The Demon King and I Read Online Free PDF Page B

staff to catch him before anything unfortunate happens.”
    The last time Bailey was drunk at the Driscoll he tried to slide down the banister. It hadn’t been so difficult when he was a kid, but as a nonsober adult it didn’t go as well. He’d had thirteen delicate and well-placed stitches after that escapade. “His future children will thank you.”
    I pulled out onto Sixth Street and considered grabbing some take-out Mexican, but I didn’t feel like stopping. It had been a really long day and I was ready to get home.
    I called ahead to the house and Mrs. Pompson, the house chef, picked up the phone. “Yes, Ms. Gillian.”
    “Hi, Mrs. Pompson, is there anything for dinner? What did you guys have tonight?” She oversaw a large staff that made certain everyone at the house was fed well. Since the complex was out in the middle of nowhere it didn’t make sense for employees to have to drive twenty minutes for meals. There was also a well-stocked break room with snacks and drinks on the lowest level.
    “Tonight we have a choice of chicken enchiladas and tortilla soup, or meat loaf and mashed potatoes.”
    They both sounded good.
    “Excellent. I’ll be home in fifteen minutes. I’ve been craving your enchiladas.”
    “We’ll see you soon, miss. I added some habanero peppers to the sauce for you, just in case you made it home this evening.”
    I smiled. I loved that woman. She’d been working for the family for as long as I could remember, and she always seemed to know what we wanted. She shared the kitchen with my mother, which was no easy task. My mother loved to cook, and she worked out her stress by creating new recipes. It was absolutely the only domestic thing about her.
    Mom was the one who taught us to fight and use weapons, while other children learned hopscotch and jumped rope. She was a tough broad, but we loved her.
    My dad was the softhearted nurturer. The one who made certain we developed the social skills needed to travel in the circles we did. Fae, demons, dragons, Nereids, and other otherworldly beings were drawn to the rich and powerful, and that’s where we often found the craftiest of them. Some had been in our world for centuries without detection; others tried to jump in more recently. It was our job to get rid of them, in whatever way possible.
    Their crimes were often written off as serial killings or unexplained phenomena. People on Earth didn’t want to believe in monsters, and I couldn’t blame them.
    I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn’t see the tail at first. It was only as I pulled onto the freeway that I noticed the black SUV speeding up on my bumper.
    “Crap. Damn paparazzi.”
    I couldn’t let them snap a photo, as I should have been headed home on a plane from Argentina. Since I was in my brother’s car there was a good chance they thought I was his latest chick du jour.
    Stamping my foot down on the accelerator, I shifted gears. They were gaining on me, and it would be tough to lose them on the highway. I shifted and made a quick exit and U-turn under the freeway, leading them back toward the university. Winding my way through the back roads, I drove like a crazy woman on a mission. Ten minutes later I was free of the tail and jumped back on the highway.
    My phone rang again.
    “Ms. Caruthers, it’s Jake. We have jumpers. The first one is a mile ahead of your current location on the right side. It’s as if he is waiting for you.”
    Crap. “Got it. I’ll intercept. Thanks.” I checked the rear-view to make sure the tail was really gone. Photographing me killing a demon would make the front page. I couldn’t let that happen.
    I turned onto the farm road leading to the house, and I pulled off on the shoulder. Popping the trunk, I went in search of weapons. Bailey had a Magnum in the trunk along with a bowie knife and some weird-looking machine. I had no idea what it did and had no time to figure it out.
    I stuffed the knife in the back of my jeans and put the