Uninvited: A Paranormal Urban Fantasy Novel (The Dark Skies Trilogy Book Two)

by Lysa Daley

  Instead, Jax grabs the tennis racket and the bag of tennis balls.

  “What's up with the tennis ball?” I ask, fearing the worst.

  “This time, as you go through the course, you need to block the tennis ball.”

  “Block them with what?” I ask.

  He points to my sword.

  “With BrightSky?” I ask.

  “Exactly,” he nods, bouncing a ball on the floor.

  “Are you crazy?”

  “And you’re going to try to go a little faster this time.”

  “You want me to go faster while holding a sword and fending off speeding tennis balls?”

  “C’mon! It’ll be fun.”

  Right. More fun than a barrel of monkeys.

  As he’s about to push the timer to start, I ask, “How am I supposed to jump and swing; slide and roll while I'm holding a sharp sword?”

  As the timer starts counting, Jax pitches the little tennis ball up in the air and whacks it at me.

  “Hey!” I duck to avoid getting beamed in the head by the speeding ball. “That's not nice.”

  But before the words are out of my mouth a second tennis ball hits me squarely on the shoulder. “Ow!”

  “You better figure it out,” he says.

  “That's going to leave a mark.” I cry, clutching my arm.

  The ball hit me almost exactly on the wound I have from where the Grail cut me with Draconian steel. One of the only substances from which I don't instantly heal.

  “What’s is wrong with you?” I spit out. “I don't know if you did that on purpose or just got lucky.”

  “If I were you, I’d get going, or you're going to find out.”

  I sigh. Fine. I might as well give it a try.

  I take off down the course but don't make it very far. I tuck the sword under my arm as I jump up to the trapeze bar that will carry across a ten-foot chasm.

  First, I dropped the sword; then I nearly impale myself when I fall right next to it. But, in the process, I manage to deflect two more tennis balls.

  “Okay, not horrible,” Jax says, almost sounding sincere. “Let's go back and do it again.”

  After another half dozen failed attempts, I'm exhausted. Not to mention the fact that I've been hit with at least 25 tennis balls.

  “You can give up when you make it all the way across,” Jax replies.

  “I'm obviously not going to make it all the way across today.”

  “Then we’ll be here until tomorrow.”

  “You might be. But I’m leaving.” There is no way I'm going to keep trying to do this impossible course with an insane teacher.

  “Yes, you are,” he says.

  “No, I’m not.” I swing BrightSky around, turning her back into an umbrella. I jump down to the gym floor. “You can stay here as long as you would like, but as for me, I'm going to the dorm to have dinner. That is if they’re still actually serving dinner.”

  “Don't be a quitter,” Jax follows me to the exit.

  “I'm not a quitter.”

  “Quitter. Quitter, quitter.”

  “I happen to be smart enough to know when to call it a day.” On that note, I stalk out of the empty gym and down the steps.

  I’m ten steps away when I hear a deep growling in the bushes right in front of me.

  Jax and I both stop and listen.

  Something is coming my way. Something big. And it’s getting closer and closer. Whatever it is, it emits another low guttural growl.

  Jax steps protectively in front of me. “Get behind me.”

  Chapter 26

  “If whatever’s in there decides to attack, you run back inside the gym.” Jax grips something in his hand. I’m comforted by the thought that it’s a weapon, but as he turns into the light, I realize it’s just his tennis racquet.

  “What’s your plan? To kill ‘em with your overhead serve?”

  “My plan is to stand here while you get BrightSky out of your bag,” he hisses.

  “Oh. Right.” I’d totally forgotten that I had her with me.

  We hear the growling again; low, guttural and mixed with odd clicks.

  “What’s making that sound?” I fumble with my bag, trying to get the red umbrella untangled from the straps.

  “I’d say it could be wolves or a mountain lion. Maybe even a grizzly, but it sounds too big.”

  The sound drifts out at us again. This time, it’s considerably weaker and more garbled.

  Jax adds, “Whatever it is, it sounds injured.”

