Chapter 12 #3
“Thanks for coming by. I heard about what happened on the boardwalk. So I just want to get to know you a little better before you two head to the beach. It, um, sounds like we may have a few things in common.”
“Yeah. I guess so.”
I gestured toward the living room. “Have a seat.”
“Thanks.” He headed toward the sofa, and I was glad I’d flipped the cushion. “It smells great in here,” he added, making Allie beam.
“Cinnamon rolls,” she said, sounding as proud as if she’d kneaded the dough herself and hadn’t just popped them out of a cardboard canister. “I thought you might want a snack before we go.”
She said the last boldly, as if my consent were a given.
“Sounds delish,” Jared said.
Allie joined him on the sofa, Eddie stayed in his recliner, and I tried to look casual on the pouf we use as a footstool. Timmy ignored us all, wildly coloring one of his Animal Kingdom coloring books.
“So how do you know about demons?” I said, jumping straight onto the back of the elephant in the room.
“Um….”
“It’s okay, boy,” Eddie said. “We’re all friends here.”
“So you know too?” Jared asked Eddie.
“Yup,” Eddie said. “And while you’re at it. Why don’t you tell us what you were doing following the girl in the first place?”
“Gramps!” Pure mortification colored Allie’s voice.
“No, no,” Jared said. “It’s okay. I mean, I get why your family would be nervous. It does look a little weird, I guess.”
“So?” Eddie pressed, and I hid a smile. He hadn’t had many times in his life to play the parent, or the grandparent, for that matter, and I was enjoying watching his style.
Jared shrugged again, one of those full-body boy shrugs, and then sort of disappeared into the sweat jacket he was wearing over his tee. “Yeah, it’s just, you know, my peeps like to keep it on the down-low.”
“Your peeps?” I said. “What are you in a gang?”
“Mother!”
I held up my hands “Sorry.”
“No,” Jared said, “It’s me. I’m sorry. I’m just a little nervous. I mean, I liked Allie even before.”
“You did?” she asked, her voice rising into a squeak.
“Yeah. Sure. What’s not to like?”
They shared a smile, and I bit back my own.
Eddie cleared his throat.
“Yeah,” Jared said. “Right. So, I’m a grade above Allie, and I noticed her before she quit cheerleading. Just because she’s cute, is all. But then we started hearing things. About a demon hunter in town, I mean, and I started paying more attention.”
“Why would you be hearing about a demon hunter in town?”
“My parents are kind of in the trade.”
“Kind of? You mean they’re rogue?”
“Huh?”
“Who do they work for?”
He shook his head slowly. “Work for?”
So he wasn’t involved with Forza. Either that, or the kid could keep a secret.
“Oh,” he continued. “Right. Well, my great-grandfather was killed by a demon. Turns out he’d been hunting them. Nobody else knew, but they took out the whole family. So my parents don’t work for anybody. Well, except themselves.”
“The whole family?” Eddie asked.
Jared managed a combination eye roll and scowl, which was about as teenager-y as you could get. “You know what I mean. Not everybody obviously. But it became like the family vocation, you know?”
I looked at Eddie and Allie, my thoughts going to Eric and Eliza. As much as I hated to admit it, I did know.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Allie asked.
“Dunno. I guess ‘cause it’s this huge secret. And then recently, like right at the beginning of the summer, we heard about a demon hunter who was being targeted. We figured it was you,” he said looking at me.
“But I wanted to keep an eye on Allie, too, because, well, you know,” he said looking down at his shoes.
Except I didn’t know. Did he mean he liked her? Or that he knew about what made her unique?
Which meant I had to ask. “Why? Why did you feel like you had to keep an eye on Allie?”
His shoulders rose, then fell. “‘Cause she’s your daughter. And if you’re hunting … well, like I said. A demon took out almost my whole family even though most of them didn’t know the score. And, well, you know.” His eyes darted to Allie, then to the ground. “I like her.”
Allie’s cheeks turned as pink as her shirt.
“I get it,” I said gently. To be honest, I liked this kid.
He seemed genuine, and he seemed to genuinely like my daughter.
Plus, if she was going to date anybody it was good to date someone she wasn’t going to have to keep secrets from.
Not that I was ready for them to start doing the dating thing. Not at all.
The oven timer dinged, and I pushed up off the pouf.
“I need coffee,” I said. “And one of the cinnamon rolls. You guys want to continue this in the kitchen? Allie, why don’t you go get the rolls out of the oven and put them on the table?
Is that good for everybody or does anyone want anything else? ”
“I’d love coffee and a cinnamon roll,” Jared said. “To be honest, I don’t usually get up early enough for Mass. But I wanted to talk to Allie.”
“I didn’t see you in Mass,” Allie said. “But I noticed you when I came out,” she added with a shy smile.
“No? I saw you in there. I was sitting pretty far in the back though.”
“Allie, rolls. Eddie, you coming?”
Eddie pushed himself out of the chair. “I made a promise to myself years ago to never turn down a cinnamon roll. And I’m a man who keeps his promises.”
Allie laughed. “Come on, Gramps. I’ll get you a new mug for coffee.”
He started shuffling that way, and I went along with him. Jared walked with us, making idle chatter about how nice it was that we were letting him and Allie go out, and how good the cinnamon rolls smelled.
Our living area is right next to the kitchen area, so it wasn’t a long walk. But the areas are divided by three things—the currently open baby gate, the line the separates the carpet from the kitchen tile, and a sideboard with an ornate mirror where we keep the good china.
As we passed, I glanced at the mirror out of habit. And that’s when I saw it.
At the same time, I heard Eddie’s strangled little gasp, and knew that he’d seen the same. I clutched his arm, ostensibly to steady him, but really to prevent him from doing or saying anything.
As soon as we reached the table, Jared hesitated, as if uncertain where to sit. I took advantage of his hesitancy to reach onto the nearby counter top and grab the wooden spatula handle I’d tossed there yesterday.
And then—in one lightning-fast move—I spun around and pushed the kid back hard so that he fell into the chair. I stepped on his feet so he couldn’t stand, pressed him against the chair’s back with a firm hand on his shoulder, and jabbed the wooden stake right toward his treacherous little heart.