She felt like burying her face again but at this point it would only draw more attention their way.
“I saw nothing,” he said disappointed, taking the glasses off and hanging them from his v-neck.
She busted out laughing. “Wait, you expected to see something with those… on her?”
“I swore she could be a kobold since there ain’t no human that chipper. But nope. I guess she shall live another day; lucky for her.”
It was still too early for this stuff. Adrienne snatched her mug off the table and filled it from the pot while shaking her head. She took a large gulp; it was a bit bland but she didn't care at this point since it still managed to awaken that dormant piece of her soul.
Audrey popped back a few minutes later with a cup for Gage and dropped off the largest stack of golden pancakes they had ever seen, along with a mess of greasy bacon spitting happily from the plate.
Gage promptly tore the buttery discs apart with his fingers, pulling them into bite size nuggets.
Nothing surprised Adrienne anymore. Topped up mug in hand, she continued to watch him be an outright heathen, shredding his way through the entire plate of pancakes. Finally, he grabbed up a fork, shoving bacon between those fluffy chunks before slathering it all with syrup.
He popped a piece of the sticky, salty sweetness into his mouth which melted away without the need for chews. “This is too good,” he said with an orgasmic expression on his face.
The taste was divine; so much so he couldn’t help but shovel in more.
“Call me chipmunk,” he said with bloated cheeks.
“A sexy as hell chipmunk,” she replied with a laugh.
“You know it,” he agreed.
During the exchange, a bit of syrup escaped down into the bearded forest, a trace of shininess lingering on the surface.
“Gage, you have something…” Adrienne said, pointing to her chin.
He stared at her blankly as he ate another piece.
“Right there,” she pointed at him directly.
He didn't budge, expression never changing. More food went into his mouth.
Then came the eye roll. “My God, never mind. The way you eat is so messy… kind of like sex with you.”
“Exactly like it,” he said, unruffled. The last of his stack was now consumed. “And you love it. Oh but these pancakes though! I think they may actually be better than sex. I might have even came a little.” He peered down the front of his jeans. “In fact I did, a lot more than last night.”
She leaned back and folded her arms. “Ass!”
He didn’t reply or look at her right away, opting instead to stick a stray bit of bacon between his lips. With it dangling there, he stuck out his tongue before drawing both inside. “You ain’t getting either of those today,” he said, motioning to the waitress. “Another round, my dear!”
GAGE HAD POLISHED OFF four stacked plates in the diner before Adrienne suggested they get back on the road.
Hunger satisfied and belly a bit bloated, he stood at the pumps of the Buy-N-Fly topping off the truck while stretching both arms over his head. Apparently his little sex talk back in the diner hadn’t sat well with Adrienne, who'd stormed off to pick up some last minute foodstuffs inside.
Twenty dollars and some change later, he took a deep breath of robust fumes rising from the gas cap and flung the handle back on the pump before strutting his way toward the convenience store doors.
Inside, Adrienne had been standing in a deceptively short line for what seemed like forty years now, an assortment of sweet and savory snacks tucked into each elbow. Gage always managed to keep the truck well supplied with water bottles so there was no need to pick up anything additional to drink; a good thing too since she was out of room on her makeshift shelf.
A squat woman stood behind the counter, her head so close to the surface that it appeared to float. Wearing a deep creased scowl, she moved at a pace that would make a sloth proud. Adrienne convinced herself that she may actually be one, her unflattering hairstyle reminiscent of a sloth she had seen in a zoo many years ago. At least there was only one person ahead of her now, but the sluggish clerk had only just begun the what-should-not-be-so-tedious job of checking the man out.
As Adrienne shifted her weight from one leg to the other in anticipation of a lengthy wait, the smell of cigarettes enveloped her, entangled with acrid wisps of sweat and BO. She repressed a cough as an unwanted gaze fell on the back of her neck amongst other, lower, parts of her body.