  Finally, getting the umbrella untangled, I take a step back and turn BrightSky back into a sword.

  “If it’s a wounded animal, it could make whatever’s in their way more dangerous,” Jax say. “An injured grizzly will tear your head off if it feels threatened.”

  Suddenly, like silent ninjas, Fitz and two of his men slide up behind us with real rifles in their hands.

  “Status?” Fitz asks.

  “A potentially injured creature, sir,” Jax reports. “Likely alien in nature.”

  Alien? He didn’t say alien before.

  “Only one?” Fitz asks.

  “Uncertain,” Jax answers with military precision.

  The branches rustle and snap as the silhouette of the beast becomes visible in the moonlight. Whatever it is, the creature is way bigger than a grizzly bear. It's even larger than an elephant.

  “On my command,” Fitz instructs his men, as they train their guns on the rustling leaves.

  The tension is thick. A prickle of fear creeps up my spine.

  “As soon as we have a clear shot.” Fitz cocks his gun

  As the creature advances, I hear the familiar tinkling of a little bell.

  “Don’t shoot!” I cry, panic sweeping through me. “That’s Tom. That’s my cat!”

  Tom, back in his huge alien form, lumbers forward, limping badly.

  “Lower your weapons!” Fitz commands.

  “He’s hurt!” Jax says, trying to get a better look at Tom, who comes to a stop in front of us. His front legs collapse, and he rolls to his side. “He’s lost his ability to cloak himself.”

  From where I stand, I can see a wound in the side of his head and a large gash on his flank. He’s bleeding everywhere. “Something attacked him.”

  Tom growls aggressively as Jax tries to approach to examine him.

  I move forward and stroke his head. “It’s okay, Tom. He wants to help you.”

  Tom calms down enough for Jax to be able to get a good look at his injuries. “I can't tell if these slashes are teeth or claw marks, but either way, whatever did this to him appears to be both larger and stronger.”

  “That's not possible.” Fitz looks out at the forest beyond. “There's nothing on this planet that could get through our security system or hurt a valerian drolgon.”

  Jax shakes his head looking concerned. “What makes you think it's something from this planet?”

  “Then what did this?” Fitz asks.

  At this point, I don't really care what did all this damage. I just want to get Tom patched up. I stroke his big head. “It's okay, baby. You're going to be okay.”

  Hot tears sting my eyes. It occurs to me that I have become one giant bad luck charm. Everyone I care about seems to suffer from bad luck. First, my uncle is injured trying to save me from the Grail, then Chad is captured, Ruby is forced to leave her family behind, and now Tom.

  They’re all cursed. Because of me.

  Jax talks on his phone. “… so we're going to need the flatbed truck, not the pickup. That's the only way we'll be able to transport this animal. And you’re going to need to bring the winch too.”

  Fitz has other concerns. He talks to his agents. “Check the entire perimeter for any breaches.”

  “We already did, sir,” O’Malley reports.

  “Then check again!” Fitz barks. “Send out several armed teams, beyond the perimeter, to scour these woods. I want to find out what attacked this animal. I am not putting this entire compo
und and facility at risk.”

  “Yes, sir,” O’Malley replies.

  “No one rests until we have answers.” Fitz marches off with his men following him.

  I wait with Tom until help arrives. He seems comforted by my presence. I stroke his enormous head and sit calmly beside him.

  Waylon appears with Jax’s medical bag. Jax rummages through and pulls out a large syringe apparently meant for something like cattle or horses. Jax inspects the contents then injects Tom in his rear leg. “I’m giving him a painkiller. Should help calm him down and make the ride back to the stables a little more comfortable.”

  “Do you think he’ll be okay?” I’m almost afraid to hear the answer.

  “If we get his wounds cleaned up and bandaged, he should stabilize,” Jax answers, and I feel a sense of relief. “That is unless there's poisons or some unknown toxin in his wounds.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We don’t know what did this to him. Some alien predators have developed a defense mechanism whereby they have lethal toxins in their claws or their teeth.”

