~BOOK 4/PART ONE~ Paranormal: The Battle's Only Just Begun (Multi-Bandom FanFic)

Chapter 10

Silence and the sound of tires running against the road were all that rang in Jack and Pete's ears. There was no road trip music, no jokes going between the two, no stories or small anecdotes being shared. Just silence.

Jack looked out at the road leading back to New Orleans and wondered what to tell his friends when he arrived. What does making a peace treaty have to do with getting rid of a demon? What's Kenya planning? He thought to himself, leaning his head back against the cushion. However, those questions wouldn't get answered or shot down for another ten hours.

The two paranormals in the vehicle were successful in their casino crusades, but now the high, the adrenaline, and the fun were gone, replaced with their lives, their duties, and their seclusion.

Jack was still in shock from when Pete called him almost two weeks ago about going to Nevada. At first, he thought that the vampire lost his mind, or was going through some kind of vampire mid-life crisis. But no, Pete was sincere, serious, and needed a friend to come join him in his getaway plan. Jack knew that the vampire was compensating and hiding his true feelings, feelings of fear, shock, and devastation. Pete had to come to grips that Patrick was seduced, overcome, and almost destroyed by a demon, but he was having a hard time doing that. So he chose not to.

The lycan looked over at the bloodsucker as he gripped the steering wheel like he was trying to choke the life out of it. The wolf knew that this vampire needed to talk about his problems; that holding in his feelings would only cause him more pain. He also knew that it had been a few days since Pete fed, and the last time he hunted for blood, he didn't even properly dispose of his victim. Jack had to take care of the body, and if he wasn't there to do so, someone could have stumbled upon the gruesome scene.

That's what scared Jack, that Pete was doing things like this because he didn't care. Sure, this was only one incident, but what about future incidents?

The vampire didn't want to think about his actions, he didn't want to understand the consequences, and he definitely didn't want to fight for his life anymore. He was giving up.

"So how much longer are we going to ignore your problems?" Jack inquired while tapping on the edge of the door.

"Problems?" Pete repeated, shifting awkwardly in his seat, "I don't have problems."

"Sure you do. What about the way you treated Patrick? Or the fact that you're ignoring the demon infestation? And let's not forget the fact that you're depressed," Jack bluntly responded.

"Patrick and I are fine," He answered flatly, "I got rid of the demon and that's that, and in response to your last remark, I'm not depressed, I'm...coping."

"Coping, my ass," Jack mumbled under his breath. Pete slammed on the brakes of the car, bringing the vehicle to an immediate halt. A few drivers beeped at the car stopped in the middle of the highway.

"Look, I've had a rough year," Pete began to explain, "So lay off. Furthermore, my relationship with my best friend is none of your business."

"But you brought me along Pete, me!" Jack allowed his voice to get louder, hoping to show the vampire that this was a serious topic, and it was one that he wasn't going to let slip away so easily. "You shouldn't be with me, man, you should be Patrick, trying to make amends."

"For what?" Pete was building up to the real issue bothering him. "He chose that demon over Rachael, over Andy, over Joe, and over me!" The vampire banged on the steering wheel. "All of us have been there for that bastard and he..."

Pete wanted to haul off and hit something, tear something apart, and then run away from this conversation because it was that difficult to talk about, but he couldn't. So instead he fell silent, reminiscing about how Patrick forgot about everything they did for one another, the loyalty Pete had for him, and the times they shared. It pissed Pete off.