Page 47 of Dark Obsession

“It wasn’t like that, I just made the decision⁠—”

“In the moment?” Demmy finished for him.

The table between them suddenly felt twice as wide. “Yeah.”

“That’s exactly how I explained my actions.” He jabbed a finger into his own chest, his glare ice cold. “Which happened during the daytime, by the way. And you yelled at me for it.”

“Do you want to yell at me? Will that help? Because there’s more I need to tell you.”

“More? What’s left? Did you give the bartender or Andy our home address?”

“Don’t do that,” Cody snapped.

“Do what? Respond how you usually do?” Demmy crossed his arms and shook his head, looking away toward the bay window at the other end of the table. “Good for the goose but not the gander?”

“You’re angry, and you have every right to be, I know. But I also know we work well together, really well, and it seems like we’ve got another vampire invasion starting. We have to move past this to figure it out for everyone’s sakes.”

Demmy shook his head before facing him again, his arms still folded tight over his chest. “I know you’re right. But we also need to be better at talking about this stuff.”

“I agree.” Cody hesitated, then added, “Both of us.”

Demmy’s expression tightened. “Yes. Both of us.” He shook his arms out then leaned forward to take a sip of coffee. “All right, tell me what else happened.”

“After I left the bar and was on 118 heading back into town, Zenona passed me going the opposite direction. I slowed up, and in the mirror I saw her turn onto Hemlock.”

Demmy’s eyes widened. “She was going there?”

“Not much else out that way. Unless she was heading over to the next county.”

“What the hell would Zenona be doing there?”

“Not sure. Maybe trying to get revenge for Michael?”

Demmy’s brow was creased, and he tapped a finger against his bottom lip. “What was the overall vibe of the place? Did it feel threatening?”

Cody thought a moment, recalling Marlowe’s quiet and calm. Did she know she was serving drinks to vampires? And why the hell would a vampire drink, anyway?

“I wasn’t comfortable by any means, but I didn’t feel like I was in danger until I saw the bikers in the parking lot.”

Cody’s phone buzzed on the table by his elbow, and he checked it. “It’s Jugs.”

“What’s he saying?” Demmy picked up his own phone. “You guys are due out to that job in an hour.”

“Well, hell.” Cody made a face. “He’s got food poisoning.”

“Oh, shit.”

“Pretty much.”

That earned him a half-smirk. It was weak, but Cody would take every inroad back to Demmy he could get.

“The job’s a family of raccoons,” Demmy said, letting out a heavy sigh. “You can’t do it alone.”

“Despite how much you want me to?”

Demmy smiled. He got up and carried his cup into the kitchen, saying over his shoulder, “No, because then I’d have to hear you go on and on for weeks about how you did it all alone.”

Cody was surprised at the tired laugh that slipped out.