“You calledAustin?” Viper asked.
“That's the nearest big city,” Austin explained.
“Your name is Austin and you livenearAustin?” Viper grinned.
“Yeah, I already went over this with Vervain. It's old news, buddy. Move on.”
Viper grimaced. “No fun.”
“All right, well, first things first.” I looked around at my guys, then at Austin. “We need to see the place where your friend was attacked.”
“I already told you, there weren't nuttin' there.”
“First of all, that's a double negative,” I chided him. “Second, I don't need to see the blood to find it. All I have to do is sniff.”
“Right,” Austin murmured. “I forgot about that. Ah'ite then, church is out.”
“Can I ask now?” Viper asked Trevor.
“I think he means it's time to go,” Trevor said.
“I thought it was kinda appropriate.” Austin grinned as he got up.
Chapter Three
We piled into Austin's pickup truck, the guys climbing in back, looking like happy puppies. Once we got going, the imagery was heightened by the wind in their hair and the way they hung over the sides to feel more of it. I just shook my head and checked out the scenery—the dark didn't hinder my eyesight much. The landscape was nice enough if a little dry. Pretty obvious why there weren't any green snakes in Texas; they wouldn't blend in easily, especially if they were bright green. Don't get me wrong, there were plenty of trees and stuff, it wasn't Arizona, it just leaned toward the drier end of the geographical spectrum.
Austin drove us down a few quiet roads with very little traffic. We were out of the main part of town and there, the homes were more spread out—nothing like what you'd find in the suburbs of major cities. These were the wide-open spaces that country singers crooned about.
“How many people live here?” I asked Austin.
“A little over a thousand.”
“That's all?” I gaped at him.
“Yeah, everybody knows everybody's business here.” He grinned at my shock. “But there's somethin' to be said for a small community. I lived in Austin awhile—didn't like it.”
“Too weird for you?” I referenced the city's slogan.
“Nah, the weirdness was good. It was just too cramped, ya know? Why live in the biggest state and then go and hunker down, all pressed together like that? I felt like a worm in a can, ready to be fished out and hooked.”
“That was graphic.” I made a face at him.
He chuckled. “The food was good though. Lots more places to eat. But I can always drive up there if I want. It's only like an hour away.”
“An hour is a long time to drive for some food.”
Austin shrugged. “Depends on the food, I s'pose.” He pulled over to park at the curb. “Here we are.”
Everyone climbed out but my first breath sent me reeling backward. Trevor, Kirill, and Viper joined me in my revulsion. There were a lot of groans and wrinkled noses.
“What is it?” Austin asked.
“Bleach,” Azrael said as he frowned in concern and hurried over to me. “Carus, are you all right?”
“Yeah, it's just strong.”
Austin took a deep sniff. “Huh, I didn't even notice that but you're right, I smell it now too.”
