The Devil Inside Read Online Free PDF

okay? You look kind of pale.” Dio knows me well enough to read me. We’ve been friends since we were kids.
    “Yeah, I’m fine. Something weird happened at work. Two guys came in and tried to extort money.”
    “Shit. You gave it to them?”
    “No.” I cross my arms and lean against the door frame. “They didn’t get the money.”
    “Huh? What the hell happened?” Dio scoots back in his roller chair, his blue eyes intense. I’ve got his attention because he went through a similar thing, a few years back. Dio used to run a computer game store in the same neighborhood, but the gangs kept demanding “protection” money and skimming all his profits.   They knew he couldn’t fight back. So he shut up shop to work from home. It turned out to be the best thing he ever did. These days, he makes a lot of money from website design and writing code.  
    “One of the staff there, he um, kind of beat them up.” Kaito’s black, implacable stare flashes through my memory. Scary as hell. But then, he was so decent with me afterwards. What was up with that?
    Dio’s eyes go wide. “That’s fuckin’ nuts. You know they’ll be back, right?”
    I nod. “That’s what I’m worried about. The guy who beat them, he told me he’d take care of it. But these guys looked like real hardasses. I don’t know what he can do.”
    Dio leans forward, all mock-conspiratorial. “Maybe he’s got his own family to back him up.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “The Japanese have their underworld too, Adi.””
    “Um, no way.” I roll my eyes. Dio loves wild theories and reading about underground secret society shit. Kaito’s got some fighting skills, but there’s no way he’s into organized crime. He’s too clean-cut. And Fat Dragon wouldn’t employ a connected guy to do accounting. What kind of gangster does accounting? I’ve met the owner of the sushi bar a few times. Mr Nakajima’s a pleasant, elderly gentleman who brings the staff Japanese sweets and tea. There’s no way a guy like him would be into underworld stuff.
    At least, that’s what I try to tell myself. But after what I’ve witnessed, Dio’s theory almost seems believable.
    “Just kidding.” As if sensing my unease, Dio laughs. “It wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, though. At least you’d know that no-one would mess with you at work. Just be careful, Adi. I’m glad you’re okay.”
    As I nod, my phone buzzes. On the screen is a text from my little sister, Mina.  
    Adi, pls come home. Dad’s drunk. Mom hurt.
    Shit.
    “Dio, I need to borrow your car. Trouble at home.”
    “Sure thing.” Dio throws me the keys to his Mustang. As I said, the website design gig pays good money. And he works from home. Lucky bastard. “You need me to come?”
    “No, it’s okay.” If Gavin is drunk, I don’t want Dio to have to deal with that. My father can be a mean asshole. There’s a reason I moved out of home before I’d even finished high school.  
    That’s my dad, the alcoholic, wife beating ex-cop.  

Adele

    I arrive at my family’s house about twenty minutes later, thankful that the traffic wasn’t so bad. The porch light is on, casting a sallow glow across the tired wooden deck. Nothing has changed since I was a kid. There’s the same flaking, beige paint on the walls and the same pathetic, emaciated shrubs lining the path.  
    Someone’s left the front door open. I let myself in and find mom and Mina sitting in the kitchen. Mom’s eyes are red. She’s been crying. There’s a big, swollen mark on her left cheek. Tomorrow, it’ll be a nasty bruise.  
    My little sister Mina is beside her, running a gentle hand up and down her back. Tears well in her green eyes, which look big in her gaunt face. She’s lost weight since the last time I saw her.
    Anger rises in me. “You’re both coming to stay at my place,” I snap. “Get your things. You’re not his goddamn punching bag.”
    “Wait, Adele.” Mom’s voice is shaky. “He’s not