jamie to instantly relax. Being with Parker always made things better. Enough about her. Let's talk about you. I thought you were going to wear a costume.

I am wearing a costume, Jamie said and pointed to her face. Cat ears. Black nose. Painted on whiskers.

Parker tugged at Jamie's shirt. Yeah, but jeans and a T-shirt. This is like something your mom would wear.

Well, if you don't want me here ... Jamie raised her hands and backed away with a laugh. She didn't admit out loud that she'd borrowed the cat ears from her mom, but she was fine giving Parker a hard time.

Skating closer, Parker leaned down and kissed Jamie on the cheek, caressing the short dreadlocks on the back of Jamie's head. I'll take you as you are. Just trying to get you to loosen up. Hey, since I'm eighteen now, does that make you jailbait?

Jamie leaned in and rested her head on Parker's shoulder. Maybe, but my birthday is less than a month away.

Awesome. I get to be a perv for a few weeks then. Parker paused and looked more closely at Jamie. You doing okay? You look pretty tired.

Jamie had hoped that Parker wouldn't notice but should have known better. Since she didn't want to ruin Parker's birthday party, she lied. Yeah. Just up late on patrol and stuff.

Parker smiled and kissed Jamie again. "I love it when you talk all sexy. Get some skates on. There's a bunch of Dolls here tonight. Even some Goblin Town girls, though they aren't officially part of my birthday party. But they're party adjacent."

Unlike Parker, Jamie didn't have her own skates, so she broke off and went to rent a pair. By the time she got to the rink, Parker was skating with a pack of other skaters from the Glass Eyed Dolls. The Dolls were a junior roller derby team, loosely associated with Cobalt City's adult league of derby girls, the Goblin Town Roller Girls. There were enough of the Dolls present for the team's spirit, a six foot tall baby doll on roller skates, to be visible to Jamie.

She ignored the spiritual mascot of the team just as she ignored the eight-foot-tall African American dressed like a Viking watching over the rink. Only Jamie could see these things, and she didn't want to tip her hand to having powers. Still, she suspected that a lot of the Glass Eyed Dolls were starting to suspect, given how weird Jamie's life could be.

They orbited the track for an hour, Crass Hopper, Awe Roarer, and Hailey Comet giving Jamie skating tips along the way. Jamie said little. She wasn't much of a talker to begin with. And even in the rink, the veil was just thin enough to allow spirits of skates, ball bearings, birthday wishes, and fountain sodas to nag at her senses. But holding hands with Parker and listening to the banter among the Dolls was worth the effort of going out that night.

~

As the evening wore on, the crowd thinned out. It was a Monday, and those who didn't call it an early night would be shooed out when open skate ended at nine. Skaters with the Goblin Town Roller Girls also showed up, since their practice time started when everyone else was going to bed.

At a quarter to nine, Jamie lazed on a bench with Parker while holding hands and sipping on a soda. She dreaded the point when she'd have to leave and immerse herself in the torrent of spirits that roiled outside. Parker had tried convincing Jamie to stay for the Goblin Town practice, but Jamie knew it would only get worse closer to midnight.

She was about to start making her excuses when she heard someone say, Oh, it's you.

Jamie looked up to see Tera Washington coasting on her skates in their direction with Gloria at her side.

Um, yeah. Jamie wanted to sound collected in the face of someone who had all but threatened to kill her. It often is.

Gloria came up and sat next to Jamie on the bench. Tera here was trying to talk me into signing up for Booty Camp to learn some basic derby skills. I take it you know Jamie?

Yeah, she shows up at a lot of the Dolls practices when I'm coaching. She helps time the penalty box when the girls scrimmage. Tera's expression was flat. Jamie had gotten advice about gods from Tera's dad, which had almost gotten the old man killed. They hadn't spoken about it in the month since it had happened, but Jamie was sure that the older woman held a grudge.

Can you imagine me in booty shorts and fishnets, Jamie? Gloria asked.

I'm ... I'm really trying not to.

Her mom playfully swatted at Jamie's arm. You're a brat.

Someone collided with Jamie as they sat on the bench, shoving Jamie into Parker and nearly knocking the soda out of Jamie's hand. Looking over she saw it was Parker's biological mother, Nicole. A few feet away stood Parker's step-mom, Laura.

Hey kids. Just making sure you're behaving yourselves. Don't want my little girl getting knocked up.

Jamie laughed, even though the joke was no longer new. I'll try my best.

Nicole turned her attention to Jamie's mom and Tera. Hey ladies! I didn't know you knew each other.

We just met, Gloria explained. Tera's trying to sell me on roller derby.

Go for it! If Laura and I weren't such klutzes and afraid of broken bones, we'd be right there with you.

See mom, Jamie said. You don't want broken bones. Just stop thinking about it.

Not everyone gets broken bones, Laura added. Just a lot of them. We just have an extreme aversion to pain.

I'm no stranger to personal injury, Gloria said. Jamie, I should tell you sometime about how a date with your dad ended with me getting shoved off the roof by a supervillain. I spent the night in the emergency room with a broken arm, leg, and three ribs.

Nicole covered her mouth and laughed nervously. Geez. Only in Cobalt City, huh?

