Fall of Darkness (The Chronicles of Darkness) Read Online Free

Kate punched in her
pass code and descended into the underground parking lot of the apartment
building where she and Lindsey leased a tiny two bedroom unit. She weaved her
way through the lanes of reserved parking, winding deeper and deeper into the
garage to the guest and overflow parking.
    Water’s Edge boasted a fifty story
building in the Lakeshore East area of the city, complete with deluxe
accommodations and a superfluous list of amenities. Situated at the point in
the city where the Chicago River met Lake Michigan, the luxurious complex
offered breathtaking views of the water, Lakeshore East Park, and the city.
    What they didn’t offer was great
parking. With an envious sigh, she passed Lindsey’s shiny red Lexus tucked into
the reserved parking space right next to their elevator. It was part of the
trade off. Lindsey staked her claim on the reserved parking spot and Kate got
the bigger room. At the time, Kate thought she was getting the better end of
the deal, but the parking situation at their building sometimes brought on more
than a twinge of regret. Her tiny car could get awfully comfortable in their
reserved spot right about now.
    Kate slid into a stall about as far from
the entrance as she could get. Oh well. She climbed out of her car, and hoofed
it toward the elevator. Before she knew it, she was rising in the glass box
overlooking the park.
    This was her favorite time of year. The
leaves were transitioning to rich shades of red, orange, yellow and brown,
painting a masterpiece with their color and contrast. The views alone made the
apartment well worth the extra money.
    Reaching her door, she embarked on the
never ending search for her keys. She patted her pockets and sighed as she rummaged
through her bottomless purse. After a few minutes of fruitless digging, she knelt
on the welcome rug, turned her purse upside down, and shook the contents onto
the ground. Gum, mascara, hand sanitizer…
    A-ha , she knew they were in there somewhere.
Snatching the keys out of the pile of purse rubble, she stuffed the jumbled
items back into her bag. Unlocking and opening the door, she stepped into the
welcoming warmth of their apartment.    
    The common areas of their place always
looked like a page from a Pottery Barn catalogue. All Lindsey’s doing,
definitely not Kate’s. She tried, but she counted herself lucky if her clothes
and shoes matched, let alone a whole decorating scheme.
    She found Lindsey sprawled out on her
stomach on the floor of their living room, casually flipping through a fashion
magazine, her pale blonde bob bouncing along to the music blaring from her
iPod.
    Lindsey was lovely in a classic American
beauty kind of way. Her natural honey blonde hair was cropped into the latest
posh style some ‘it’ celebrity sported and her bright blue eyes were rimmed
with thick, dark lashes. Her dainty five foot two, one-hundred-pounds-when-dripping-wet
figure remained tauntingly unaffected by an aversion to exercise and a serious
junk food addiction.
    All that blonde perfection would’ve been
so easy to hate, but the two of them had been best friends since freshman year
of college. Kate really shouldn’t compare herself to perfect little mutants
like Lindsey anyway.
    Lindsey glanced up from her magazine and
smiled, tugging the buds out of her ears. “Hey, Kate. The dead still dead?” she
greeted cheerfully, watching Kate as she kicked off her shoes and peeled off
her jacket.
    Kate returned her greeting and waited
for the avalanche to start. She wasn’t disappointed.
    “So… do you have plans tonight?”
    “Why?” Kate asked, studying her friend
through narrowed eyes. Lindsey was perpetually trying to play matchmaker with
Kate’s nonexistent love life.
    Lindsey studied her cuticles in
discomfort. Kate shook her head. Not a good sign. Lindsey shrugged.
    “No reason. Can’t a girl just want to
spend a night out with her friend?” Lindsey asked all wide-blue-eyed innocence.
    “If that’s what