  “So you think whatever attacked him was alien?”

  “I don’t know what else it could be. Unless there’s a Tyrannosaurus Rex hiding out there in the woods.”

  “How will you know if he’s been poisoned?”

  “We'll send a blood sample to the lab and observe him,” Jax says. “If he makes it until morning, he'll probably fully recover.”

  While we’ve been talking, nearly everyone from the zoology club has arrived. They’re standing nearby staring at Tom. Bella and Waylon and everyone else waits solemnly, looking very concerned.

  If I were them, I’d stare too.

  On the way to the stables, Bella rides next to me in the passenger seat of the large flatbed truck. “Astrid, are you okay? There was a rumor that you were attacked too.”

  “No, I'm fine,” I say not surprised that the rumor mill has already started. “It was just my cat.”

  “Pretty big cat,” she says, looking at Tom as the truck pulls to a stop outside this broad doors of the stable. “And sort of ugly for a feline.”

  “Yeah, he's one of those crazy rare purebreds,” I reply.

  She nods, “Like a hairless sphinx cat.”

  “Exactly,” I reply, and we both laugh.

  “Well, he's in good hands with Dr. J. If something bad is going to happened to him this would be the place for it to happen.” She looks flustered the minute the words come out of her mouth. “I mean, not that it's good that something bad happened, it's just that if something bad happened—“

  “I know what you mean, Bella.” I cut her off. “It's okay.”

  “I guess if you have a Valarian Drolgon then that must mean you’re one of our alien guests,” Bella asks, giving me nervous side glances.

  “That’s true,” I confess, but can see she seems very anxious. “But don’t worry, I can’t shoot lasers out of my eyeballs or anything like that.”

  “That's a shame. That would be super cool,” she smiles.

  In his alien form, Tom doesn't fit in the barn built for alien creatures. Luckily the members of the zoology club quickly knock down a wall between the outdoor covered paddocks creating one large stall.

  The painkiller must be working because Tom is practically sleeping, or unconscious, by the time they get him settled into the stall. Jax draws blood and gets him hooked up to a bunch of crazy looking, futuristic medical machines.

  I try to stay out of the way and let everyone do their job. I have to admit; it’s pretty impressive to watch Jax in action.

  When he's done, Jax strides up to me and says. “We've got him set up for the night. You should probably head back to the dorm and get a good night sleep.”

  “I'm not going anywhere,” I reply.

  “I promise he’ll be safe here,” Jax says softly.

  “There's no way he is going to wake up in the middle of the night and find himself all alone in this unfamiliar place,” I say, getting even more emotional. “The only think I can think about is all the nights I woke up to find Tom right next to me. He’s always been there as my protector, keeping watch over me. Who knows how many other times he saved my life that I don't even know about? So don’t try to force me to leave.”

  Just then two girls enter, holding an armload of blankets and pillows. Waylon brings up the rear, carrying a foldout cot.

  Jax gestures to them. “Sort of had a feeling you were going to say that. Gets pretty cold out here at tonight.”

  “Thank you,” I say sincerely, realizing he knew the whole time I wouldn’t leave Tom’s side.

  After another twenty minutes, everyone leaves Tom’s stall. Still, I can hear them quietly moving around up in the front of the barn, so I know we’re not alone.

  I finally get myself settled on the cot and close my eyes, listening to Tom’s rhythmic breathing.

  It’s hard to fall asleep with the knowledge that both of my guardians have been injured. This would be an ideal time for some of my enemies to come after me.

  And from what I’d been told, half of the known galaxy wants me dead.

  Chapter 27

  I wake up to find Jax staring at me with a weird crooked grin plastered across his face.

  “What?” I swing my legs around and sit up on the cot. It takes a moment to clear my head from sleep and remember why I’m here.

  “You snore,” he says.

  “No, I don’t,” I reply.

  “You do.” He turns toward Tom, who’s still asleep on his side. “Like a truck driver.”

