Dark Legends, page 264
Lakia strides forward; our hands brush together and she takes mine, giving it a little squeeze. I know it's to comfort me, but all it does is remind me of Aaron—he’s the only person who holds my hand. I squeeze it back out of good manners.
We stand for a moment as we take in the view: row after row of kids cramped together, dressed in the black uniform, devouring plates filled with scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast. Every few seconds one of them looks up. None of them look into my eyes, they just look us over and then continue to stuff their faces as if they haven’t eaten for days.
The food does look good. The smell of crispy apple-maple bacon dances in the air. Most of the tables are full except a few at the back of the dining car.
Lakia has also spotted the seats and pulls me forward. We hurry past the others, and I place the steaming hot food on the table, then I slip onto the cream leather cushions, different from the ones in my suite but still worn with time. I take a window seat, Lakia sits across from me, and Ryder grabs the seat next to her.
Kids walk past our table and into the next car as directed by the guards. How many food cars are there?
Ryder grunts and snorts as he shovels the contents of his plate into his eagerly waiting mouth. His plate is nearly finished before I start mine. “You eating that?” he says, raising his eyebrows as his fork hovers over my bacon.
Even though I’m hungry, I just don’t have the stomach to eat after the evening I’ve had. “Sure,” I say to Ryder, not even looking at him.
I glance past him to the others in the eating area. At first I thought they were all eating, but maybe that’s because my eyes were drawn to their moving heads. Some of them are just staring into space. I probably look the same as them—tired from being up for the last twenty-four hours.
All the bacon is gone from my place; I glance up at Ryder, but he just shrugs.
Lakia places two slices of toast into a folded paper napkin. No doubt my hunger will return later and I will be starving.
I twist open the cap of the bottle of water and gulp down the crystal clear liquid. I hadn't released how thirsty I was. There is a faint metallic taste. Does water always taste like this? To be honest I cannot remember what water tastes like. It, well, just tastes like nothing. I shrug and take another gulp. No one else seems to be bothered by it.
“I'm stuffed,” Ryder says as he pats his stomach. He reaches out for his water, and drinks it so fast he looks as if he’s trying to drown himself.
Lakia sips her water, then says, “It was good.” She stretches her arms out and yawns.
“Right, time for business,” Ryder says as he pushes his hands down on the table and stands.
Business? I think to myself.
Lakia nods. “Time to find out what's going on,” she says as she watches Ryder walk over to one of the guards. There are guards at each end of the car, with guns held firmly in their hands.
Ryder takes a step closer to the guard nearest us and starts talking to him, but with the noise in the car I can’t hear what they are saying. I try to block everyone out. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I can see the other guards coming toward Ryder. Before I know what I'm doing I'm on my feet, Ryder can have a quick temper, and I don't think I can take all hell breaking loose on this train. The train falls silent as others notice the guards approaching Ryder.
I jump into the path of the guards before they can reach Ryder. “Lakia's got some leftovers for you,” I say, pointing back to our seats. He knows she doesn’t have any food because he finished it. Luckily he spots what I was really warning him about, the oncoming guards with their hands hovering over their guns.
“Whatever,” Ryder says to the guard.
“What did he say?” Lakia asks as Ryder sits down.
A smile appears on Ryder’s face from the attention he’s getting. He’s always been like this.
“Just tell us,” Lakia snaps.
“I asked where we were going, and he was like, ‘you will know when we get there ...’ He said we can get in touch with our parents when we get to Sector 105,” Ryder says, leaning back in his seat.
“So basically you got no information,” Lakia says, frowning.
“You see if you can do any better. They are like frigging robots, programmed with the answers,” Ryder says
My train seat pushes up under my butt.
I look to my side as I feel the warmth of a body. It's Roslin, a kid from our school.
He has scratches on his rat-like face, making it appear as if he has whiskers, and there is a painful-looking gash across his overgrown eyebrow.
I’m surprised someone like him was able to survive a vampire attack. He probably got the cut from stumbling as he ran to the train.
