Hunted – 23

“Yes,” Brice replied defiantly. “What's with the third degree anyway? What’s my childhood got to do with anything?” he growled.

“If I’m right, it has everything to do with things. How old are you?” Logan asked.

“Thirty.”

Quickly Logan bombarded Brice with questions. “What did you watch on TV when you were a kid? Who was the president when you were in high school? What kind of car did your father drive? Did you have pets? Come on, you should be able to answer without thinking, Brice.”

“Yeah we watched TV. I remember the first time even, seeing Eisenhower’s inauguration. I was sixteen and we stayed home from school to watch it.” He smiled at the memory. “Mom was on the sofa and us kids were huddled around the TV. It was brand new. Dad gave it to mom for Christmas. He set it on the table in one… In one...”

“What, Brice?” Logan asked when Brice stopped talking.

“That can’t be right. That was…”

“Almost sixty years ago,” Logan said quietly. “You said you were sixteen, so that would make you about seventy-four now.”

“I must be remembering some…something from a movie. Yeah that’s it. I saw that in a movie and when you were hitting me with questions that popped to mind. It’s late. I guess I’m tired and spacey.”

“Brice, sit down.” Logan pointed to a log at one side of the clearing.

“Why?”

“Please, just do it.”

Brice hesitated momentarily, then with a shrug did as Logan asked.

Logan stood in front of him, a few feet separating them. “What I’m going to tell you will probably make you think I’ve escaped from a mental ward.” He smiled a bit. “At least I’ve got a starting point of sorts, considering the role you play in that show. You think it’s just a fantasy about paranormals. And as far as the show goes, it definitely is pure fantasy.”

“Tell me about it. It’s a crock but the audiences seem to eat it up.”

“Of course they do. It gives them an outlet from real life. The problem is, while the show is make-believe, there is a part of it that is based on reality.”

“Yeah sure. There are vampires wandering the streets after dark looking for victims.”

Logan chuckled. “Now that I couldn’t speak to, never having met one.”

“Whew. I would think you were crazy if you said you have. There’s no such thing as vampires, or were-wolves.”

“Now that’s where you’re wrong, although we prefer the term ‘shifter’.”