Instinct Ascending: Rabids Book 2 Read Online Free

However, it wasn’t until she actually started working the new hours that Amiel finally understood what Joyce had been trying to tell her. The slightest noise out of the ordinary spooked them. They carefully avoided any eye contact with one another, as well as their customers. They spoke as little as possible, straying far away from anything that might hint at anything personal. It was as though no one wanted to take the risk of getting to know anyone else.
    She understood not wanting to feel the debilitating pain of losing a loved one. She knew that all too well. But at the same time, what kind of life was that to live? It had to be so very lonely, not to mention stressful, being that frightened all the time. She found it slightly ironic that Hybrids had to constantly worry about losing their humanity, and yet the very humans they fought to protect had, in a way, already lost it. They were like frightened animals hiding in shadowed corners, only occasionally running into the light to grab food before shrinking back into their dark havens.
    The night crew? They were a harder bunch, used to the rigors of life and not afraid to take them on. Sure, they didn’t want to be eaten any more than the next person. But they understood that life waited for no one, and sometimes you had to do the tough things to live. Actually live, in more ways than just breathing. They were crude and rude, but Amiel had grown to think of them as family of sorts: a big, crazy, dysfunctional family. Amiel understood how to do crazy, dysfunctional families. And of course when things got too crazy, Joyce was always there to laugh it off with her. She missed it.
    The bell over the door rang, and from the corner of her eye, Amiel saw two men take a corner booth near the door, far away from everyone else. Smiling, she shook her head and grabbed a new pen from the drawer. These two were perfect examples of the everyday, average humans that walked the daylight hours. Antisocial day chasers, Joyce called them. The name made Amiel grin.
    She strode to their table, avoiding eye contact until she was ready to take their order: yet another trick she had had to learn on this new shift. Daylighters tended to get hostile and suspicious if you were too outwardly friendly.
    “Welcome to Jolleyways Diner, what can I get… you?” Amiel floundered slightly as she finally looked up. “Pell?”
    Pell grinned enthusiastically. “Hello, Amiel. How are you?”
    “I…” Amiel hesitated in surprise for a second, before her manners kicked in. “I am well, thank you. How are you?” 
    Pell’s grin broadened at her reply. “Wonderful! I must say it is lovely seeing you again. After our last meeting being so… well, you know. I don’t have to remind you!” Pell grunted, grabbing at his shin and shooting a surprised glance at his companion.
    “Tone it down, Einstein. You’ll draw attention,” the second man cautioned quietly. Amiel swallowed hard, finally forcing herself to turn to Pell’s companion.
    “Cajun,” she greeted.
    “Amiel,” Cajun replied solemnly. They stared at one another for a long moment, and Amiel felt an odd sort of jolt inside her, some sort of reaction to what she now instinctively recognized as Cajun’s Hybrid side staring at her through his eyes. She didn’t like the way that jolt felt, leaping to life within her mind. She closed her eyes, giving her head a slight shake, begging the sensation to dissipate.
    Swallowing, she forced herself to look back to Cajun, to meet his gaze. A flicker of surprise flashed across his golden-hued eyes before they lowered to stare at where the dog tags hid, nestled away beneath her t-shirt and apron. He nodded, sitting back in his chair, eyes shifting to stare at the table before him. She wasn’t entirely sure what had just happened, but it had been completely disconcerting, so she rushed on with what she did know: her job.
    “What can I get you, Pell?”
    “An order of those delightfully fluffy,