Page 298 -- XXXV.

Chapter Thirty-Five: ‘Tremulous friends, be wary...’
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A pair of waiters scurried between tables, attending to the truck stop diner’s morning rush. The place was busier than Hector might have expected. Perhaps being in the middle of nowhere worked in its favor. There were maybe two other places to eat over the next hundred kilometers or so.

Colt sat across the table, his kids right next to him.

“What are their names?” Hector asked.

“Stephanie and Thomas.” He poked at the baby girl, and she grabbed his index finger. “Thank you for keeping them safe, by the way. Didn’t get the chance to say that before.”

A waiter arrived before Hector could respond. The man began to look rather concerned as they told him their orders, scribbling through several pages of his notepad. He advised them that it would be a long wait and disappeared again.

Hector struggled with finding something else to say. Colt wasn’t exactly his favorite person right now, but the man was an ally, and Garovel had reminded Hector at length about how important that could be. Yet even still, Hector couldn’t come up with anything that wouldn’t surely start another argument, so he decided to remain quiet. Colt didn’t seem too worried about keeping up a conversation, either.

Thankfully, the reapers soon returned from scouting the area.

‘Didn’t find any cops,’ said Garovel. ‘You?’

‘I saw a pair of highway troopers a few hundred meters north of here, but nothing else.’

“So we can relax,” said Colt.

‘Yeah.’ A beat passed as Garovel looked between the other reaper and servant. ‘I’m curious to know what your long-term plans are.’

Colt and Bohwanox exchanged glances.

‘I have none,’ said Bohwanox. ‘Other than following Colt for my own protection, my only intention is to continue reaping souls as I normally would. Why? What are your plans?’