Jamie leaned against Parker and sighed. It was one of the few times Gloria had mentioned Jamie's dad since they'd separated a month earlier, but it didn't leave Jamie hopeful for a reconciliation. Especially since Jamie suspected this story had something to do with her dad's former superhero career, which had killed the marriage long before the more formal separation.

It was moments like this where Jamie envied Parker's family. Nicole and Laura so clearly loved each other. The contrast to Jamie's own home life was sometimes painful. Jamie imagined it might have been less awesome when Nicole's marriage to Parker's father fell apart, but Parker insisted she had been too little to remember. Still, Jamie sometimes wondered if she and Parker could someday have a house and kids.

Jamie's romantic musings were interrupted by Nicole saying, That bastard.

Jamie turned to look as Nicole struggled back onto her feet while in skates and stormed toward the entrance while yelling, Disappears for fifteen years and now he bothers to show up?

A man in a suit had come in and was getting his bearings as he stood near the entrance. Laura seemed to recognize the man and hurried after Nicole. Jamie tried frantically to figure out who it was. Crime lord? Supervillain slumming it at a roller rink in West Key? She couldn't imagine what would get Parker's mom so upset. No haze of spirits lingered over him, as though they had all stepped aside for his arrival.

Nicole picked up an abandoned cup of soda and hurled it at the man before he realized it was happening. He got his arm up to block it, but it exploded on impact and splashed its sticky contents on him. Jamie stood, wondering how well she could fight on skates if it came to that. From Tera, she could smell ozone as the air became charged around her.

Nicki, the man protested, wiping soda off of his face. That's some way to say hello.

Anthony Fiorenza, you better turn right back around and leave, Nicole said. Or I swear I'll tear your face off.

Jamie turned to look back at Parker, things clicking in her head. Parker stared wide-eyed at the man, finally saying in a quiet voice, Daddy?

~

Jamie sat with her usual lunchtime crowd in the cafeteria: Parker, Justin Hayashi, and Ashley Jones. She was grateful that Parker was doing all the talking. It meant Jamie could stare into the distance, hand with spork poised above her food, and not talk to anyone. Under the table, they had hooked their ankles together so Parker could gesture as she talked.

I was totally intimidated. I mean, he showed up in a limo to come see me, Parker said. But we just went to Denny's and hung out. He told me about his adventures and travelling to Europe and coming into a family fortune. And he told me about all this stuff he was going to buy me. Like fencing lessons. I can go back to doing fencing! I mean, when I was little I hoped he'd show up and make me a fairy princess. But I never thought it would actually happen!

Jamie and her mom had left in the middle of the showdown between Parker's parents. Parker barely acknowledged Jamie's departure, only giving a distracted half kiss and not taking her eyes off of the yelling match at the entrance to the rink. Even going home early, though, Jamie's dreams were filled with nightmares of running through a ruined city while a great winged monster flapped overhead. Parker, on the other hand, had been up till four in the morning and was still bright and lively.

Justin asked, So does this mean your parents will be getting back together?

Parker frowned and said, You know my moms are gay and married, right?

Well, yeah, but she wasn't so gay that she didn't marry him once, Justin said.

Parker narrowed her eyes and aimed her spork at Justin. I don't care if you're student vice president. I will give you a Glasgow smile with this spork and sell your ass to the stoners in exchange for cigarettes.

But you don't smoke-- Justin stopped talking when Parker stood up in her chair.

Scrubbing her hands over her eyes, Jamie said, Sweetie, don't murder Justin.

It's not murder, it's just--

Jamie looked up, and Parker's tirade collapsed. Parker dropped back into her chair and said with exaggerated annoyance, Fine! I won't murder Justin...

Jamie gave Parker a peck on the cheek. Thank you. Now we won't have to clean up the mess. Parker leaned into the kiss and rubbed Jamie's back. So yeah. Fencing. Also? New skates.

Didn't you just buy new skates? Ashley asked.

Yeah, but these are Antiks!

Ashley looked confused, so Jamie said, They're really expensive skates worn by people who play roller derby.

Parker shrugged. Well, duh.

Ashley turned her attention back to her tray, poking around green beans with her spork. Well, that's more fun than my night. I got dragged to a harvest festival night organized by a sub-group of the Everymen.

Harvest festival? Parker asked around a mouthful of food.

It's through a Christian group. They call themselves the 'Godly Men' instead of Everymen. They don't like Halloween since it's too pagan.

What? Justin asked. You mean they don't think 'Harvest Festival' seems pagan?

I don't claim to understand them. My parents have just been big on Jesus and down on superheroes this month.

Justin shook his head. I'm glad Jodo Shinshu doesn't do crazy stuff like that.

Jamie and Parker exchanged looks. Justin was the only person at the table who didn't know that Jamie was a superhero and Ashley had recently been the avatar of the goddess Eris. Ashley had avoided going to jail thanks to some legal finagling and Jamie's endorsement. But that didn't mean much to Ashley's parents.

But on a happier note, Ashley said, did you guys hear about Wild Kat and Velvet being back in town?

Yeah, it came up when my mom was listening to Prather last night, Jamie said.