  “Even if I do, it’s not as bad as staring at sleeping people,” I respond. “Kind of creepy.”

  “Please. No one was staring at you,” he replies. “I was doing a morning check on Tom, but I couldn’t concentrate because of the crazy loud snoring. Like a chainsaw.”

  I’m on my feet, ready to tell him how incredibly rude he is when he adds, “But you’ll be glad to know that Tom’s vitals are stronger this morning. We didn’t find any toxicity in his blood, so we’re hopeful that all he needs is time for his wounds to heal.”

  All of my anger melts away at this good news. “You don’t know how relieved I am to hear that.”

  “I just gave him another sedative,” Jax tells me. “I want him resting quietly. I’m afraid he’ll try to find you if he wakes up and you’ve gone to class or back to the dorm.”

  I sit back down. “Then I’ll just stay here.”

  “Except, Fitz wants to see you over at HQ in the eye.” He hands me a slip of paper which turns out to be an official pass into the headquarters building.

  “Why?” I ask.

  “He didn’t say.”Tanaka

  I pull on clean jeans and a sweatshirt that Ruby dropped off this morning while I was still sleeping, then I head over to the Eye in the Sky building.

  I’ve been curious about what’s inside this chrome and glass building with the telescope attached to the roof. The outside looks official and imposing.

  No one notices me when I first enter the dark atrium. Before approaching the security desk, I stand in the shadows for a moment, looking through the big glass window that leads into a centralized command center that probably rivals NASA’s mission control.

  Agent Tanaka spots me and approaches. I get the feeling he’s been waiting for me. “Hey Astrid, I know Fitz is eager to see you. Let me get you checked in.”

  After I pass through the security checkpoint and get a badge, Tanaka ushers me to a big office on the far side of the building.

  We pass banks of monitors, some showing live video, while others have technological information scrolling across them. At least twenty people, most wearing headsets, monitor this flood of information.

  I overhear a conversation between an efficient looking woman who looks like a manager and a young bearded hipster/nerd handing her a printout. “… was spotted last night over the Minnesota/Canadian border.”

  “Draconian?” the boss lady asks.


  The hipster/nerd shakes his head but seems uncertain. “I don’t think so. Too small to be a cloaked Draconian craft. Might be Grays.”

  As Tanaka and I approach a large conference room, I see half a dozen adults - four men and two women - clustered around something on a long table.

  I hesitate in the doorway until Fitz, wearing a stern expression, sees me. “Astrid, come in. I hear Tom’s doing better. And your uncle too.”

  I force a grin. “Maybe we’ll all be able to get out of your hair soon.”

  “Tired of us already?” Fitz asks in a light tone.

  “No, you guys are great.”

  As I step into the office, I get a glimpse of what they’ve all been studying. They’re looking at the two mysterious peach colored notes.

  My eyes go wide, and I’m unable to hide my shock. “How did you get these?”

  “I’m sorry, Astrid,” says a familiar female voice behind me.

  I turn to see Ruby leaning nervously against the wall. I hadn’t noticed her when I came in.

  I feel my expression harden as she tries to explain, “I know you’re going to be super mad that I turned these in, but when Tom got attacked last night, I knew Fitz had to know about the notes.”

  “Don’t be angry with your friend, Astrid,” Fitz says. “She may have just saved your life.”

  “Why didn’t you ask me first?” I ask Ruby.

  “You wouldn’t have turned these over,” she replies, and I know she’s right.

  “Do you know who they’re from?” I ask.

  He shakes his head. “We’re investigating.”

  That translates to - they have no clue either.

  Simmons speaks up, “I’m not convinced that these notes are threatening.”

  O’Malley objects, “I don’t see how we can look at them as anything other than a threat.”

  “I’m considering the tone,” she counters. “It’s nothing but friendly. I don’t think we should jump to conclusions.”

  Fitz intervenes before this conversation can get more heated. “Either way, we need to proceed with caution.”

  A hush falls over the room.

  Fitz turns to me. “Why don’t you tell us when and where you found these?”