Demon Hunters by JKMelby74 Read Free Book Online Page B

teeth towering over us. It thrust
forward suddenly and smashed against the stone pillars, breaking
them and sending dust and debris all around. Ivar and I bolted away
as quickly as we could, but the worm dug into the ground and
burrowed across the field and popped back up before we could get
clear of the church. The worm seemed to ignore Ivar and lurched
toward me.
    “Jake!” I looked to him as he tossed me two
big silver guns. I fell back as I caught them. They fell into my
hands and almost without thinking I squeezed off a smooth round
right into the worm’s head. Blood and flesh rained down from above
and the worm fell to the ground and slid back into the darkness
from where it came.
    “What the Hell was that? Was that the
demon?”
    “No. That was a death worm. They’re
scavengers that hunt along ruins and dead cities,” I held Ivar’s
guns back to him. “Keep them. I think you’ll need them more than I
will.” We headed back to the car and as I slid into my seat, I
noticed Ivar looking at me oddly.
    “What?”
    “You do care.”
    “Excuse me?”
    “You bluster a lot about how you don’t care
about your family, but you do.”
    “If anything, that whole mess proves my
point! A giant worm almost swallowed me because of this stupid
family legacy.”
    “I saw your tears.” I could detect a slight
smugness to his tone. I shot him a dirty look and he started the
car and drove back to the highway.
    As we continued, I was plagued by images I
had seen back at the church. Ghosts of my mind that I thought were
buried deep were screaming back at me. I wasn’t even totally sure
about what I recalled. They were just flashes and impressions. I
couldn’t for the life of me actually remember holding my mother’s
hand as she died. Another reason I spurned the past. I could never
get a straight story out of it. I noticed the car slowing down and
then it stopped.
    “What now?”
    “Breakfast.” I looked forward and saw that
we had stopped in front of a little roadside diner called
‘Snootch’s’. We got out and I noticed how quiet it was. I checked
my watch and it was just a little past five. Way past the lunch
rush.
    I followed Ivar into Snootch’s and the warm
air wrapped around me like a fist. I could smell cinnamon in the
air and hear eggs frying in the kitchen. The place was real down
home. Flowery wallpaper with folksy art crafts hung around the
dining room and handmade centerpieces on the tables with the gentle
twang of country music playing over the speakers. We walked up to
the hostess who greeted us with a cheery bright smile.
    “Good morning to you. Welcome to Snootch’s.
How many?”
    “Just the two of us.” Ivar said.
    “All righty. Follow me,” She plucked two
laminated menus out of a wooden box behind her. She led us to a
small booth in the back and as we slid in, she set the menus down
in front of us. “May I get you something to drink? Coffee? Orange
juice?”
    “Coffee.” We both said together. Our hostess
nodded happily and trotted off.
    “How long were we driving?”
    “A few hours. You seemed pretty deep in
thought. Not that I blame you.”
    “Where are we?” Ivar leaned aside and pulled
out his map and laid it down on the table.
    “We’re still in California. A few miles
outside of Needles.”
    “Where are we headed?”
    “The Nevada desert.”
    “Could you be more specific? Are we going to
Vegas?”
    “This isn’t GPS. I’m following where the
energy guides me. When we get closer to our destination, I’m sure
it will become clearer.”
    Our hostess returned with two steaming cups
of coffee and she set them down with a smile and returned to her
post. I noticed the front door swing open and I felt my heart skip
a beat but it was just a large trucker lumbering in. I turned back
to Ivar.
    “You think it’s following us?”
    “I’m positive of it. It knows where we are.
It was a part of you for a long time. Can’t you still feel it?”
    “A little, I guess. If it knows