“You should get that looked at,” I say, wincing as I look at the nasty gash and dried brown blood matting his eyebrows.
“Yeah, going after breakfast,” he says, wrinkling his too-large nose. “They have a doctor on the train,” he blurts out, as if he’s been chugging energy drinks all night. Roslin’s dark, sunken eyes dart between us.
“What else have they got?” I ask him. He smiles at me, and a glimmer of light enters his brown eyes; he’s clearly grateful for the question.
We did a science project together years ago; he seemed like a nice kid, quiet. He’s a little bit taller than me, I’m guessing 5’4”. The way he carries himself, with his head down, makes him look smaller, which isn’t good for a boy who’s already on the small side.
“The train is full of kids. It's a private train for us going to Sector 105. The front of the train past these food cars is locked off—there are guards stopping us from going down there,” Roslin says breathlessly.
“Maybe they are there to stop kids like you from bothering the train driver,” Ryder says; he’s not impressed with our new friend.
“If you don’t have any useful information, get lost,” Ryder says, waving his thumb back to another group of seats.
“Nice friend you’ve got, Sadie,” he says, leaving.
“Jesus, Ryder. Do you always have to be a jerk?”
“Shut up, Sadie,” he said.
“You shut up. The poor kid’s on his own.”
“Do I look like I care?” Ryder snaps.
“I’m done with this.” I get to my feet, grabbing hold of my wrapped-up toast and water bottle.
“Sadie, wait,” I hear Lakia say as I exit the food car; I’m too tired to argue with Ryder.
I march down the hallway to my suite. I grip hold of my water bottle and squeeze it tightly—too tightly. The lid pops off and water squirts out of the top, splashing onto the wall and floor, and the bottle slips from my fingers.
I reach down and retrieve the water bottle and the lid from the floor; there are only a few drops left.
Frigging hell, I’m not going back in to get another bottle. Looks like tap water till the next mealtime.
The emotions start to bubble up inside of me. Not here … not now … Hold the emotions in. Wait till I get to my suite.
I take off, running to my suite, past door after door. How many kids do they have here?
There were at least thirty kids in the food car; how many other food cars are there on this train?
When I got to the train with Blake, everything was a blur. I should have at least looked to see how many other cars there were.
I push open my train suite door, my new home.
Chapter Five
“Wait.” A piercing scream comes from outside of the train.
I jump up and search for my stake. My mind feels heavy … I was asleep and I didn’t have nightmares. Nothing, until now, but this is not a nightmare, I am awake.
My stake is on the table. I grab it and wrap my fingers around it. I look out the window, where the scream came from.
It's a terrified girl. She’s running toward the train, which is moving slowly, as if we just stopped.
Behind her there is a pack of people chasing her. It's a pack of vampires. Where is her guardian?
I slam my fist against the window; she sees me.
Her eyes are wide open, whites bulging, and she has raw, bloody gashes across her face. Her clothes are ripped as if she has just survived a brutal attack.
“Stop the train,” she screams.
I run out of my suite and into the hallway.
“Stop the train,” I scream as I run, but there is no one around. The hallway is empty. My heart races as fast as the train is moving away from the girl.
“Why are you awake?” a guard says as I turn a corner and he spots me.
“Stop the train,” I repeat, running in his direction. “Stop the frigging train. A girl is being chased down by vampires, we have to help her.” He stands there as if shocked to see me, then turns and walks away from me.
“Stop—the girl,” I scream as I grip hold of his shoulder and pull him around to face me.
He spins around to face me, then swiftly raises his arm and jabs me in the neck with a syringe. He injected something into my neck. Whatever it is takes effect instantly.
The train hallway starts rocking from side to side as if I’m on a boat, not a train. My feet feel like they are heavy weights sinking into the floor. My body slams up against the train wall as if I’m drunk; I lean up against it, using it as a guide. I have to get back to my suite … the girl.
Curling my hands around the cold metal door frame, I peer into my suite.
There are people—no, vampires—running along the side of the train, outside my window.
