Jennifer Estep - 03 Venom, WSZYSTKO
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GIN BLANCO HAS CRITICS SNARED IN HER WEB
!
More praise for Jennifer Estep’s thrilling Elemental Assassin series
SPIDER’S BITE
“Bodies litter the pages of this first entry in Estep’s engrossing Elemental Assassin series.… Urban
Fantasy fans will love it.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“When it comes to work, Estep’s newest heroine is brutally efficient and very pragmatic, which
gives the new Elemental Assassin series plenty of bite. Shades of gray rule in this world where
magic and murder are all too commonplace. The gritty tone of this series gives Estep a chance to
walk on the darker side. Kudos to her for the knife-edged suspense!”
—
Romantic Times
“The fast pace, clever dialogue, and intriguing heroine help make this new series launch by the
author of the Bigtime paranormal romance series one to watch.”
—
Library Journal
“Loaded with action and intrigue, the story is strong and exciting.… With a knock-out, climactic
ending and a surprising twist that I didn’t see coming, I was definitely impressed. This dark, urban
fantasy series has a promising start.”
—SciFiChick.com
“Electrifying! Jennifer Estep really knows how to weave a fantasy tale that will keep you reading
way past your bedtime.”
—ReadingwithMonie.com
The Elemental Assassin titles are also available as eBooks
“
Spider’s Bite
is a raw, gritty, and compelling walk on the wild side, one that had me hooked from
the first page. Jennifer Estep has created a fascinating heroine in the morally ambiguous Gin Blanco
—I can’t wait to read the next chapter of Gin’s story.”
—Nalini Singh,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Archangel’s Kiss
“Watch out world, here comes Gin Blanco. Funny, smart, and dead sexy.”
—Lilith Saintcrow, author of
Flesh Circus
“I love rooting for the bad guy—especially when she’s also the heroine.
Spider’s Bite
is a sizzling
combination of mystery, magic, and murder. Kudos to Jennifer Estep!”
—Jackie Kessler, author of
Shades of Gray
“Jennifer Estep is a dark, lyrical, and fresh voice in urban fantasy. Brimming with high-octane–
fueled action, labyrinthine conspiracies, and characters who will steal your heart,
Spider’s Bite
is an
original, fast-paced, tense, and sexy read. Gin is an assassin to die for.”
—Adrian Phoenix, author of
Black Dust Mambo
“A sexy and edgy thriller that keeps you turning the pages. In
Spider’s Bite,
Jennifer Estep turns up
the heat and suspense with Gin Blanco, an assassin whose wit is as sharp as her silverstone knives.
… She’ll leave no stone unturned and no enemy breathing in her quest for revenge.
Spider’s Bite
leaves you dying for more.”
—Lisa Shearin, national bestselling author of
Bewitched and Betrayed
KARMA GIRL
“Chick lit meets comics lit in Estep’s fresh debut.… A zippy prose style helps lift this zany caper far
above the usual run of paranormal romances.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“Secret identities and superpowers take on a delightful and humorous twist in Estep’s exciting
debut. Fun and sexy.… Here’s hoping for more Bigtime adventures from this impressive talent.”
—
Romantic Times
“Hilarious and, an even better trick, real.… Who among us can say we’d seize our destiny the way
brokenhearted Carmen does?
Karma Girl
kicks ass!”
—MaryJanice Davidson,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Undead and Unfinished
“Outrageously entertaining. Jennifer Estep’s exciting new voice will leap into readers’ hearts in a
single bound.”
—Rachel Gibson,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Nothing But Trouble
HOT MAMA
“Snappy and diverting.”
—
Entertainment Weekly
“Smokin’.… Feverishly clever plotting fuels Estep’s over-the-top romance.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“It’s back to Bigtime, NY, for more sexy, sizzling and offbeat adventures with those zany
superheroes. Estep’s twist on the world of superheroes is kick-ass fun!”
