Track 61: Uncollected Anthology

By Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Kessa possesses only small magic. But her skills allow her to help those who wield bigger magic.

Her latest job takes her deep into the bowels of New York City's subway system, hunting for bits of history long since forgotten.

And what she finds deep down in the dark will both threaten her life and change it forever.

"Rusch is a great storyteller."

—RT Book Reviews

• Language: English
• Publisher: WMG Publishing
• Release date: May 19, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386752905

Kristine Kathryn Rusch

USA Today bestselling author Kristine Kathryn Rusch writes in almost every genre. Generally, she uses her real name (Rusch) for most of her writing. Under that name, she publishes bestselling science fiction and fantasy, award-winning mysteries, acclaimed mainstream fiction, controversial nonfiction, and the occasional romance. Her novels have made bestseller lists around the world and her short fiction has appeared in eighteen best of the year collections. She has won more than twenty-five awards for her fiction, including the Hugo, Le Prix Imaginales, the Asimov’s Readers Choice award, and the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine Readers Choice Award. Publications from The Chicago Tribune to Booklist have included her Kris Nelscott mystery novels in their top-ten-best mystery novels of the year. The Nelscott books have received nominations for almost every award in the mystery field, including the best novel Edgar Award, and the Shamus Award. She writes goofy romance novels as award-winner Kristine Grayson, romantic suspense as Kristine Dexter, and futuristic sf as Kris DeLake.  She also edits. Beginning with work at the innovative publishing company, Pulphouse, followed by her award-winning tenure at The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, she took fifteen years off before returning to editing with the original anthology series Fiction River, published by WMG Publishing. She acts as series editor with her husband, writer Dean Wesley Smith, and edits at least two anthologies in the series per year on her own. To keep up with everything she does, go to kriswrites.com and sign up for her newsletter. To track her many pen names and series, see their individual websites (krisnelscott.com, kristinegrayson.com, krisdelake.com, retrievalartist.com, divingintothewreck.com). She lives and occasionally sleeps in Oregon.

Book preview

Track 61

TRACK 61

KRISTINE KATHRYN RUSCH

WMG Publishing, Inc.

CONTENTS

Track 61

Newsletter sign-up

Also by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

About the Author

TRACK 61

Kessa ran as fast as she could, her Nikes slipping on the dirt beside the subway rails. The stranger ran just behind her. He would have passed her several times, if he hadn’t stopped to let the occasional silver arrow fly into the darkness. More than once, those arrows—which whistled as they streamed through the thick air—hit their mark, resulting in a thunk followed by an audible grunt .

But the pounding footsteps behind them continued. Apparently, the thing that chased them could keep running with half a dozen silver arrows sticking out of its ugly body.

That body, black and rocky, glowed red beneath the surface. Its eyes also glowed red and the areas around those arrows glowed red as well. The thing had two arms and two legs, and was the size of a professional basketball player that had swallowed a line backer. She would have thought that something that big would also have been slow and lumbering, but noooo. It had speed, it had power, and it had—an odor.

It smelled like hot tar, and the closer the thing got, the more it sucked the air out of the subway tunnel.

Kessa kept an arm out for balance, fingers brushing the stone wall, grime greasy against her skin. She wasn’t sure how long she could run like this—she was in great shape, yes, but she wasn’t a superhero or even an augmented human. Her magic didn’t come from her body; it came from her mind and her emotions, and that worried her, as the exhaustion started to set in.

Another arrow whistled. Seconds later, another thunk, followed by yet another grunt.

Dammit, the stranger said as he caught up to her. What the hell is that thing?

Her breath was coming shallowly now. Demon, she said.

No kidding. The stranger didn’t sound winded at all. What kind of demon?

If she could have shrugged, she would have. An ugly demon?

"You don’t know?"

"I didn’t get its credentials before