One of them turns and faces me: an overgrown vampire. He smiles and reveals his sharp white fangs …
“You’re next ...” I read from his lips as he sprints forward with the others.
“Help me.” Pleading screams sneak through the gap in the window.
I stagger toward the window. The smell of rotting death fills the room. My head tilts sideways. Bile flies out of my mouth and I vomit onto the floor.
I can feel myself drifting in and out of darkness. Don’t stop moving.
I kneel on the seat and slam my hands on the window. The vampires have stopped moving.
As the train approaches them, heads turn to face me. Their faces are covered in crimson red blood that glows in the sunlight. The girl’s body is in the middle of them, with blood seeping from every vein.
It feels like the train has slowed down, so I can get a clear view of the horror in front of me. They look as though they are smiling at me, like hunters proud of their kill.
A bloody hand slams up against my window. I shriek in fear, diving backward, backward, and land on the floor. My head crashes against the door. Stars appear in the corners of my eyes, followed by darkness ...
“Sadie.” I can her a soft female voice. “Sadie, time to wake up, we are nearly here,” the voice adds.
I can see the redness through my eyelids; it feels like I'm in a bright room.
Gently I open my eyes, trying not to blind myself with the light. There is a lady leaning over me, rubbing my arm to wake me.
“Ah, just in time,” she says, and warmth travels up to her eyes as she smiles.
She has a white coat on over her clothes.
“You took a nasty fall,” she says with a concerned look on her face.
“A fall?” I question.
I raise my hand to my head, I can feel a bandage. I don't remember falling. It must have been some force. A little shooting pain runs up my shoulder, like a bolt of lightning has traveled through my body. I must have landed on my side.
“You will recover from these injures quickly,” she states as she looks at a handheld computer.
“Can you continue?” she says in a flat robot tone, like her emotions are gone.
“Continue?” I ask.
“With the training,” she says flatly.
“What if I can’t?” I look her straight in the eye because I want to see her reaction.
Her eyes bulge just a little as she looks upward, then flicker back. What is she looking at?
“Please wait until you get to Sector 105 before you make your decision. I know you will make the right choice,” she says as she puts the handheld computer down.
“You are free to leave when you are ready. We will be stopping in a few minutes,” she adds as a smile appears on her face. This time it doesn’t reach her eyes. With that she leaves the room.
Leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I look around the windowless room for a mirror. On a side table there are tools like the kind dentists use to look inside your mouth, along with a mirror that’s about the size of a quarter.
As I jump down off the bed, the paper rustles beneath me. My legs feel like jelly. How long have I been knocked out for? There are no clocks in the room; it has the familiar splattered gray walls. How can there not be one single clock on this whole train?
My eyes stop in the corner of the room, where the doctor’s eyes rested. There is a speaker like the one in my room, splattered with gray paint.
As I stare at it deeply, inside it, I can see a red light. I push the lone chair near the speaker and step up on it. My legs are still a bit wobbly, so I lean on the wall for support.
Standing on tiptoe, I can just see in. There is a small black box with a red light on top.
Quickly I jump down. Damn … it's a camera. Why do they have hidden cameras? What are they looking for? If they were for our protection, which I would understand, they wouldn’t be hidden. There would be no reason to hide them—unless they are watching us. Not the vampires.
Jesus, and there I was giving whoever is watching a full blown view of my face. They are going to be watching me now ... even more than they already were.
I need to get out of here.
I grab my jacket off the chair and slip it over my shoulders, stopping me from feeling quite so naked in front of them. Whoever they are ... Sadie, stop being so paranoid, I tell myself, shaking my head. There must be a reason for it. Protection—there is a train full of kids being hunted by vampires. I turn away from the camera and laugh ... my concerns are laughable. If it wasn't for the government, I would be dead.
The End
About the Author
HJLawson is an English author who currently resides in New York. When she's not writing, she spends her time watching movies and hanging out with her family. She is the author of the following young adult books: The War Kids Series and The Sanction Series.
