"Holly Lisle - Sympathy for the Devil" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lisle Holly)

Sympathy for the Devil

by Holly Lisle
Copyright ┬й 1996 by Holly Lisle




ISBN: 0-671-87703-8

Cover art by Clyde Caldwell

First printing, January 1996
 Dedication

For Mark Twain and C.S. Lewis, who introduced me to this
territory when I was nine; and in memory of Cathy Kelchner, my
long-time friend, who lived long enough to see this project, but
not to its completion. I miss you, Cathy.
 Acknowledgements

Special thanks to my friends,
Bill Mullis and Keith Brinegar, who were willing to die for
the cause; and to Bill Cleveland, Kerri Walters,
Cathy Lovato, and Walter Spence, whose shrewd insights
and wonderful critiques changed the direction of the book
and made it infinitely better than it was.
 How can Hell exist if there is a Heaven, or Heaven if there is a
Hell?
 A Damned Hard Way To Die
Dayne flopped onto the couch, grabbed the remote, and flipped
through the TV channels. There was nothing but news on. тАЬWhat the
hellтАФтАЭ She saw something football-like flash onto the screen.
The Duke Blue Devils and the UNC Tarheels were on the field,
and the Tarheel quarterback threw a beautiful long bomb down the
fieldтАФand some huge guy in an obscene bright-red devil suit, with a
pitchfork, no less, appeared out of nowhere and speared the
football out of mid-air.
There was a cut to an anchorman who stood panting in front of
the camera, his usually perfect hair mussed and his tie crooked. тАЬAll
across the state, we have similar reports. We take you to the
Ashboro Fan Faire where two deaths have been confirmed.тАЭ
A reporter appeared, her face set in the fake-grim expression TV
reporters always seemed to wear. тАЬThe final event of the Fan Faire
ended in tragedy today when two filk singers performing тАШI Wanna
Be SeducedтАЩ were set upon by a bevy of what seemed to be nude
women who attempted to seduce them on stage. Klingon security
officers and men and women in Star Fleet uniforms acted quickly to
restore order, but it was too late. The women turned out to be
neither injured . . . nor women. In this interview, taped earlier, I talk