Page 26 of Waste (Legendary Shifters #4)

Shelley

It had been four weeks since she’d last seen Drew.

Since then, she had both her casts off and had found another job.

Shelley hadn’t seen Ghoul either, and she guessed they believed their spell had worked.

Meanwhile, Jo had completely melted down over the lawsuits she was facing and had a public breakdown.

She was currently in a psychiatric ward, and Shelley wished her all the best.

She wasn’t sure if this was one of Jo’s plays or not, but Shelley had more important things to worry about. Hopefully, Jo had learned her lesson. However, Shelley currently had a problem she was unsure how to solve.

A guy eyed her up as she sipped her coffee that morning. He was smartly dressed and clearly had money, but she wasn’t fond of his smile or the way he stared at her.

She moved her gaze away and stared out of the window, wishing he’d catch on. Sadly, it didn’t work. Shelley heard footsteps, which stopped close by.

“Is this seat free?” a man asked, and Shelley glanced up to see it was the guy she’d been hoping would get the hint.

“Umm…” Shelley replied as she looked about her. There were other empty tables he could take a seat at. As she struggled to find a polite way to suggest that he sit at one of them, he yanked a chair out and sat.

“Oh,” Shelley exclaimed, surprised.

“Sweetheart, I got the feeling you’d say no, and I really didn’t want to hear a rejection.” He smiled at her. “I’m David.” David cocked his head, waiting for her to give her name.

“Sorry, I don’t give my name out to strangers,” Shelley replied.

David smiled. “I can understand that. Too many weirdos around lately.”

“Oh, you do not know,” Shelley muttered, and David sent her an interested look.

“Sounds like you’ve got a story, mystery lady.” “Doesn’t everyone?” Shelley asked, and David laughed again.

“Most do, yes. I’ll call you Mystery for now. Tell me about yourself, Mystery.”

Shelley made a face. She hated talking about herself. “There’s not much to say.”

“Sure there is. Where do you work?”

“In a coffee shop. What about you?” Shelley asked politely.

“I work in finance. It can be quite an exciting job,” David said.

“I imagine so, excuse me—”

“Don’t leave, Mystery. It’s taken me some courage to sit next to you. I’ve seen you a couple of times in here, but you seemed so sad and troubled. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“Well, I’m recovering from a bad car crash. I guess that’s what you picked up on, and then I had a second accident, which left me with a head injury,” Shelley replied.

“Damn! That’s a lot to deal with. Was all that recent?” David asked. Shelley noted a look in his eyes that sent tingles down her spine. This wasn’t as casual as David was making out. He was taking note of everything.

“Last few months, yes.”

“Tragic. I hope you’re okay now?”

“Perfectly well, thank you.”

“Let’s change the subject. What do you like to read?”

Shelley frowned. David made it sound as if they were on a date. “I have to get to work. I really don’t have time for this; I’m sorry.”

“Okay, Shel… Mystery. Take care of yourself,” David recovered smoothly, but Shelley caught his slip. David knew exactly who she was.

“Goodbye,” Shelley stated quickly, rising to her feet.

“Can I have your phone number?” Davis asked.

“No. I don’t give it to strangers.”

“But how will we become friends if we can’t chat?” David pressed.

“That’s kind of you, but I’ve got enough friends.

Have a nice day,” Shelley said and grabbed her coffee, heading for the door.

As she neared it, she peered in the mirror on the wall.

David observed her with a predatory look on his face.

Shelley almost ran out but just managed to control the urge. David was more than he seemed.

◆◆◆

“Well, good to see you again, Mystery,” David said to Shelley two days later as she sat with her morning coffee. Shelley’s heart sank as she offered a weak smile. Before she could say anything, David had pulled a chair out and sat. Shelley just about held back the frown she was feeling.

“Hello.”

“How are you? Busy at work?” David asked, leaning back and relaxing.

“Yes, very and you?”

“The same. I had some early-morning meetings over the last two days. I was a bear with a sore head because I hadn’t had my coffee fix. The office serves swill; nobody drinks it unless they’re desperate.”

“That’s a shame.”

“I’ve been reading a great book. Do you read?”

Shelley’s mind spun at the change of conversation direction, and she wondered what David was after.

“I have an e-reader, so yes,” Shelley said, motioning to the table.

David let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Yeah, that was dumb, wasn’t it?”

Shelley smiled. “It was a bit.”

“I’m not usually this clumsy talking to women. But you make me nervous, and I’m trying to be all suave and sophisticated, and I’m coming across like a country bumpkin,” David admitted.

“I don’t know why! I’m not very scary,” Shelley exclaimed.

