Page 16 of Demon Shock

Looking from the three men to Gyrik, who was reclaiming Pete, I decided that sticking to the giant who had an affinity for cats wouldn’t be too difficult.

“Gyrik will ride with you if that’s okay. He can keep an eye on things behind us, and I’ll watch ahead.” Bram handed Gyrik a handheld radio. “I’ll let you know if I see anything that needs clearing.”

Anxiety soured my stomach as Gyrik walked around to the driver's side door and opened it for me. What I felt only had a little bit to do with my driving companion. Most of my nerves were for what I’d see once we headed south.

Repeat was already on my seat, waiting. Gravitating toward the comfort his presence offered, I picked him up and got in. Gyrik walked around the hood of the truck as I gave Repeat some head kisses to soothe myself. It was enough that I could calmly place Repeat on the seat between us once Gyrik got in.

“I usually don’t drive with them out like this. If one of them tries to go under my feet or on my lap, we’ll need to kennel them.”

I’d already had Zach place the small kennel in the back, but I hoped we wouldn’t need to use it. Pete and Repeat tended to cry the whole time. Plus, I felt a lot better having them close by me—comforting while I drove, not only with someone who didn’t consider himself human but into a rumored to be devastated world.

The truck in front of me rolled forward, and I followed. From the corner of my eye, I saw Gyrik reach to pull Repeat into his lap while holding Pete in his arms.

He seemed to like them, and they had no problem with him, based on the volume of their purring. All the things I should have been dwelling on last night resurfaced.

“Is it okay if I ask you some questions while we drive?” I asked.

“Yes.”

Now that I had permission, I wasn’t sure where to start.

“You mentioned brothers. How many of you are there?”

He was quiet for several seconds, and I glanced at him.

“You don’t know?”

“I know, but I promised Bram I wouldn’t tell anyone that information. He said keeping our numbers secret will help ensure our safety.”

I did a double-take at him. “Yoursafety? You lifted that generator into the truck like it weighed nothing.”

He turned to look at me, his gaze almost sad.

“Bullets can still kill us. Humans like guns and shooting when they’re afraid of something.”

So he wasn’t trying to be mysterious or shifty, just trying to protect himself. It made me feel a little bad for him and also a little safer knowing he wasn’t invincible.

“Have you been shot at a lot?”

His expression morphed as he chuckled. “Yes. Many, many times. It’s a good thing I can move fast.”

He kind of looked cute when he was smiling.

“Really? You can dodge bullets?”

“Sometimes.”

“What else can you do that a human can’t?”

CHAPTER SIX

GYRIK

My thoughtsimmediately shifted to what I’d learned from my brothers, but Angel’s warnings stopped me from telling Ava I could release inside of her repeatedly without going soft like a human male.

“I can jump higher than a human can.”

“Really? How high?”

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