Three fetid workers had walked in, grimy and foul from road construction, settling in the line behind her. They had stopped a little too close for comfort.
“Mmm would you look at that,” said the one closest to her in a low voice, his foggy eyes tracing a path up her legs. Weathered and ghoulish, he might as well have been drooling from his dip-filled mouth and by the looks of the dark lines that stained his chin, that had likely already happened a few times earlier in the day.
A younger man shuffled up beside him, dirty blonde and cleaner yet no less unpleasant. “Damn, you right,” he snarled in a voice that did not suit his appearance in the slightest. “Fine piece right there.”
A shudder began to clamber up her spine as she could make out the sounds of prolonged sniffing; thank God she couldn't see what was happening. There should be some kind of disinfectant for airborne stares from scuzzy sources, especially for situations like this. She would definitely buy a crate or two of the stuff, even though she had no idea if it would be remotely enough to dissolve the feeling of disgust that had caked itself all over her.
The last of the three hung back, heavyset in a safety vest that was two sizes too small. Smacking his gum loudly, his mouth was so overstuffed that saliva bubbled up at the corners of his lips, sputtering with each word that he belched. “Betcha that one’s a great ride.”
Grunts of agreement were exchanged between the men, adjusting their gnarly belts as if to try and draw her attention.
As if, she thought, so tempted to turn around to give them a piece of her mind. After thinking it over, she spun around to -
“May I help you?” the cashier cut in.
- take advantage of it being her turn and the slothful clerk being free at last.
“Ah, thanks so much,” said Adrienne, squinting at the clerk’s faded name tag as she dumped items on the counter with relief. “Martha, is it?” she asked as she flexed her elbows a couple of times to get the blood flowing.
The look on Martha’s face remained unchanged. The scowl was obviously permanent; a next level variant of the resting bitch face.
“Well alrighty then,” Adrienne said crassly. “I'll just take these things here and, um, some of those condoms too, the ones in the blue box.”
She pointed to the display behind the register in an attempt to let her newfound admirers know she had an other half, without actually having to look at or talk to them.
“Well, ain’t you a lucky one?” the closest man gruffed, the other two chuckling discordantly.
“Nah, I’m the lucky one,” a familiar voice interrupted. It was Gage as he approached from behind, grabbing Adrienne squarely on the hips and patting her right cheek a couple times. “And the blue box ones are too small for me darlin’. We need those right there in the black box, with the XL remember?” He made sure to put much emphasis on the X and the L.
Turning around, he winked at the men before striding off. They eyeballed him in return, scoffing and whispering amongst themselves as he swaggered by.
As the clerk finally rung up her sale after the longest wait ever to spend sixteen dollars, Adrienne discovered that Gage had gone again.
Ugh, where’s he at now, she thought, stepping away from the counter. It wasn't long before she saw him browsing in a nearby aisle.
“I already have stuff,” she said to him, waving the bags around to grab his attention.
He was having none of it.
“I'm just double checking,” he replied. “Oh! Did you get
any cinnamon gum?”
She sighed, her face decidedly neutral. “No, I didn’t.”
“Well, we have to curb the potential for dragon breath. Nobody wants that. No, no, we must get some.”
She tried really hard not to roll her eyes again as she trundled over to the assortment of gum and began looking.
Gage continued to browse, eventually finding his way outside of the food aisles. There he spotted a gray flannel shirt on one of the few clothing stands in the store, along with a matching hat. His eyes grew wide. Wahoo! Two jackpots in one day!
He quickly scanned the other racks; they didn’t carry much worth buying, cluttered with way-too-small tee shirts and caps sporting one liners about beard rides, guns, and ‘your girlfriend’.
At last Adrienne found the right gum and looked around again to see where he was. Could he not stand still for a more than a few seconds?
“A lil’ help here,” came a distinct voice from behind.
Adrienne spun to see him with both arms stuck straight up, the unbuttoned shirt straining across his flared back. She shook her head as she walked over, setting down the bags and grabbing hold of the loose ends.
