Page 39 of The Devil You Know
Evan shook his head. “No. I’ll stand guard here. Be fast.”
He thought maybe his brother would change his mind once he was out of the truck, but Parker was back in five minutes with a duffel bag and a computer backpack.
“Figured I’d travel light since I wasn’t sure if you were going to send me home as soon as I got here,” Parker confessed.
Since Evan had strongly considered doing that, he just nodded. “How long do you have the room for?”
“The weekend. I was optimistic.”
Evan chuckled. “Good. We’ll come back for your car tomorrow.”
Parker glanced at him in surprise when Evan pulled into the campground. “That’s where you’re staying?” he asked when Evan parked in front of the camper.
“Seth and I live in the RV; makes it easy to move around,” Evan replied. He made sure to park where Seth had warded a space and led Parker to the trailer. He held his breath until Parker was past the protections, still afraid that his brother’s sudden appearance might not be as coincidental as it seemed and that the wardings would refuse him entry.
Evan reached beneath his shirt and pulled out the two protective silver medallions he never left home without. He removed one, which he handed to Parker.
“Wear this. It will help keep you safe.”
Parker accepted the necklace skeptically. “From what?”
“Dark magic and infernal creatures who dislike silver.” Evan sighed. “Just…trust me on this, please.”
Parker dropped the chain around his neck and tucked the medallion into his shirt with a shy smile. “Thanks. I feel safer already.” His teasing tone told Evan that Parker would follow his lead, even if he didn’t completely understand. That warmed a part of Evan’s big brother heart that had gone dormant for too long.
“This is very nice,” Parker said, looking around. Evan sometimes forgot his first reaction to an RV with leather couches, an electric fireplace, bump-outs for more space, a well-appointed kitchen, and a surprising amount of elbow room.
“Seth’s parents bought the RV and the truck for their retirement traveling. Then they were killed in a car accident not long after Seth’s brother was murdered. The house burned in a mysterious fire. All Seth had left was his motorcycle, the truck, and the fifth wheeler.”
Parker stared at Evan in shock. “Seriously? I think you’d better back the fuck up and start from the beginning.”
Evan nodded. “Have a seat. I’m going to make coffee. Then I’ll tell you as much as I can.”
Parker made a slow circle around the living room, taking in the photographs of Seth and Evan and the homey touches that were a mix of items the two of them had collected in their travels and things Seth’s mom had bought.
Evan brought over two hot mugs of coffee and set one down in front of Parker before taking a seat across from him. “Do you remember when Uncle Vince died suddenly thirteen years ago?”
“Dad’s older brother?” Parker asked before taking a sip of his drink. “Yeah.”
Evan nodded. “And you’ve heard Dad talk about how his father’s older brother also died young.”
“You think they’re connected?”
“I know they are. Because I would have been the next to die last Halloween if Seth hadn’t saved me.” Evan told Parker the whole story about defeating the first witch disciple and Evan’s near miss.
“For a hundred years, the warlocks sacrificed the descendants of the deputies who executed their master. It wasn’t just our uncle and great-uncle—it was the oldest of each generation back to the turn of the last century,” Evan continued.
“And you and Seth travel around fighting evil, like those guys on TV?”
“It’s scarier when it’s real,” Evan replied. “Blood doesn’t wash out of clothing well, and our hair never looks that good in a fight.”
“I’m serious,” Parker complained.
“So am I. This is the fifth witch disciple, and because of him, the sixth is dead. That still leaves six more to go,” Evan said.
“Why is this your responsibility?” Parker protested. “Aren’t there people who get paid to handle these sorts of things?”
“Secret government organizations and Vatican groups do some of the work. But a lot of monsters exist, and there aren’t enough people who fight them,” Evan replied. “No one realized the pattern with Gremory’s disciples for a century—all those deaths—before Seth picked up on it. How many more people would have died? Me, for one.”