“Because I like you and wanted to get to know you, and instead, I’m fumbling everything.”

“Ah, um, I don’t date, David, sorry.”

“You don’t?” David sounded surprised. “But you’re beautiful!”

Shelley laughed and shook her head. “That is one thing I’m not. Thank you for the compliment, though. But I’m not dating at the moment, and I wouldn’t want to waste your time.”

“Bad breakup?” David asked with a gleam in his eye.

“No, just have different priorities right now. I’ve plenty of time to date,” Shelley ducked the question. Was this a journalist? A Hunter? Her stalker? Something was definitely off with David.

“You’re wary, I get it. I’m a stranger. Tell me what you’re reading,” David demanded.

Shelley cocked an eyebrow.

“If we talk, then we’ll become friends,” David explained. “And I know you said you had enough friends, but my nan always claimed you could never have too many.”

“I’m reading a factual book by a former newspaper reporter. He’s speculating about Atlantis existing and is showing common links between ancient civilisations,” Shelley replied after a long pause.

“Wow, I didn’t expect that,” David exclaimed.

“Why? Because I’m a blonde?”

“No! But that’s some heavy reading. Do you believe in Atlantis?”

“Yeah. I think we lost a civilisation somewhere down the line. This author makes so many logical connections that it all slots together neatly,” Shelley replied.

David smiled at the faint enthusiasm she allowed to show. “You like the subject. I can see it in your eyes. You do believe.”

“Yes, I’m not ashamed to say so either.”

“What about the paranormal? Do you believe in that?”

Hunter! Shelley thought.

“No, not really. If vampires and witches existed, we’d have seen evidence by now. They make for good fiction, but that’s all,” Shelley replied calmly.

“You believe in Atlantis but not in that?”

“There is evidence that Atlantis existed. But the paranormal? Okay, some of those ghost videos are compelling, but nothing else,” Shelley said.

“Wow, you’re a hard sell! I believe there are things out there we can’t explain,” David responded.

“I think science will sooner or later explain everything, and we’ll lose some of our innocence and wonder. But I don’t believe in ghouls and ghosties.”

“Although you might believe in ghosts!” David teased, but his eyes were serious, and Shelley made note of that.

“Okay, I don’t believe in vampires, werewolves, ghoulies, and whatnot. Ghosts, however, there does seem to be some tenuous evidence towards their existence.”

“Ah, you’re a lady who needs to see something to believe in it,” David asked.

“Yes, let’s be serious for a moment. If dragons existed, where are their bones? And vampires? What about zombies? Why has one never been captured? I love a good horror story, but I don’t believe in them. Although the film that scares me silly is The Shining.”

“Good old Jack!” David agreed. “That film is a classic for a reason.”

“I agree.” Shelley glanced at her phone. “Thanks for the company, but I’ve got to go. Have a great day.”

“You too.”

As Shelley headed out, she saw David exchange a look with another guy at a different table. The guy shook his head, and David nodded. Damn, there had been two of them. Shelley wondered if she’d fooled them enough. She’d know tomorrow if David turned up.

◆◆◆

“Here, I brought you this to read. You can keep it. I bought two copies by accident,” David said the next day.

Shelley’s heart sank. She hadn’t convinced him she knew nothing. “Hi and thanks. What is it?”

“A book on paranormals.”

Shelley pushed it back towards David. “I don’t think it’s my type of thing.”

“Aw, come on, you might find yourself opening your mind,” David teased.

“Honestly, I don’t want to be rude, but I really don’t believe in the paranormal,” Shelley said.

David flicked through the book and showed Shelley a picture. “That’s Goody Glover. She was a real-life witch who was hanged at Salem.”

Shelley leaned forward and looked at the picture. “Such a shame; she was probably a scapegoat for something.”

David laughed. “You’re hard to convince. This book doesn’t deal with the fantastical but does tell real-life stories.”

David flicked again, and the book opened to a picture of a man. “Gilles Garnier. He believed he had lycanthropy and was burned at the stake.”

“Damn, that’s nasty!” Shelley exclaimed. She had an inkling of where David was going with this and was prepared when the book fell open to a picture of Ghoul. “What on earth is that?” She wrinkled her nose and frowned at the picture.

“That’s one of the worst. That’s a creature called Ghoul. He eats the flesh of the dead,” David said, his eyes staring hard at her.

“That’s just nasty. I’ve heard the term, but I always had an image of… oh blast… that creepy guy from the Nosferatu film.”

“Max Schrek! What an actor. You thought ghouls looked like him?” David laughed.

Shelley allowed a blush to hit her cheeks. “Yeah. I’m embarrassing myself, aren’t I?”