There were two monstrous skeletons in the center of the room. He gazed at the larger of the two. It had a huge skull with long sharp teeth, long legs and tail, and short stubby arms.“What is it?” he asked in awe.“It’s a Tyrannosaurus rex,” she answered.He stepped over the rope barrier, hand outstretched.“Wait, what are you doing? You can’t touch that!” she said with a stern voice.He turned and snarled at her like an animal. She shrank back and stood in silence.Disappointment fell over his face as he reached out and touched the tibia.“Is this some kind of trick? What is it made of?” he asked angrily.“It’s a plastic replica. Real T.rex fossils are too rare and valuable to put on display.”“Where can I find a real one?”“I . . . don’t know,” she said nervously.“You’re lying. You have some here. Where are they?”“Please, you came for your treasure. Leave us ours.”“I just want one bone.”“What do you need it for?”“To bring it back to life.”She stared at him, dumbstruck. “You ca
“You look like you were expecting to hear Wilson’s name,” Kyle said with a trace of accusation in his voice. “Care to share with the class as to why?”Dutch was looking uncomfortable. “We had to get the word out to local media and police to be on the lookout, but we couldn’t exactly tell them to keep their eyes open for a reincarnated Aztec demon god. Wilson’s picture was the next best thing.”Kyle laughed harshly. “Wow. Good to know Wilson’s reputation means so much to the FBI. Don’t you think you should have talked to him about this first? Because you just painted a pretty big target on his back. Might make things a little difficult if he’s ever spotted while we’re out looking for the real bad guy, don’t you think?”“Wilson hears nothing about this, you understand me?”Kyle barked a laugh. “He’s going to find out eventually, but I’m not going to be the one to tell him his name is mud. That’s on you geniuses.”He got up and walked to the control room. John gave Dutch an “I told you s
Dutch and John arrived at the crash scene. Emergency responders had already been deployed to the area. The mangled bodies of Ink, Slingshot, and Steel had been lifted out of the canyon by helicopter, and they were now lying in body bags on gurneys, waiting to be transported back to headquarters.“How is Flint doing?” asked John.“You mean after being thrown from a moving vehicle or finding out his brother is dead?” answered Jolly grudgingly.“You need to have a little more respect for your commanding officers,” said Smasher.“Sorry, sir,” she replied.“He has a few broken bones, but he’ll be okay,” answered Smasher.“Did you get a chance to talk with him?” asked Dutch.“Yeah. He told us that there was no way that Isaac survived,” Smasher replied.“Are you absolutely sure?” asked Dutch.“Go look at the car. It’s barely recognizable,” said Smasher. “The amount of firepower they rained down on that thing ripped it to pieces, and the flipping out of control didn’t help Isaac much either
“I know a lot has changed over the past week, but it’s still only been a week. Things like this take years to get over, if ever.”“How do you do it? You seem to be doing just fine. I only knew two people there. You knew all of them. You lost your colleagues, your friends, and your students. You should be way worse off than me. How do you keep it together?”“Honestly, I don’t know,” said Kristen, shrugging. “I definitely blame myself for a lot of that, whether or not anyone else does. The whole field trip was my idea, and all the students were my responsibility. The pain is always there, and sometimes it feels unbearable especially when I’m alone. I guess I just channel it. As much guilt as I feel, it is nothing compared to the anger and hatred I feel toward Isaac . I’m sure, once this is all over, if we all manage to live through it, I will feel the full force of the guilt, but until then, I need to stop Isaac from hurting anyone else.”“I guess it just feels like it would be an insu
He repeated the process. Everybody gathered around to see the results for themselves, and the overhead camera was adjusted to capture everything. When the centrifuge was finished, the sample was immediately removed, and once again, the layers were only visible for about a second before the green liquid began reacting with the layer of blood cells. Dr. Bryant pulled up the film footage on the main monitor, and they reviewed it over and over, zooming in and slowing it down, trying to understand what had just happened.“Micoaz atl,” said Kristen under her breath.“What was that?” asked Dr. Bryant.“It’s micoaz atl. It’s got to be,” replied Kristen.Some of the people in the room were still looking at her curiously while others stared back in shock at the liquid layer paused on the screen.“The legendary elixir of death,” Kristen explained for the benefit of those who didn’t know the history. “The weapon used against Zaca’s army that Zaca then used to transform himself and, as an extensio
Kora turned her attention back to her dinner. Kristen gave Wilson a very meaningful look, but he shook his head slightly, so she kicked him under the table. He rolled his eyes and mouthed, “Fine, pushy!” Kristen grinned, mischievously.“So how are you doing?” he asked Kora, clearing his throat.“Good,” said Kora with a slight smile as she looked up at Wilson.“Good,” he said lamely.He could almost feel Kristen rolling her eyes at him, so he nervously began eating his meatloaf. Awkward silence filled the table.“So we just came from the lab,” Kristen said to break the silence. “The marines brought back an arm. Wilson was able to examine it. We believe it belonged to a creature known as Yolcatl.”“So that’s where you were for so long,” said Kora.“What do you mean by an arm?” asked Kyle.“It was reptilian in nature,” replied Wilson. “It had specialized cells in its skin designed for extreme camouflage, way beyond any other reptile I have ever seen.”“That’s why we think it was Yolcatl,
