Empty Bodies 3: Deliverance (Empty Bodies Series Book 3) by Zach Bohannon

question. The shadow reached down to steal the plate from him, and then he walked it back toward the kitchen.
    “No!” Dylan cried out. “Please, I’m sorry. I’ll eat here; just please bring my plate back. I didn’t mean to offend anybody.”
    The large man turned to Clint, and Clint nodded at him to return the platter to the table. He set the plate back down in front of Dylan, then picked up the fork and put it in the boy’s hand. The large man retreated again, and Clint and Cindy continued to eat their food at the other end of the table. The two boys just stared at Dylan, ignoring their food and apparently waiting to see what his next move would be.
    Dylan stirred the white-ish substance on the plate, then looked up to Clint and asked, “What is this?”
    Peeking over the salt and pepper shakers at the center of the table, Clint looked at the plate and chuckled. “In America, we call that eggs and grits.”
    “What are grits?” Dylan asked, scrunching up his face.
    “Where you from, boy?” Clint asked.
    “Alexandria,” Dylan mumbled, slightly embarrassed that he didn’t know what grits were.
    “Where’s that?”
    “In Virginia. Right outside of Washington D.C.”
    “Fuckin’ hippies,” Clint said. “Just eat it, kid.”
    Dylan looked up, and the smelly boys still stared at him. He tried to put them out of his mind, and pretend like the plate in front of him was full of his mother’s delicious, fluffy eggs. Just as he realized how dry his throat was, the large man came back over and set down a glass of water in front of him. It had a slightly brown tint to it, but he wasn’t going to complain. He’d likely rather have that over the sour milk, and he knew he would need something to wash the slop down with.
    Without thinking about it, Dylan forced the first bite into his mouth, trailing the mush with a large swig of the dirty water. He could taste the minerals in the water mixing with the nasty taste of the egg and grits mixture, and covered his mouth so he could swallow without throwing up. If he didn’t eat what they’d offered, there was no telling when or if the people would feed him again. He had no choice but to force it down.
    One of the children giggled, and Cindy hit him across the back of his head with an open palm. The child’s head snapped down, almost slamming his nose into the table.
    “You shut the fuck up and eat your food,” she shouted.
    The boy rubbed the back of his head and glared at Dylan as if it was his fault he’d been slapped.
    Clint looked over to Dylan, who was trying to swallow his second bite of breakfast. “We gonna let you spend some time with us today. Show you the real fun stuff.”
    Dylan nearly threw up, barely hearing Clint speak as he was trying to make himself swallow another disgusting bite. Clint took another bloody bite out of his steak.
    “Yeah, you gonna have fun with us today, boy. That, I promise.”
    The stairs creaked as heavy footsteps moved downward. Dylan looked up and his eyes widened as he saw a smiling familiar face. An uneasy feeling crept up inside him. Clint smiled.
    “Perfect timing,” Clint said. “We were just finishing up breakfast before we go and get started for the day.” Clint looked to Dylan and pointed at the man. “Dylan, I’m not sure you’ve been properly introduced. This is Mr. David Ellis.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

    Jessica
    Writing had always been Jessica’s number one way of relaxation and escape, and now she was thankful she’d mentioned her love of the craft to Sarah in passing during a conversation that morning. When she’d gone back to her room after breakfast, there lay a blank notepad and a pen waiting for her on her bed, along with a simple note that just had a smiley face drawn on it.
    She’d spent the past hour lying on the bed on her stomach, writing in her new journal. It brought her a certain calm to finally get the words out onto the page. She wasn’t the kind who was typically comforted by speaking