“Stuck are we?”
He was unamused. “No shit, potato head.”
“You have a way of getting clothes stuck on you, don’t you?” she asked sarcastically. “Just as well you don’t own many.”
She attempted to pull and the shirt didn’t move.
Great, this was actually going to be a struggle. As usual, Gage found ways of making life markedly ‘easier’. Undaunted, she tried again and after a few heftier tugs, his back finally gave up its hold and the shirt was on, stretched only slightly. Upon a second glance, perhaps a little… or a lot more than slightly.
“You really should trademark that back,” she joked. “It would go perfectly with the others.”
He smiled. “I’m building up quite the collection of TMs, eh?” He grabbed each side of the shirt and did a twirl, pausing dramatically each quarter turn to accentuate his features. His abs and countless obliques looked exceptionally good with the direct lighting overhead. “Whatcha think?” he asked, head tilted with narrow and seductive eyes peeking through a tuft of hair that flowed over his forehead.
She looked him over, mulling over how utterly ridiculous he looked while also thinking it was without a doubt one of the sexiest things she had ever laid eyes on.
“Well, you model wannabe,” she said. “You’re looking pretty damn lumbersexual. Flannel actually looks hot on you, so if ever this Journeyman thing doesn’t work out you could always dabble in some modeling; get yourself on a romance book cover or two.”
“Ha! Damn right you’d want to read about me. But, I like to think of myself as more metro,” he stated. “However, I really like this shirt and this hat! Makes me look like a grizzly fucker.”
She laughed heartily as he put the cap on over his untamed hair. “That you are, Gage. One grizzly, hung, buff, metrosexual fucker. Jesus, you have to be one of the most confusing men I have ever met.” She stopped him moving for a moment, a major task in its own right, and her hand grazed across the fine hairs on his chest. “And I wouldn't have it any other way.”
They stood for a moment in the middle of the aisles looking at each other, uncaring how awkward looking the scene might appear to others.
The front doors sounded and the all-too-familiar huffs of arrested breathing soon followed, ending the romantic interlude.
A bloodied man shuffled his way into the store and fell into the main counter, splattering red everywhere. He was holding his side, from which his life oozed out of an extensive wound.
“Call 911!” he exclaimed through short breaths. “There’s two huge bears or some shit out there and they’re… eating people!”
Adrienne and Gage faced each other, tenacious expressions flashing across each of their faces.
“Always an adventure!” she said.
He shouted across to the perma-scowl, who was frozen with an upturned nose in front of the bleeding man. “Get that man medical attention and be quick about it!”
She didn't budge.
“Now!” he bellowed. His voice rattled her straight to the core and as if a switch had been flipped, she hustled over to the phone.
Adrienne and Gage rushed out, dropping their bags off beside the entrance before continuing on toward their truck.
The scene outside was sheer pandemonium: a sea of panicked people had arose out of nowhere like some frenzied crop. The two of them had to dodge their way through the mob, the crowd running in any and all directions. Some searched for safe haven in the convenience store or over at the diner, while more were banging hard on the locked doors of the motel, desperately seeking shelter.
Upon closer inspection, Gage noticed that although the rabble was scattered, they were generally moving to the east and away from something, as yet unseen, beyond a line of big rigs parked on the other side of the station.
As they neared their vehicle, terrifying howls blanketed the screaming crowd. The hectic action seemed to stop whilst the sound blasted its way across the frightened masses.
“That doesn’t sound too good,” Gage said.
“Not in the slightest,” said Adrienne nervously. “Recognize it?”
“Sure don't,” said Gage unfortunately.
No sooner than the roars ended and the shrieking of the crowd took over, two monstrous shapes bolted around the foremost K-Whopper. They were slightly larger than Kodiaks, with reptilian skin that glistened in the low slung light and lustrous manes of rust colored feathers that ran down the entire length of their backs. Their heads could pass for large dogs, filled to the brim with salivating canines. They were actually quite beautiful yet absolutely terrifying.
