Read Demons in My Driveway for Free Online Page A

the ‘80s. A bunch of teenagers came through San Rafael, looking for trouble.”
    “What did they do?” I leaned forward, my cup clutched between my hands.
    He shrugged. “Mostly stupid stuff at first. Graffiti. Stolen hubcaps. Egging houses. Nobody realized who or what they were until the full moon hit and they went all hairy and snarly. The O.G.R.E. squad came in quick and took the kids away before humans got wind of it. But it was a close call. All anybody talked about for weeks.”
    I frowned and glanced at the obnoxiously sweet Thomas Kinkade calendar Maurice had hung on the wall. “We’re still a week out from the next full moon.”
    “That’s not right,” Wiggy said. “If it’s not a full moon, how could the council know what came out the portal was a werewolf? They wouldn’t, would they? Someone’s having us on.”
    I wasn’t entirely sure what “having us on” meant, but I knew when I smelled bullshit. “The portal was just spotted,” I said. “And they’re saying a werewolf is roaming the countryside. That doesn’t make any damn sense from what you’re saying. You’re sure there’s no other way to spot a werewolf outside the three days of the full moon?”
    Maurice drained his cup, leaving a thin line of chocolate on the gray skin of his upper lip. “Not that I know of. The rest of the month, they look as human as the two of you.”
    “Well, at least it’s not werewolves, then.” Wiggy grinned. “My nan met a werewolf once. Tried to eat her until she sat on it. She gave it a right scare, and broke three of its ribs.”
    Maurice and I stared at Wiggy, afraid to laugh, but also afraid not to. Wiggy burst into hysterical laughter, tears running down his cheeks. “You should see your faces.”
    We chuckled with him, but I still wasn’t sure if I should laugh about this guy’s fat grandmother. After a few minutes, he mopped his face with the back of his hand and slid his chair back. “This has been really lovely, but I’ve got to get back to it. Maurice—” he stuck out his hand to shake, “—wonderful to meet you, mate.” He turned and gave me a one-armed squeeze across my shoulders. “And, Zoey, you take care of yourself. Give me a call if you need anything at all, yeah?”
    I smiled and opened my mouth to respond, but with a puff of wind, he was already gone.
    “Strange man,” Maurice said, clearing up the dishes. “Nice, though.”
    “Yeah. Nice.” I frowned. “What do you suppose is going on out there?”
    He ran water in the sink and added soap. “You tell me. You’re the one sending home frantic texts to keep your mom in the house in the middle of the night.”
    “Sorry. I didn’t mean to freak you out. Were you at Sara’s earlier?”
    He nodded. “She was having a rough night. I checked on her a little while ago, though. She’s asleep.”
    “Good.” I scrubbed my forehead with my fingertips. “Who’s here? I’m surprised nobody else got up.”
    “Just your mom, right now. Darius and Kam should be here later today. Some bungee jumper snapped his neck, and his soul made a run for it to Nevada. They went after it.”
    While my boyfriend—correction,
ex-boyfriend
—was a salaried reaper who pulled stuck souls from the bodies of the newly dead, Kam and Darius freelanced for the Board as soul chasers. They went after the souls that escaped from their lifeless bodies and instead of crossing over or going to the light or whatever souls are supposed to do. Lately, the team didn’t go far though. They only took jobs that kept them within a day’s drive of my house in case we needed them in a hurry.
    I nodded. “Good. I think the shit is about to hit the fan.”
    Maurice grinned. “Awesome. It’s been nearly six months since our last shit storm. I was beginning to worry we’d gone all domestic.”
    * * *
    Not long after the sun came up, Mom came out of her bedroom, yawning. Her curly red hair was so like mine—though the color had faded some. It lay squashed