Darkening Dawn (The Lockman Chronicles Book 5) by Rob Cornell

aspects of the paranormal. She would also enter chat rooms under false identities, questioning those who claimed they came from planes other than the mortal one. Most of these fools, after a couple questions, revealed themselves as posers, wannabes. She could understand their desire to be something other than human, but pretending on the computer would never change their sorry existence.
    The flashing that caught Elka’s attention came from a small chat window indicating she had a new message.
    Elka took a long drag on her cigarette, then took it from her lips. She exhaled a thick stream of smoke that curled like a spirit from the Beyond while she stared at the screen across the room. Her heartbeat quickened. A light, ticklish feeling filled her chest. While she couldn’t read the text of the message from where she stood, she could make out the username above the window displayed in larger type.
    UniLover69.
    She had long since gotten over the ridiculous handle. UniLover had always given Elka good material he—or she; the user on the other side of the chat window never specified—found around the web. Not all of it relevant to Elka’s goals—she didn’t get too specific with her sources in case word of her queries ended up in the wrong hands—but all of it real . None of the bullshit the posers wanted to pass off as “amazing proof of the supernatural.”
    The message box winked at her, beckoned her.
    The smell of cigarette smoke curled into Elka’s nose. For some reason it smelled richer to her, almost sweet. She drew on the cigarette, savoring the taste, which had also changed, carrying the same sweetness as the smell. Mortals would pass off such quirks of the senses without a thought of their significance. Elka knew, though, that these moments were small premonitions. Magical instinct.
    UniLover69 had something important for her. Something momentous.
    The possibility of good news in the wake of such a clusterfuck she’d had with Kenny locked Elka in place, in a sort of giddy trance. She could be misinterpreting the signs. With her hopes up, she was afraid to read the message and find another interesting but irrelevant piece of information. As long as she stood there doing nothing, she could avoid such disappointment.
    Something bit Elka between her index and middle finger. She shook off her hand and her cigarette butt went flying across the room. She had let it burn to the filter without even noticing. The butt landed on the cheap shag carpet and smoldered.
    For the sake of the Great Beyond, was she bent on burning this place down?
    She rushed to the cigarette and stomped it with her bare heel. It stung for a moment, but little pains like that never stuck with Elka long. She had suffered far worse in her lifetime.
    From the open window came the sound of the El train clacking and squealing along the tracks. Someone screamed, but the scream broke into an androgynous titter worthy of the Mad Hatter.
    Sounds of the city.
    A city Elka had learned to love. One she thought she could finally settle into for the long haul. At least until her life’s mission had reached its final stage.
    Damn you, Kenny. You piece of annoying shit.
    Mortals like Kenny made some others seem almost tolerable.
    She shook aside her frustration and pushed herself straight to the computer, past any hesitation that might trip her up again.
    Hand on the mouse, Elka leaned forward and read the message.
    UniLover69: Got a linky U might want 2 check out.
    The message was followed by a shrunken link, so she had no idea where it might take her based on the web address. Normally, this would mean an automatic delete. UniLover had earned an exception to this rule for his/her good track record.
    She clicked the link.
    Surprisingly, it led her to YouTube. This sight almost never had any legitimate videos on the supernatural. The real stuff stayed hidden on private web pages, often requiring a login, and run by those who knew what kind of negative attention