Black hair, black eyes, perfect skin that glowed with the warm mocha tones of Middle Eastern or possibly African heritage, and a flawless figure whose measurements achieved the biologically optimum ratios instinctively sought by human males. The glass door popped open, revealing feminine perfection impossible to describe. The shower abruptly stopped, the humming continuing on for a moment or two. In fact, the very shape of the footprints changed from a dainty size five by the bathroom to a long, reptilian three-toed structure larger than that of an average NBA shoe coming out of E2. Their trail ran backward to the exam room and, curiously, their size increased the farther back the trail led. The tiny, feminine-sized footprints of fluid in the carpet just outside the bathroom were as red as they were small. But here and there, in those places touched ever so slightly by the meager illumination that managed to make its way from the open bathroom doorway, the fluid was more of a deep, dark red. Concentrated mostly in the reception area and examination room Number Two, the fluids were almost uniformly blackish in the dark gloom of the unlit office. In the rest of the office, other liquids and some semi-solids ran down walls and over almost every available surface.

As the night concealed the damage on the outside, so too did the closed doors and unlit rooms of the building, at least for a few hours, cover the damage strewn about the inside.Ī shower ran in the little three-quarters bath, the sounds of contented humming interwoven into the splash and trickle of running water. The dark of deep night hid most of the negligence not even the light from the rear employees’ bathroom illuminated more than a few peels of loose paint. None of the deferred maintenance had yet reached a truly extensive level, mostly consisting of peeling paint, degrading roof shingles, and weatherproofing that was beginning to be less proof and more weathered. Located right on the border between Burlington’s commercial and residential neighborhoods, it suffered from the beginnings of neglect.

Gary Reynolds, DDS, occupied what had once been a single-family ranch-style house, one that had seen better days. The dentist’s office, being the place of business for one Dr. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.Īll rights reserved.

Demon Driven by John Conroe