Page 53 of Haunting the Hunter

I feel my face turn red—no one has ever looked at me this way. He looks… hungry. I hate to admit that the way he looks at me makes my body react.

I quickly pull my shirt on and slip into my house slippers, then head to the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee. I find Jack sitting at the table eating cereal.

“Morning,” I say in a husky morning voice.

“Good morning.” He doesn’t sound like his usual chipper self. What if he is experiencing side effects from yesterday? I need to find out how being possessed affects the human body.

“You look like shit. How are you feeling?” I say, trying to sound like myself—but it’s forced.

“I’m just tired. Like I said, I think I’m just getting sick.”

“Do you have any updates from Cade?” I ask, sitting down next to him.

“Yeah, Allen was arrested on a DUI. I looked into his police report. He’s set to be released later today. This is his first infraction, so they’ll be fining him and most likely suspending his license.”

“A DUI? At least he’ll be easier to track, then,” I say with forced cheer.

“Calli, Allen won’t be leaving Vegas alive. But I think you knew that.”

“Yeah… This is kind of fucked-up.”

“You wanted to be part of this. You know he’s doing what he has to in order to keep you safe.” Jack’s tone is sincere, but a warning, and I shrink into myself a bit. He’s right. I wanted this, I begged Cade for this. I wanted him to understand—to trust me.

“Do you think I could take the truck into town?”

“You know I can’t let you go alone. Cade wou—”

I quickly cut him off. “Cade isn’t here, and you’re sick. I can get medicine and some soup. I just need to clear my head… Please, Jack.” I give him my best puppy-dog eyes, and he gives in.

“Just don’t get into any trouble,” he says with an eye roll and a sigh.

I smile and pull the keys off the hook on the wall behind him.

“I’ll be back in an hour,” I say, running to my room to grab my bag and hurrying out the door.

I hop in the driver’s seat and start the truck, slowly pulling out of the driveway—it’s been a while since I’ve driven.

I get about fifty feet away from the house when I hear: “So where are we going?”

I jump in my seat, the truck skidding and jerking to a stop.

“What the fuck! Don’t do that!” I gasp, trying to calm the initial shock, my hand pressed to my chest.

“Thought you weren’t allowed to leave by yourself—big brother’s orders. I’m helping keep you out of trouble,” he says, sarcasm dripping from his words.

“I don’t need a babysitter. I want to be alone.”

The demon quirks a brow, unconvinced.

“Did you forget what I said? We are bound. I couldn’t leave you if I wanted to. The sooner you accept that, the easier this will be.”

“I highly doubt that. But I do have a question.” I continue down the road, accepting my unwanted ride-along.

“Shoot.”

“You possessed Jack yesterday. Are there any lingering effects? Is he in any danger?”

“Depends. I don’t possess human flesh often, so I’m not as skilled as some of my brethren. He’ll most likely feel fatigued and sick to his stomach, or his internal organs could start to shut down. It differs based on the length of the possession, or how often it occurs and if the vessel is willing.”