—
Romantic Times
PREVIOUS BOOKS IN
THE ELEMENTAL ASSASSIN SERIES
BY JENNIFER ESTEP
Spider’s Bite
Web of Lies
The sale of this book without its cover is unauthorized. If you purchased this book without a cover,
you should be aware that it was reported to the publisher as “unsold and destroyed.” Neither the
author nor the publisher has received payment for the sale of this “stripped book.”
Pocket Books
A Division of Simon & Schuster,
Inc.
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the
author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons,
living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2010 by Jennifer Estep
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form
whatsoever. For information address Pocket Books Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of
the Americas, New York, NY 10020
First Pocket Books paperback edition October 2010
POCKET and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster
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Cover design and illustration by Tony Mauro
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN 978-1-4391-4801-3
ISBN 978-1-4391-5545-5 (ebook)
As always, this book is dedicated to my mom, grandma,
and Andre. Your love and support make me a better person.
Acknowledgments
Once again, my heartfelt thanks go out to all the folks who help turn my crazy words into a real
book.
Thanks to my super agent, Annelise Robey, and to my equally super editors, Megan McKeever and
Lauren McKenna, for all their editorial advice, input, and encouragement. Writing about Gin
wouldn’t be nearly as much fun without your support.
Thanks to everyone who read the rough draft of
Venom
and helped me with a plot point. Your
comments were insightful and greatly appreciated.
And finally, to all the readers out there. It’s been a pleasure sharing Gin and her adventures with
you.
Happy reading!
1
The bastards never even would have gotten close to me if I hadn’t had the flu.
Coughing, sneezing, aching, wheezing. That was me. Gin Blanco. Restaurant owner. Stone and Ice
elemental. Former assassin. And all-around badass. Laid low by a microbe.
It had started as a small, ominous tickle in my throat three days ago. And now, well, it wasn’t pretty.
Watery eyes. Pale face. And a nose so red and bright even Rudolph would have been jealous. Ugh.
The only reason I’d even crawled out of bed this evening was to come down to Ashland Community
College and take the final for the classic literature class I was auditing. I’d finished my essay on
symbolism in
The Odyssey
ten minutes ago. Now I plodded across one of the grassy campus quads
and feverishly dreamed of sinking back into my bed and not getting out of it for a week.
Just after seven on a cold, clear December night. This was the last day of finals for the semester, and
the campus was largely deserted. Only a few lights burned in the windows of the kudzu-covered
brick buildings that rose above my head. The stones whispered of formulas, theories, and
knowledge. An old, sonorous, slightly pretentious sound that was decidedly at odds with the sinister
shadows that blackened most of the quad. No one else was within sight. Which is probably why
they decided to jump me here. Well, that and the fact that kidnapping me would be such a
bother.
One second I had my face buried in a tissue blowing my sore, drippy nose for the hundredth time
today. The next, I looked up to find myself surrounded by three giants.
Oh, fuck.
I stopped, and they immediately closed ranks, forming a loose triangle of trouble around me. The
giants were all around seven feet tall, with oversize, buglike eyes and fists almost as big as my
head. One of them grinned at me and cracked his knuckles. Someone was anxious to get down to
the business of beating me.
My gray eyes flicked to the leader of the group, who had taken up a position in front of me—Elliot
Slater. Slater was the tallest of the three giants, his enormous figure making even his flunkies seem
small in comparison. He was almost as wide as he was tall, with a solid, muscled frame. Granite
would be easier to break than his ribs. Slater’s complexion was pale, bordering on albino, and
almost seemed to glow in the faint light. His hazel eyes provided a bit of color in his chalky skin,
although his thin, tousled thatch of blond hair did little to cover his large skull. A diamond in his
pinkie ring sparkled like a star in the dark night.
Up until my retirement a few months ago, I’d moonlighted as an assassin known as the Spider. Over
the years, I’d had plenty of dealings in the shady side of life, so I knew Slater by sight and
reputation. On paper, Elliot Slater was a highly respected security consultant with his own platoon
of giant bodyguards. In reality, Slater was the number-one enforcer for Mab Monroe, the Fire
elemental who ran the Southern metropolis of Ashland like it was her own personal fiefdom. Slater
stepped in and either cut off, took care of, or permanently disposed of any pesky problems Mab
didn’t feel like dealing with herself.
