FIVE | ELLA'S DINER

The back of my neck prickled as I strode across the car park. The faded neon sign flashed once, and then emitted a drawn-out buzzing sound before half of the letters lit up in full. Ella’s Diner was open for business.

I’d started working here when I was sixteen, desperate to save up so that I could travel and see the world. I’d wanted to hunt then, too, with a vicious burning in my chest. My Dads had only just told me about the world they inhabited, back then, a world utterly different to the one I’d thought I’d grown up in.

They’d told me old folk tales growing up, scary stories with harsh morals that I’d assumed they’d enjoyed as nothing more than whimsy. They’d told me everything I needed to know, even as a child, filtering the information down into something palatable for a seven year old.

And then I’d learnt the truth. My sleepy hometown didn’t seem q