Heart's Redemption (MxM)

Chapter 5 ~ Ian

It's turning out to be one hell of a shitty day.

It started with me waking up with memory loss next to a guy who's way too young for me. Then I found out that demons are a thing, and that I've apparently made a pact with one. And now, I'm being forced to leave my breakfast behind before I'm done eating it.

Can it get any worse?

Note to self: do not ask this question. Ever.

Sam has been sitting across from me, telling me some messed-up shit about himself, and then all of a sudden he goes still and wide-eyed, looking at something over my shoulder.

"Ian...run," he says in a whisper.

"Why?" I ask.

I'm not a man who runs without a good reason. Not before I'm done eating, anyway.

I glance over my shoulder and see the waitress headed towards us with a funny, glazed expression on her face, then look back and find the seat across from me empty and the door of the diner just swinging shut.

Damn, that kid can move.

I don't know what spooked him, but I'm not quite dumb enough to keep sitting here and find out. I throw enough money on the table to cover the meal and a nice tip—the service wasn't great, but it's a tough job—then I follow Sam, hoping it doesn't look like I'm trying to 'eat and run.'

Outside, I look for him. The diner is set just off the road and the parking lot isn't paved—just a few hundred square yards of packed gravel. I'd parked at the far edge, near the road. The half-dozen other cars are closer, and it's a straight shot to my truck

Sam's already there,  climbing into the passenger side and slamming the door shut, beckoning at me through the back window to hurry up.

I start after him and I've made it about halfway across the lot when he yells something and points at me. Or at something behind me. I look back and see the waitress has followed me outside. She must think I'm trying to skip out on the check after all.

I stop and wave to her, shouting across the space between us with a smile. "It's okay, ma'am—I left the money on the table!"

She keeps coming, moving with jerky, determined steps and the same weirdly blank look. It's a bit creepy, actually; like a zombie or something.

She raises her hand and points at me—a gesture I interpret as an accusation—and I raise my own hands in reassurance. "No, it's—I paid. The money's on—"

"Ian!" I hear the truck door open again and the crunch of gravel as Sam sprints across it to grab my arm and yank me hard, pulling me around. "Come on, you stupid shit! She's possessed, dammit!"

"Possessed? You mean like—"

I look back at the waitress just as she raises a small gun and points it at me.

"Whoa! What the f—" I duck and Sam yanks my arm again as the gun goes off.

"IAN!" Sam screams.

He doesn't have to tell me again. We both race to the truck and climb in. I fumble with the key as another shot takes out the back window and goes through the roof. The engine starts and I put it in drive and step on the gas, then I grab Sam and pull him down across the seat, my hand against the side of his head.

"Stay down."

He squirms out of my hold. "She's not shooting at me, fuckwit! She's shooting at you to keep me from getting away!"

"Shit!" I swear when another bullet hits the side of the truck as I reverse. Thankfully, it's stopped by the metal in the door. I pull forward and one more pings off the tailgate, and then I peel away in a spray of gravel, fishtail onto the road, and get the hell out of there. Luckily, none of the tires are hit.

In the rear-view, I see the waitress staring after us. Then she collapses like someone cut her strings, and a group of people rush to her side, some of them pointing at my fleeing truck.

Great. Just what I need.

"Fuck." I run a shaking hand through my hair. "What the fuck was that?"

"A naraka. One of Karin's trackers," Sam answers, sounding tense. "He must've sent them out along all the roads, hoping to get a lead on me."

"Trackers?"

He nods. "Yeah, low-level types—animal-like spirits pulled from a realm of hell. Barely sentient, but they can carry out tasks well enough if you tell them what to do."

"What happened to her? The waitress, I mean. It looked like she passed out."

"The naraka left. It'll return to Karin and tell him what it saw, and then he'll—"

He leans over and starts to rock back and forth, hands pressed to the sides of his head.

"Oh...shit," he breathes, shivering. "Shit. I can't go back there. I can't go back there. I won't go back there. I—"

"Hey, Sam, relax." I reach over and awkwardly set my hand on his back while still keeping my attention on the road. "Focus. Tell me what this means. How soon will Karin know where we are?"

He shakes his head, still rocking. "The naraka will travel fast—unseen through the air. A few hours maybe?"

"Okay, and then what? I mean, in a few hours we'll be far away from here."

"He'll do the same thing. Send scouts to watch the roads for me. And more powerful things too. Things that can take me back to him."

He shivers, arms crossed over his chest. Maybe he has the memories of a demon, but he looks young and scared.

He's obviously more trouble than I bargained for, and I should probably leave him by the side of the road for my own good, but that doesn't feel like something I can do. Instead, I feel responsible for him, somehow. I don't know what this Karin guy did to him, but I'll be damned if I let him take Sam back.

"Finders keepers," I mutter under my breath.

I always was an idiot.

"What?" Sam asks, sitting up a little. He's still doing that rocking thing, but he's calmed down a bit. I realize I've been rubbing my hand up and down his back without noticing, and withdraw it now. He scooches closer to me along the bench-seat and leans against me, seeming to crave the contact.

"Nothing. Put your seat-belt on," I say, fumbling to pull out the middle strap that rarely gets used. He fastens it and then leans into me again.

He's got his head tucked down and his legs pulled up, and he kind of reminds me of a little black cat. I resist the urge to stroke his hair. Instead, I inspect the broken window through the view in the mirror.

"Where the fuck did she get a gun, anyway?" I wonder aloud. "Was she just walking around with it in her blouse or something?"

"Rural America," Sam replies with a shaky laugh. "Who knows."

"Hmm," I intone.

He might be right, but I've lived in the sticks my whole life, and I don't even like guns.

I concentrate on the road, giving myself a minute to think. I need more than a minute, to be honest. Thinking's not my greatest strength.

"Sam," I say at last, and feel something like a tremor pass through him. "Listen. I've got some tricks we can use, ways to stay hidden. I'm sure you have some ideas too. We'll be alright. We'll stay off the main highways, take back-roads whenever we can, and change up our route. We'll be fine."

He looks up at me, dark eyes fringed with black lashes.

"Really? You'll still take me with you, even though you got shot at by a possessed waitress and didn't get to finish your bacon?"

"Yeah," I say, "but I've changed my mind about one thing. I do want something from you, after all."

"Oh yeah? What?" He flutters his lashes, and I see the tip of his pink tongue between his lips.

"I'm gonna need you to tell me everything you know about demons."