We rode into Gainesville in the middle of a thunderstorm. The rain was coming down in big fat drops. I slowed the bike so they didn't sting so bad when they hit me. Emm was holding on tightly in back, her face buried in my jacket but I could feel her flinch every time a stray pellet of water struck her fingers. If you have never ridden a motor cycle in a rain storm I can tell you that it's a painful experience.  Water hurts!

I pulled the bike into the first warm dry looking place we came to. It was a Burger King which was just fine with us. We were both cold, wet and hungry and ready to stretch. I had to help Emm of the bike. We had been riding a long time and she wasn't used to it. Her legs had gone to sleep.

We walked in and ordered.  We got our check with our order number on it and the next stop was the girls room where we did our best to dry our hair and wring some of the water out of our clothes.  I checked the mirror. We not both looked like we had been hit by wrinkle bombs. Emm say me looking in the mirror grinning and she took a quick look as well and laughed.

"We aren't going to win any prizes for style looking like this" she chuckled.

After we ordered and got our food we sat down to wait out the rain and eat.  Emm didn't say much. She seemed lost in thought. She was off somewhere in her own head space thinking about I don't know what. A newspaper had been left on the table. It was a local paper and since I was bored and loved to read I picked it up to browse through it.

On page two was a story that set my alarm bells off.  It said "Murder and Rape of Local Couple".  It looks like Emm might of been who I needed to find this creep after all.  She may have scored with Gainesville.  I read further.

The article was about the rape and murder of a young teen couple. They had been brutally beaten and had died shortly after being dumped in a remote location out in the country. There weren't many details, police were investigating a string of possibly  related crimes. It seems my little demon had been a busy boy. This was the third almost identical incident in as many weeks.  All teen couples, all raped, beaten and all dead. The locals were starting to panic.

I looked up from the paper to see how Emm was doing. She was still staring out the window at the rain. I don't know, should I mention this? Not an easy question to answer. I still wasn't certain of her. I didn't know if she might try to protect Blake and Chan or not. It was a possibility. I considered my options. Tell her and take the risk or keep my mouth shut until I know more about what is going on.

Demons are a strange bunch. They all have above average looks and can turn on the charm and personality at will. They blend in seamlessly with the local population usually inserting themselves into local help groups or law enforcement. They do the best they can to appear beyond suspicion and above reproach. Those same characteristics make them somewhat simple to ferret out for a skilled hunter like me.  90% of the population is ruled out right away. You won't find a demon living on the street or sucking on a bottle with a bunch of alcoholics.  Most of the time you find them living and mingling with the middle class. Your high school English teacher perhaps, boy scout troop leader, church minister or even a popular nurse in a local hospital.

A few other things about demons.  Demons thrive off chaos, fear and terror. They feed on that. In the old days they could take over an entire village. They would torture, rape and terrorize the inhabitants for weeks before killing them all and moving on the the next. Now days they can't do that. There aren't enough of them and the pure bloods would get wise quick and wipe them out. They don't have the numbers for that anymore.

They are quick and they are strong. Superhuman strong. Twice as strong as a normal human the same size and they hide all that very well too. They avoid occupations that require a lot of strength. You won't find one in professional sports for instance. Too obvious. Lots of pro athletes act like demons though.

I decided not to tell Emm that I had a track on Blake. It's better for me if she doesn't know. I don't want her distracted with trying to figure out if I need her along or not. I folded up the paper and tossed it back on the table behind us where she wouldn't see it. I didn't want her to  pick it up to read the same as I had. We finished eating and dumped the trays.  It had stopped raining finally.

"Lets find a place to stay" I told Emm, "We are going to be here a while."

"What makes you so sure?" she asked.  I almost told her about the paper again, and again I changed my mind.

"Its a feeling I have about this place. " I told her, "I think you got it first try Emm. You did good."

"Thanks. To be honest I hope so. I'm tired of riding on that back of your bike. It hurts!" she grinned.

Just outside town we found a hotel that looked likely. I went inside while Emm waited with the motorcycle out of sight of the office.

"Can I get a room for a week?" I asked the lady behind the counter.  She looked at me suspiciously. 

"That depends honey" she said looking at me over her glasses, "How old are you?"

"I'm 18" I lied, "I have I.D. if you need it"

"Thats okay" she said, "I assume you will be paying cash so no ID is needed?" This woman knew all the tricks of the trade. If she didn't have me sign the register I knew I would be safe here. She wouldn't be calling the cops to report a possible run away or anything like that. She wanted the money.

"Yes Ma mm" I said.

"We understand each other then" she smiled, "$250.00 cash. I want a days notice if you want to extend your stay or if you are going to leave early.  You want clean sheets and towels you wash them yourself. No maid service and no refunds, understood?"

"Yes Ma mm." I paid the money.

I went out, kicked the bike into life and moved it to our parking spot. It was a small hotel. Single story, the rooms all in one building and one side. No back doors which I didn't care for but not many hotels this size and age have those.

We went in. Two beds. I pulled the covers back on the one nearest the door to check the sheets. Clean white, lightly starched and ironed. I moved to inspect the bathroom to see what we had there. It was clean too. Plenty of towels, a generous supply of those little shampoo bottles, toilet paper and soaps. I got a tub for once.

I love baths. Showers are good. I know they get you cleaner, but there is nothing like a long soak in a tub of hot water to release the tight muscles from a long bike ride and soothe the soul.

Emm had entered behind me. "Its nice" she said,  "Whats my part?"

I assumed she was asking about the money for the room.

"You are doing your part" I told her, "You got us here."

"Thanks" she said looking relieved.