Hunted (Dark Secrets Book 1)
Page 30
The world became more concrete around us. A gray sky poured rain, green trees were touched with the hints of autumn and a familiar white building was set to our right. The Jefferson Monument. Grass formed under my boots. The wind was wild again. The dodecahedron continued its rotation for another moment then slowly dismantled just as it had formed—disconnecting line by line, each vaporizing into the air. My mother and I were left standing in Washington, D.C., on the lawn in front of the Jefferson Memorial.
"Send me back!" I yelled, panicking.
"I can't."
"Send me back, now!" I pleaded.
"I can't Freya! I have no reactor and no Brísingamen!"
"Please! I have to help him!" I cried.
"Where is the necklace?"
"Back on Cathal—hidden in the Tomb of Remorse."
"It was the right thing to do considering the circumstances," my mother responded.
"What does it do?"
"It holds power beyond imagination and requires your fingertips to function."
"How do we get a reactor?" My mind raced for an immediate solution.
"We don't," she said painfully. "I have to build one."
"How long, Mom?" I couldn't conceal the panic in my voice.
"Three months, maybe six." She paused. "It depends on how quickly I can obtain the materials."
Three to six months! I sank to my knees in the wet grass.
I peered up into the gray Earth sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of where I had been—of Theron. The blinding rain pelted against my exposed face. Dark, swollen clouds gathered ominously above me. It was the perfect metaphor for my life. I buried my face in my bloodstained hands.
My mother came down and wrapped her arms around me. I looked into her beautiful face. Here she was… my mother… safe beside me. Theron had given me the most precious gift—he had given me back my mother—and selflessly sacrificed himself to do it.
It was too bittersweet, the exchange of one love one for another. The relief and joy I was prepared to feel was twisted and distorted into a devastating pain by Theron's loss.
"Freya, he's a brilliant fighter. I don't doubt his ability to escape," my mother said, trying to comfort me.
I could not be comforted. "His zoesphere!" I said looking at her with my last flicker of hope. I gazed onto the glass orb. "It's black—it was garnet, now it's black. What does that mean?"
She shook her head. "I'm… not… sure. It might not even work in our atmosphere. It may be too far, too remote, to transmit. I really don't know, Freya."
I stared into the blackened zoesphere and recalled Theron's last words to me, 'I told you, Freya—I love you more than my life.'
I decided on my next mission resolutely. No matter how long it took—I would go back to Novia, find Theron and bring him back. And if Theron was dead… I took a deep steadying breath through my nose. My mission would be simple—to destroy Morag.
"Why are we in D.C.?" I rose to my feet.
My mother regarded me carefully. "To meet with the Secretary of Defense—and Homeland Security. They have to know the threat. I still have connections in high places."
"What if they try to lock you up?" I asked.
"With the disappearance of so many—no. They'll have too many questions that I have the answers to." She shrugged. "I don't have a choice and there are a few prominent people who I believe will shelter me."
"Mikkelsson is the one who turned our location in to Morag and the Takers. He lied to us too—said he never saw you after you first disappeared from your lab."
"Mikkelsson is a liar," she said plaintively. "His involvement has to be made known. That's how I was captured. I went back to Mikkelsson to talk about how we could close the Bifrost. I was working in my old lab when Morag and his men showed up."
"Scarlett has to be warned too. She still thinks he's an ally."
"Let's get under the shelter of the gazebo" she said, motioning across the lawn.
I nodded and we walked through the rain to the covering and sat on the dry bench. The crisp air raised goose bumps on my flesh.
"We still haven't checked your wounds," my mom reminded. I turned my back to her and she lifted my shirt. "Your shirt is a mess Freya, it's better to get it off you—you have Novian armor on underneath." She ripped the cloth and a small scream tore through my throat. Tears of pain streamed down my cheek. She peeled the shirt away from the armor. "The bleeding has stopped, but you're going to need stitches. We'll get to a store and I'll do it so we can skip the hospital. Morag will be searching for you harder than ever."
"Mom, Morag stole a few pints of my blood."
She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. "All hell will be raining down soon. The Takers will be coming in droves until he runs out of it."
Her fingers traced over the wound that stretched across my back from shoulder to shoulder. "You'll be left with quite a scar." She paused then whispered, "You saved me."
I turned to face her. "I love you, Mom."
She pushed my drenched hair out of my eyes. "I love you and have missed you so much. In my absence you have turned into a woman—and I missed it." Tears welled and fell from her eyes, and she held me for a moment.
She pulled back and studied my eyes, half smiling. "Guess there's no hiding your identity now—you have your father's eyes."
"Why didn't you tell me about him?" I asked.
"Would you have believed me?"
"Probably not," I said shaking my head. "What happened to him?"
"He found out about Morag's plan and decided to get us out of there to keep us and the technology away from Morag."
"Why didn't you tell some of Novia's leaders?" I asked.
"We didn't have time. We had been visiting Cathal, promoting peace, when Nathaniel—your father—found the plans in the lab. Nathaniel was a bit of a hacker. While he was sending us back with the Brísingamen, Morag broke in with his men."
"Like—what just happened with Theron?" My voice cracked.
She swallowed and nodded. "That scar down Morag's face—your father put it there."
"There's no time to waste. The Guardians and Scarlett are being supported by the government now."
"Excellent. That will be our first call." My mom sensed my urgency. "We'll get to a phone and a store, fix up your back—and we need to get you a pair of sunglasses and dark-colored contact lenses."
We left the dry shelter of the gazebo and started toward civilization. I gazed back at the patch of grass we had landed in thinking maybe—just maybe. But there was no Theron. I considered my bracelet. It wasn't clear glass—maybe that counted for something. It was all I had to hold onto…
Black hope.
The End of Book One
Allie Juliette Mousseau creates captivating YA worlds through the magic of ink; writing brave but "human" main characters, imaginative plots and complex worlds; from High Octane action to exploring the deepest emotions - you won't want to put down your book! She also writes sexy, emotionally charged New Adult Romance in a variety of genres and temperatures. From passionate and angsty; fun and light to intense and epic; she incorporates a lot of romance, tension, an spice. Always a HEA and stand alone - even in a series. +18 only Allie Juliette can always be found writing, playing in puddles with her children, hiking with her husband, or adventuring somewhere in the world. Her favorite place to write is outdoors, but when the weather gets too chilly she'll be inside at her desk looking at the mountain view from her home office in Montana where she lives with her loving husband, children, and 85 pound golden retriever, who likes to sleep on her feet while she writes. With a free spirit, Allie loves to travel and has spent three years sparking her imagination while travelling the U.S. and Canada in an RV with her family. She looks forward in continuing her journey to see the world, while finishing her degree in Literature
Young Adult Books by Allie Juliette
“Dark Secrets” – A Young Adult, Paranormal Romance Series
“Hunted” Book One
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br /> “ Pursuit” Book Two
“Chase” Book Three
New Adult books by Allie Juliette:
“True North”– A New Adult Contemporary Romance Series
“True North Book One Finding Home Livie and Jake”
“True North Book Two Finding Us Jules and Nate”
“True North Book Three Finding Now Kate and Sam
“Enemy Lines” - A Sci-fi Adult Novel
“Without Borders” - A Contemporary Adult Erotic Short Story“
Visit Allie Juliette at:
http://www.alliejuliettmousseau.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Allie-Juliette-Mousseau/308581852606015?ref=hl
Twitter: @alliejuliette