Autumn laughed and gave Scott a tight embrace. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and my family.”
Scott stared at me as they stepped apart. “Quinn, now that her father is gone, I have to look out for her. You harm her in any way and I’ll be coming after you.”
I knew he was joking, but that didn’t stop my eyes from widening. The three of us boarded the Belle.
“Captain,” Scott called. I turned to look at him and he threw a small device at me. I caught it and looked over the miniscule hard drive. “When the doctors studied Ambrose for the transplant, they discovered this inside his cranium, or the cyborg part of it anyway. It looks like there’s a lot of data and memories stored on it. I figured you could use a copy, just in case you decide to investigate this Infinity group.”
I closed my hand around the device, and gave Scott a deep nod. We kept our eyes locked on each other until the doors closed.
“Al,” I said. “Prepare the ship for departure back to Karth.”
“Aye, sir.”
“Mr. Tress, take position at the tactical station. Ms. Derringer, you will be stationed at communications.”
“Aye-aye,” they said together as if they’d practiced, and they climbed toward the bridge.
I kept still for a few minutes, watching the case where Granak slept. Despite the cease-fire and treaty between Terra and Gaia, a larger fight was brewing. Sarah King had been dealt yet another serious blow. Now that she had lost both the empyreus and this sector of space, Infinity would be even more dangerous as they grew more desperate for control.
Granak threatened me with the revelation that his race wanted the same vengeance he craved, and they would one day launch an attack on humanity. How truthful were his words? By stopping him, did we prevent another war, or just postpone it? Either way, humanity needed to stand together and Infinity stood in the way of that.
I couldn’t feel Ambrose’s leg, its cybernetic wires and mechanisms attached to my biology, but I still felt infected as if King and her faction were a disease. For over five years, I spent my time fleeing from King, but no matter where I traveled, I couldn’t escape. If I chose to run again, would she find me?
Maybe it was time to start fighting back. In Smithson’s last few hours alive, he told me the cyborgs had been mobilized in different parts of the galaxy, searching for the next great discovery that would turn the tide in Infinity’s favor. I knew what I had to do—get the word out, spread the news that humanity was in terrible danger, not only from hostile alien worlds, but from within itself. If Infinity, namely King and her cyborgs, succeeded in their goals, there’s no telling how powerful they could become.
But I was going to stop them. I would study the data on Ambrose’s hard drive, learn all I could . . . no, all we could. With my crew, my ship, and Al, Captain Daniel Quinn would no longer be the hunted. Now I would become the hunter.
The adventures of Daniel Quinn continue in
Mechanize:
From the Logs of Daniel Quinn
Coming winter 2015!
Acknowledgements
During the year I took to write Antagonize, I knew it had to be bigger and better than its predecessor. Did I succeed? Only you can tell me that. But I did everything I could to expand and evolve, and that included bringing in more people to help me accomplish my task.
First I have to thank Robert Jackson-Lawrence. His correspondence and guidance has been invaluable to me. Thank you Rob for the countless days of bouncing ideas, exchanging notes, and sharing our creativity with one another.
Nicole Bartley provided many of the critique notes and edits for Antagonize. Nicole, you were the blacksmith who crafted my book into a steel broadsword. You were the engineer who reinforced the weapons, shields, and engines. This book would not be what it is today without your incredible assistance. I will never be able to thank you enough.
One year ago I helped to create a writing group, Literary Fusion, and I have to thank everyone in that group for all the amazing feedback I received concerning my writing style and craft. Thank you for helping me sharpen my blade and reinforce my shields.
Lauren and Patrick were my first beta readers for the Daniel Quinn series, reading and providing feedback for both Energize and Antagonize. Thank you for helping me launch into this amazing journey.
When I first set out to become a writer, one of the first people I told was my best friend, Jorge. Together, we decided we would become writers, and throughout the last few years we’ve helped to keep each other motivated. Jorge, you will always be one of the key players in helping me become an author.
Feedback, critiques, beta readers, editors, and so much more are paramount when publishing a book. But there was one person who provided invaluable support in other areas, such as letting me sit at the computer for hours on end, writing. This person kept our children away from the computer while I worked hard to finish my story. Every time I wavered in my confidence and wanted to stop, this person pushed me forward and kept me standing. Cecelia, you are the most unbelievable person in the world. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. Thank you for believing in me on this literary journey. I know you’ll always be there to support my writing, but my favorite story, above all others, is our story.
Antagonize (From the Logs of Daniel Quinn Book 2) Page 23