And tonight it looked like that problem was me.
Not surprising. A couple of weeks ago, I’d stiffed someone during a party at Mab Monroe’s
mansion. Needless to say, the Fire elemental hadn’t been too thrilled about one of her guests being
murdered in her own home when she’d been entertaining a few hundred of her closest business
associates. I’d gotten away with it so far, but I knew Mab was doing everything in her power to find
the killer. To find
me.
I sniffled into my tissue. I wondered if Mab had figured out who I really was. If that was why Slater
was here tonight—
Elliot Slater looked over his broad shoulder. “Is this her?”
Slater slid to one side so another man, a much shorter human, could join the circle of giants
surrounding me. Underneath his classic trench coat, the man wore a perfect black suit, and his
polished wingtips gleamed like wet ink in the semidarkness. His thick mane of gunmetal gray hair
resembled a heavy mantle of silver that had somehow been swirled and sculpted around his head.
Too bad hate made his brown eyes look like congealed lumps of blood in his smooth, tight face.
I recognized him too. Jonah McAllister. On paper, McAllister was the city’s premiere attorney, a
charming, bellicose defense lawyer capable of getting the most vicious killer off scot-free—for the
right price. In reality, the slick attorney was another one of Mab Monroe’s top goons, just like Elliot
Slater was. Jonah McAllister was Mab’s personal lawyer, responsible for burying her enemies in
legal red tape instead of in the ground like Slater did.
McAllister’s son, Jake, was the one I’d murdered at Mab’s party. The twentysomething, beefy frat
boy had threatened to rape and murder me, among other things. I’d considered killing him pest
extermination more than anything else.
Elliot Slater and Jonah McAllister tag-teaming me. This night just kept getting better and better. I
sniffled again. Really should have stayed home in bed.
Jonah McAllister regarded me with cold eyes. “Oh, yes. That’s her. The lovely Ms. Gin Blanco. The
bitch who was giving my boy a hard time.”
A hard time? I supposed so, if you thought turning him in to the cops for attempted robbery,
breaking a plate full of food in his face, and ultimately stabbing Jake McAllister to death was a hard
time. But I noticed that Jonah McAllister didn’t say anything about me actually
killing
his son.
Hmm. Looked like this was some sort of fishing expedition. I decided to play along—for now.
“What is this meeting all about?” My voice came out somewhere between a whiny wheeze and a
phlegmy rasp. “Are you taking up Jake’s bad habit of assaulting innocent people?”
Jonah McAllister’s face hardened at my insult. As much as it could, anyway. Despite his sixty-some
years, McAllister’s features were as smooth as polished marble, thanks to a vigorous regimen of
expensive Air elemental facial treatments. “I would hardly consider you innocent, Ms. Blanco. And
you’re the one who assaulted my precious boy first.”
“Your
precious boy
came into my restaurant, tried to rob me, and almost killed two of my customers
with his Fire elemental magic.” I spat out the words, along with some phlegm. “All I did was
defend myself. What does it matter now anyway? Your boy is dead because of some weird heart
condition. At least, that’s what was in the newspaper.”
Jonah McAllister stared at me, trying to see if I knew more than I was letting on about his son’s
untimely demise. I used the lull to blow my nose—again. Fucking microbes.
McAllister’s mouth twisted with disgust at the sight and sound of my sniffles. Admittedly, it wasn’t
my most attractive moment. He jerked his head at Elliot Slater, who nodded back.
“Now, Ms. Blanco,” Slater drawled. “The reason for this meeting is that Mr. McAllister thought you
might have some information about his son’s death. Jake did have a bit of a heart condition, but
there were also some suspicious circumstances surrounding his passing. Happened a couple of
weeks ago.”
Suspicious circumstances? I assumed that was polite talk for a sucking stab wound to the chest. But
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