Dave sipped a coffee. The caffeine no longer mattered, but it gave him something to do with his hands. He was dressed in red flannel, jeans, and washable boots; seasonal camouflage that suited the hunt. He’d been heavy before and now looked deflated and sallow. A sullen kid with oversized headphones rolled past them, the clatter of the longboard roused Dave’s companion Karl.

“How about that one?” Karl asked.

Karl appeared young, not much older than the prey, band t-shirt, collarless leather jacket, skinny jeans tucked into tall boots. He had the look of a scene kid in the wrong city, stylish but somehow off a beat. They had met a few weeks ago, but this was their first proper hunt. Dave didn’t want to be difficult, but he had concerns. 

“I don’t know, what is he…fifteen, at most?. “ said Dave.

 Karl shrugged and kept his voice even to avoid drawing attention. They had set up on a bench at the edge of a failed pedestrian mall; weed shops, dive bars and PaydayLoans dotted the cobblestone lane.

‘So, less chance of disease, more vital. We’re not sending him to buy smokes; feed, kill, ditch the body, end of story.” said Karl.

 Had it been later in the night Dave wouldn’t have argued, but it was a few hours past sundown on a Saturday, so they had time and opportunity to waste. 

 

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