The lead creature was holding something tightly in its jaws, a body by the looks of it, but it was hard to make out with all the commotion. It bit down hard, splitting whatever it was into two pieces that fell off to each side. They continued to rush toward the station, tearing between a couple of cab overs, shredding the metal like paper and shattering glass.
About a hundred feet away, a family of four had taken refuge by the side of their silver minivan, hoping it would shield them from the hungry eyes that were searching for prey.
Adrienne watched helplessly from afar as the parents, themselves quivering in terror, tried to comfort their children's cries which were acting like a lure, drawing the attention and fury of one of the beasts.
“Move!” she shouted vehemently, placing herself at risk of being targeted by either of the monsters. “You have to get away from there!” she cried, but it was to no avail, her voice unable to carry itself over the cacophony in between.
The beast swung its tail at the van, bulldozing its way through the roof, getting stuck halfway across the ragged metal that had peeled away. As it tried to pull free, the wheels resisted like nails on a chalkboard and each powerful tug left thick skid marks imprinted on the concrete.
Likely addled from fear, the family stayed put during the onslaught instead of taking a chance to run for safer cover.
Adrienne shook her head as she stood there dumbfounded.
The creature’s tail came loose with a deafening snap and the van lurched up on two of its wheels before tipping over, crushing the cowering group underneath its unforgiving weight. Her gut wrenched as the creatures didn't even bother rifling through the debris to consume them, instead stomping by as their heavy footfalls cracked the pavement. What a waste of life.
One of the beasts headed straight toward a couple of defenseless bikers over at The Crispy Biscuit, desperately trying to get their Harleys started while the other one took to beating itself against a lifted black Dually that was parked at the motel. Inside, the passengers were screaming like little musical sardines as they were tossed around mercilessly.
Adrienne and Gage finally reached the GMC and he leapt up into the bed, unlocking their magic box of goodies. He tossed her a marked long swo
rd and pistol, grabbing his own MK23 from its holster before removing his now favorite machete and a rune stone before slamming the box closed.
“What the hell are those things!?” shouted Adrienne.
“Bunyip I think. Haven’t seen one in real life though and I might have skipped over a lot of the lore, since Aussie cryptos ain’t normally on this side of the world.”
He donned his sunglasses. Through the lenses he saw their heads were pulsing with intense colors: yellows and reds shifting hues around the sinuses. The corners of his lips fell to a frown and he added begrudgingly, “From the looks of it they’re berserked. Lucky us.”
“Good lord, what are they doing here in Texas of all places?”
“I dunno but they’re definitely a little far from home,” he said, racking the slide. The sound was pure comfort to him. “Wouldn’t surprise me one bit if the Noctis or some other faction was behind this.”
“Yup, I agree. So how do we take them down?” she asked eagerly.
“Well,” he started confidently while holding up the gun and machete in turn. “I assume they're gonna be like most of the things we encounter on four legs: hating bullets or the sharp end of a sword.”
Adrienne abandoned all her eagerness in no time flat. “So that's it?” she said with heavy disappointment in her voice, waiting for a bit more detail, like what kind of bullets were useful or if any specific symbols and marks would put them down faster.
As expected, nothing more came from Gage on the matter.
“So… that’s all we have to go on?” she muttered. “Call J.”
“Yeppers!” said Gage with a playful nod as he ran toward the motel, “and phone’s dead again. Ain't this fun?”
“No,” she replied to herself before running after him, “it’s not fun at all.”
The bunyip continued to beat itself against the side of the buckling truck, trying to get at the tenderized morsels inside. It used its claws to pry off the doors as if it were some huge tin can. The passengers had since blacked out and large bloody patches stained the side windows and dashboard vinyl. If they weren’t dead, they were certainly pretty close to it.
Homeward Bound (Journeyman Book 1) Page 10