“Yeah, still working on that one,” Kora said, a little sadly.“Give yourself time to grieve,” Wilson said kindly. “But when you want to and you feel it is time to be happy, be happy. It is the simplest concept in the world but a very difficult thing to accomplish. In your case, it’s still really early, but don’t give up on the concept of happiness.”“You know,” she said, eyes shining, “Kristen’s right about you.”“How so?”“You’re an easy person to be around.”After they finished their dinner, Dutch approached them and said, “I’d like you both to meet me in the armory if you don’t mind.”They got up, cleared their dishes, and followed Dutch. Kristen and Kyle were already waiting in the armory with David.“I have something to show you all,” Dutch said with an eager smile.He signaled to David, who typed something into the control panel, and the back wall opened up. Four new suits of body armor were hung there; they were matte black with thick plates covering vital body parts.David wal
“Where?” she asked, sounding excited.“It’s a surprise, but it may or may not include a movie.” He winked.“Okay,” she said with a smile.They quickly got ready for the day and made their way up to the parking lot. As they exited the security gate, they picked up their guns and phones. They all had several missed calls and messages from friends and family, and they decided to take some time to call them back and let them know they were okay.Wilson had several very worried messages from his mother, and upon reaching her, he discovered that she was in town staying at a hotel. He promised to visit that morning to explain what was going on.As soon as he hung up, Kora came up to him and asked, “Are you ready to go?”“Yes, but I have to take care of something before we go out. Is that okay?”“Yeah, the others are meeting up at this cute little local diner for breakfast. I can just go with them, and you can join us when you’re done.”“That sounds good. I shouldn’t be too long, so I’ll meet
Hopefully the thought that we are out of jeopardy isn’t phony, a fantasy from our purposefully deluded minds.-Isaac Weak. Inferior. Helpless. Useless.These are characteristics that should never be associated with an Alpha, yet I feel them all on a daily basis now.I have a job to do and the need to be a stable and reliable leader is essential after what has just happened. Countless new procedures need to be implemented for the safety of the packs. Each Alpha will need to take precautionary measures -ramping up training, security, and make plans with alias incase war comes.There isn’t time to stay on a sick bed with people keeping me from my work while all these pressing matters wait to be handled. Not to mention my duties as a mate and the fact she has her own position among the packs to undertake.Each day doesn’t hold enough hours to get my tasks completed even if I was healthy and able bodied, the challenges are even more daunting as I regain strength from the poison my brother
If there is a chance behind that cold wall he is capable of feeling rejection, I don’t really want him to feel it from me. I don’t want to be the one who gave up. I will be careful, but right now I want him to know I want to try.So, I reach out and grasp his hand in mine.He smiles sleepily. “Much better”“You know his lips look a little cold too”“Levi!” Isaac grumbles.“I thought I was the wing man?” Levi shrugs.Isaac doesn’t look that upset... I think I might even see a hint of a smile as I chuckle at the two of them. Soon Isaac leans his head back again and falls asleep.I’ll just hold his hand a little longer.-May“She is gonna be here any minute” I mumble against his lips as they tease mine.My mate responds by groaning in protest and pulling me closer causing me to giggle.It’s not like I wasn’t already crammed against him in the small play house that rests just inside the woods behind Robert’s parents’ home.I typically have higher standards for make-out locations. This
“Alright party people, lets get this show on the road!” I giggle nervously and nod before chancing a glance behind at Isaac . He meets my eyes looking tired but other wise emotionless. I eye him narrowly with a glare and let my frustration flood the link between us, unsure if he was even paying attention through that thick wall of his.Turning I adjust myself in my seat and pull out my phone to keep me busy on the drive.I had been working on my linking while my family was still here but with them gone and me not yet being a part of Isaac and Levi’s pack – if I ever become apart of it- I was unable to practice or use the link for the last few days. Only Isaac would be able to talk to me now and we both have been avoiding that.I imagine that the link or bond I have with Isaac works in a similar way to a pack link, and I could learn to keep him out if I try. I don’t get how I have started to be able to keep my thoughts to myself in wolf form but Freddy, Chris and Alpha Cold heart ca
