Dane's a Decrypter down on his luck -- after accidentally dispatching the wrong creature, he's sent to a small town where the cryptids he hunts are sparse. Crypt Coffee becomes his business front, but instead of a thrilling new mission on the side, he's stuck sending ghosts back to where they came from. Dane can annoy customers, at least, and tries to scare off Professor Sean Sanderson when he starts poking around too much.<br><br>But Sean isn’t about to stay away. Not when he hears about the murder of a former student, and definitely not if young, exciting Dane has information about it. But the more he allows himself to get dragged into this supernatural world of monsters and ghosts, the more the danger escalates. And if Sean and Dane aren’t careful, tracking down a murderer who can use magic might just get them killed.

Bad Seed

Sean scooped up his laptop and notes, following him to the door. Dane wasn’t surprised, but he didn’t know what to do. He’d spent the night assuming he’d have the Order wipe Sean’s mind sometime in the next few weeks. But he felt mildly guilty he was planning on it. It’d be easier if Sean pulled away some.


“It’s like you don’t know me. I’m hurt.”


“I’m not driving your ass over,” said Dane, pausing at the door. Sean really did look hurt. Hell, he looked entirely different from the man Dane had kissed that Friday night not long ago. He seemed younger, more motivated. Apparently he’d been having a slump as a professor, and now…Shit.


“I’ll take my car then. You won’t have to worry about getting me home by my bedtime. But you’re the one with the database, right?”


When Dane stared at him blankly, Sean explained. He had a patient way of doing it, something he must have picked up teaching.


“John mentioned I wasn’t in the database, I assume of Order members.”


Chapter 27