“Uh, yeah,” he said, enduring the hug with his arms by his sides.

“I thought the car had eaten you!”

“Nope.”

His clothes were fresh. He smelled of soap. She released him and covered her heart with her hands, feeling it beat. “You’re okay?”

“I’m sore,” he said, “but yeah. Feeling fine. I couldn’t find my boots.”

“They’re gone.”

“Damn,” said Milo. “Those were my favourites.”

He went to the trunk, which sprang open at his touch, and grabbed a pair of walking boots from his bag.

Amber watched him put them on. “You’re sure you’re feeling okay? You were pretty messed up.”

“The car takes care of me,” he said. “So do you, for that matter.”

“I look after my employees.”

Milo gave her one of those smiles. “Oh, that’s right – I’m being paid for all this, aren’t I? Bodyguard and chauffeur. How much do you owe me by now?”

“Forty or fifty grand?” said Amber. “No big deal. It’s not like you’re doing this for the money, after all.”

“It’s for the love of the work,” he said, and straightened up. “So you want to fill me in on what’s been happening? I noticed those two from the jail in the living room, and that’s an old man’s shower. There’s a seat.”

“His name’s Virgil,” said Amber. “He’s not from here, and he’s on our side. He might be gay.”

“Good to know.”

“The other two in the living room are Linda and Warrick. There’s also a dog. My parents are here, too.”

“In the living room?”

“In town. Astaroth sent them, but now they want Dacre Shanks’s key so that they can make a deal with Naberius instead.”

“Devious bastards, aren’t they?”

“I know what the town festival is. They call it Hell Night. Jesper’s freelancer, someone called the Narrow Man, he makes the sacrifice, Naberius gets juiced up, and the town gets juiced up right along with him. The town changes, and everyone over the age of eighteen shifts.”

Milo frowned. “Into demons?”

“Yep. Oh, also? The cops are demons, too.”

“I figured as much. Anything else?”

“A kid has gone missing. Austin Cooke. The Narrow Man has him. But we know who the Narrow Man is. He disguises himself as a guy called Moreno, and he owns a hardware store. Kelly and the others, they said he’s a shapeshifter.”

“Is that so?”

“You ever meet one of those before?”

“Not that I’m aware,” Milo said, and opened the car door, reaching into the back seat. He came out with Phil Daggett’s silenced handgun.