Drift (Drift Series) (20 page)

When we pulled up my driveway, you know who was sitting in the middle of the roadway at the top of the hill. He was in our way so much so that Shade had to pull around him to park next to my car. When we got out, he was all over us, purring and meowing at both of our legs. This wasn’t his usual hungry approach; it was as if Shadow knew something had happened and he was waiting for some sign of us being in good shape. Whatever his deal, he was certainly happy to see us. Naturally, Shade picked him up and we walked towards my tree.

“Nuh-uh, not tonight,” Shade proclaimed, as both Shadow and myself were about to go up.

“Why not?”

“I told you, no more trees if I can avoid it. I’m going to turn on the heat and sleep in my car with Shadow. It is much too cold out. You can do what you normally do, demon boy.”

Even though there were some mild flakes coming down, it was nothing near the blanket of snow that attacked us at the top of Eagle Peak, but naturally it was still extremely cold. Much like Shade forgets about me being a demon with unusual traits, I forget she
’s human, with human traits, and she was cold.

She climbed into her car and laid the seat back, covering herself with a blanket. She released Shadow
, who quickly found a small blanket to lay on. Obviously she was prepared for this. I got into the car with her and we talked for a bit.

“So where do you think Agrelia is?”

“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll figure it out.” I smiled at her.

“I know you will. I can’t believe I was just at Darryl’s funeral and then all of a sudden he was standing in front of me again. All this is so much to absorb…ya know?”

“It just shows you, life doesn’t stop. It’s constant, even for dirtbags like Darryl.”

“Yeah, people like him need to have an end of the line. I hate to say it, but that’s the way I feel. Where
’s he going to go now?”

“He
’ll remain in Hell for eternity. Christian isn’t the forgiving type. Neither of us will ever see Darryl again. I promise.”

Shade let out a sigh of relief and whispered, “I hope so,” under her breath.

I studied her worried face for a while, watching her fight heavy eyelids. Before she could sleep, I leaned down and kissed her lips. “I’m so glad you’re here with me, Shade. I love you.”

She pulled me down by the back of my head and kissed me again. “I love you too, lackey.”

We chuckled at her pet name for me as she drifted to sleep. I watched her for quite some time as she slept, rubbing her face and hair. She could have gone home and slept warmly in her comfortable bed, but instead she kept me company. I still couldn’t believe what a wonderful person she was. She made it easy to love her.

I was struggling
to figure out where I could find Agrelia, so I got out of the car very quietly and walked up to my tree to give it some more contemplation. This time I didn’t scurry up onto my branch; I kept my feet on the ground and looked into the valley.

Over and over again, I tossed around Christian’s hint. “The town too tough to die,” sounded so familiar. Then it happened. I remembered one time while over at Scruffy’s they were watching a western documentary about some of the old boomtowns of the American west and how dangerous they were to live in. There was one town that averaged a murder or more a day. It would be the perfect hunting ground for someone from Hell searching for evil entities…a perfect environment for Agrelia.

The town now stood as a tourist hotspot in today’s modern times. Someone said in the film that it was the town too tough to die. That town was Tombstone. Tombstone, Arizona. This is where I would find Agrelia.

I glanced
at Shade’s car with her sleeping inside. The odds of pulling this off were long. It was worth it all as long as the promise of being with Shade another day was there. From this day forward I would live for Shade and the next day. I would turn over Hell for her.

Tombstone, I’m coming.

Acknowledgements

I'd like to acknowledge the negative, self-absorbed, critical people who have and will come and go in my life. Without your example of being everything I never wanted to be,

I
may have become you.

Thank you.

About the Author

Michael Dean was born in Mountain View California in 1976, raised in Tucson Arizona, and now resides just outside of Dallas Texas.

Michael’s adventurous style has led him to start and run a successful small business for the past ten years, as well as writing YA novels and playing music. His passion for music and the pen collided when he was younger, causing him to pick up a guitar and write his own music. That drive led him to starting his own band, getting it played on regional radio stations, even competing in Ozzy Osbourne’s battle for Ozzfest in New York City.

Still just as driven, now he prefers quieter days to himself, thus giving him time to improve on his main passion, writing. Drift, a YA paranormal fantasy, is a bi-product of that alone time. He hopes that when a reader picks up his works, he or she will love it just as much as he did writing it.

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