I chose not to make eye contact with Isaac as he is wheeled out of the make shift hospital. I had just finished loading up a few things in the car to make this trip easier.It has almost been a week since he was poisoned but the recovery has been slow. Isaac still spends most of his time sleeping and it frustrates him to be so weak. The slightest activity seems to make him tired.It frustrates ME that he is a stubborn ass.My mate has spent his every waking moment pushing himself by dealing with pack business and trying to get out of bed. I took pity on him the first night he had ripped his IVs out and caused a commotion, now I know I shouldn’t have.He has been such a handful. Willfully disregarding Greta’s orders to the point that I was on board when she threatened to strap him down two days ago.Boy did that Idea go over well.Lucky for Isaac Levi took pity on him and talked us down.I roll my eyes remembering how ridiculous he was being yelling at us to stop babying him and hol
I squeeze my eyes shut, willing more power to be put into the spell, “Summer wood and deity ties, bring these lines to boundaries defined. Expand this protection with the flow of desired correction. Right to what has been outlined.”I hear Silas shout and Wilson growl. I start shouting the spell. “Summer wood and deity ties, bring these lines to boundaries defined. Expand this protection with the flow of desired correction. Right to what has been outlined.”“Stop Isaac !” Mike begs. “You can’t stop this spell.“Stay away from her,” Silas orders.“Please!” He screams as he begs.I feel the thunder shake the ground, and I open my eyes in enough time to see lightning strike the center of the anchor in the ward as it shatters. The earth turns black and spreads out from under me, killing the trees and grass within a mile of us.I pant as my hands clench the dead earth. Sweat has beaded on my forehead, and I try to catch my breath as the boys struggle behind me. I get to my feet very shaki
I give Mike my wrist, my blood still freely flowing. “Squeeze my blood onto each paper and say; Deliver these to Goddess Kaelish, protector of Linru. Bring what’s true in this discovered news.”He gives me a questioning look, and I didn’t miss that his neck is tense. “Why?”“Because I can’t.” I motion to my bonds.He gives me a cautious look, trying to determine if he can trust me. “Why?”“You literally have me chained to a bed, just trust me.” I say, glaring at him.Mike follows my instructions, nearly jumping out of his skin as the pages start smoking. “What are you doing Isaac ?”“Relax,” I say, the flames turning turquoise, signaling they’ve been received. When Kaelish accepts them, the flames dissipate, leaving the pages in their original state. I hand them back to him. “There, now it’s in Kaelish’s hands.”“How much magic do you actually know?” Mike asks, looking me over as if he’s seeing me for the first time.I shrug. “Almost everything. I can’t speak the original spells, b
When I find them, huddled behind Isongarth’s statue, they are clearly talking about me. I’m in no mood to explain myself, though I really should tell Silas about Alier. That can wait until after my very much needed nap.I ignore their conversation and surprised expressions as I sit down cross legged next to Silas. Skipping past looking at them, slightly annoyed they’re talking about me, I pull out a sariah petal and wipe it against one of my bloody wounds. I lay it next to me and bring a trail of salt to it, linking the other spells. I look to Leo. “Repeat after me.”After he nods, I prick my finger and pour seawater over the new wound, right over the sariah petal I had just placed, chanting as I pour. “Summer wood and deity ties, bring these lines to boundaries defined. Expand this protection with the flow of desired correction. Right to what has been outlined.”Leo starts copying me, touching my heart with his hand, flowing my power with his. “Summer wood and deity ties, bring these
“I will see you again. I will find out what you’re up to Isaac . I didn’t know you knew this much about magic, so it’s going to take me a minute.”“I’m more than the girl that you keep trying to sink your teeth into.” I tell him, walking away from him. “I know more than fighting.”“Wait,” He grunts, trying to sit up. “Did you really know Elayna?”I look behind me, trying to keep my face cold. I hold up my hand and wipe off some blood from my wrists. I point to the healed dainty fang marks. “For two years I kept her alive with my blood. Every second of every day we were together. She was a sister to me, and I miss her terribly. Her death nearly destroyed me. I knew everything about her, except for most of her family. I knew she had brothers, but nothing more than that. She would shut down and close herself off whenever that topic was broached, and I knew it was because she was purposely distancing herself so not to hurt them.“Before you ask, she never did tell me about you. She never
Well, I’m dead anyway. I walk into his room to quickly skim through his books. Nothing here can tell me what blasted spell he’s using. I need to think. Something here has to help me escape. I’ve read all of these books! I kick his bed as I try to think. Think Isaac , I shout internally as I try to slow my breathing. I kick his bed again and here a thump. I look under the bed and see Yvanna’s book. It was tucked underneath his mattress, pinned by a board. I grab it and tuck it into my bag as I try to think. I mean outside of using forbidden magic.Several hours later I’m still at a loss and trapped in this god forsaken room. The windows are sealed. His bedroom door is now locked. The only thing I can go into, is his adjoining bathroom. My head is resting against the warm wall while I sit on his surprisingly warm floor. I keep hitting my head against the wall as I try to think. Maybe if I pretend to be here waiting for him, like a loving mate, then he’ll let me off the hook. Nah.I hear