Free Blood Lust (The Blood Sisters Book 1) by Jill Cooper

rules,
right?”
    She
said it, but Jessica saw the tear in her eye. Amanda hated the lying and
deceit. Jessica did too, but had made
peace with it a long time ago. Besides, it didn’t affect her physically like it
did Amanda.
    “Clean
up here. I’ll be right back.” Jessica forced a smile before hurrying away. In
the darkened hallway, Jessica leaned against the wall and scrolled through her
smart phone’s messages.
    There
weren’t any. At least, no new ones.
    With
a huff, Jessica dialed her aunt and waited with an impatient stomp . No answer and it went straight to voicemail , Jessica’s vision split. “Aunt Gwen,
where are you? Get here or call me back. I don’t know how long it’s safe to
stay here, so just call me back.”
    There
was nothing Jessica could do but wait and that made her the most nervous at
all.

 
    ****
    Run
a scam, get some supplies.
    It
all sounded well and good, except when you didn’t know how long you were going
to be in town, it made things tricky. They were going to have to be careful
because the money from their last legit demon hunting job was nearly bled dry.
If they weren’t being chased, maybe they could get a leg up long enough to get
a legit gig.
    Demons
were everywhere, and there was always someone who needed help; —and was willing
to pay for it. The way things were now, taking a job would be suicide. As it
stood, they were driving a stolen car, a sweet one at that, but going into a
small town where the local sheriff knew everyone by name, made Jessica
downright paranoid.
    The town square was small, but cozy, just as Jessica remembered.
The lawns were freshly mowed, and had pots of red and gold flowers hanging from
the trellises tresses. The buildings were alternating white and brick. Outside
the small corner grocery store, a woman in a red and white checkered apron
swept the sidewalk. It was the perfect epitome of small town Americana.
    Which
made it a great target for fresh demon activity. If there was something a low-level demon loved, it was a small town.
Mostly because he could get a foothold, bide his time, and build his gang large
enough that he could take on an urban city master. All the while unsuspecting
humans got high on drugs laced with demon essence, their lives fell apart, and
they were none the wiser while demons gained strength.
    Amassed
an army.
    Jessica
parked the car down a side street not far from downtown, but distant enough to
give them space. Her red curls were tame again and framed her face. Her skin
was freshly washed and her freckles across her nose visible. There was nothing
she could do about the scar running down her cheek, so people would just need
to deal.
    Fishing
a quarter out of her pocket to feed the meter, Jessica watched through the
windshield as an elderly couple walked down the road hand in hand. “You go
first and I’ll wait a few minutes. I’ll meet you back here with the supplies.”
    “I
know, Jessica, ” Amanda smirked. “This
isn’t my first rodeo.”
    “If
you see me, just keep on walking.” Jessica pressed on. “If this is to work—”
    Amanda
laid a hand on Jessica’s shoulder and a wave of calm washed over her. Almost
like Amanda’s empathy was able to soothe her nerves. Could it do that? It never
had before, but maybe things were changing. It wasn’t as if Amanda was always
like this.
    “We’ll
be fine as long as you don’t steal anything from the store,” Amanda said.
    Jessica
snorted with a shake of her head. Unbelievable. Like she’d ever steal food to
survive, except for maybe one or two times when things got really bad. “I’ll
try to keep my hands off the nachos. Remember if you see a baby with a bump on
its head, don’t heal him. Keep on walking, Amanda!”
    Amanda’s
answer was slamming the door shut. Her purse over her shoulder, Amanda waved
before she walked down the hill toward town. If she didn’t get them caught,
Jessica was going to run out and buy a lottery ticket because this was her
lucky