Read more from H.J. Lawson:
www.hjlawson.com
Blood Moon
Emma Nichols
Blood Moon, The Druids: Book One © 2016 Emma Nichols
Copyright notice: All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Blood Moon
The Druids: Book One
Hiking Yellowstone couldn’t be farther away from her comfort zone. Returning to Yellowstone could help him fulfill his destiny.
Autumn and her boyfriend were on the outs. After six months together, he’d decided they weren’t compatible. Determined to prove him wrong, she agreed to go hiking one October weekend. While she pictured a romantic stroll around the lake, he booked them a grueling weekend in Yellowstone, where he promptly humiliated her, dumped her, and left her all alone in the wilderness. Yet again, she’d fallen for a guy who treated her like a project. All she wanted was love and acceptance. By the time Autumn dried her tears, snowflakes covered the trail, darkness had fallen, and her demise appeared imminent.
Ronan Cormac had some decisions to make. Though he’d become one of the most sought after agents in Hollywood, years of superficial relationships had worn him down, making him long for a meaningful connection. In other words, the wolf shifter was ready for a mate and LA made it impossible for him to find one. When his sister called him home for a family emergency, Ronan rushed back to Yellowstone. In order to save the Druids, his pack, he’d have to find a mate and become the Alpha before the Blood Moon.
Prologue
15 years earlier
Ronan
“We need to have a talk, Ronan.” Father walked into my room with a solemn look on his face.
I sighed and sat up as he reached over and turned down my stereo on the dresser and then moved to sit on the end of my bed. Apparently, this was important. Closing the script on my lap, I turned to give him my full attention. “What do you want to talk about?” I tried to keep the edge out of my voice, but it wasn’t easy. Auditions for Phantom of the Opera were taking place the next day at the community theater, and I wanted to be the phantom more than anything else in the world.
He reached out and took the play from my hands. Flipping through, he frowned. “I know how much you’re looking forward to auditions.” He seemed to be struggling for the words. “I don’t want you to get your hopes up.”
“I’m really good, father. If you’d only listen to me practice, you’d see…” I threw my hands up in frustration. It was bad enough we lived on this ranch in Wyoming, and his idea of culture was taking all of us to a movie once in a great while, but now he seemed determined to kill my future aspirations. “Just because you let your dreams wither up and die, doesn’t mean I have to!” My nostrils flared as I glared at him.
We stand for a moment as we take in the view: row after row of kids cramped together, dressed in the black uniform, devouring plates filled with scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast. Every few seconds one of them looks up. None of them look into my eyes, they just look us over and then continue to stuff their faces as if they haven’t eaten for days.
The food does look good. The smell of crispy apple-maple bacon dances in the air. Most of the tables are full except a few at the back of the dining car.
Lakia has also spotted the seats and pulls me forward. We hurry past the others, and I place the steaming hot food on the table, then I slip onto the cream leather cushions, different from the ones in my suite but still worn with time. I take a window seat, Lakia sits across from me, and Ryder grabs the seat next to her.
Kids walk past our table and into the next car as directed by the guards. How many food cars are there?
Ryder grunts and snorts as he shovels the contents of his plate into his eagerly waiting mouth. His plate is nearly finished before I start mine. “You eating that?” he says, raising his eyebrows as his fork hovers over my bacon.
Even though I’m hungry, I just don’t have the stomach to eat after the evening I’ve had. “Sure,” I say to Ryder, not even looking at him.
I glance past him to the others in the eating area. At first I thought they were all eating, but maybe that’s because my eyes were drawn to their moving heads. Some of them are just staring into space. I probably look the same as them—tired from being up for the last twenty-four hours.
All the bacon is gone from my place; I glance up at Ryder, but he just shrugs.
Lakia places two slices of toast into a folded paper napkin. No doubt my hunger will return later and I will be starving.
I twist open the cap of the bottle of water and gulp down the crystal clear liquid. I hadn't released how thirsty I was. There is a faint metallic taste. Does water always taste like this? To be honest I cannot remember what water tastes like. It, well, just tastes like nothing. I shrug and take another gulp. No one else seems to be bothered by it.
“I'm stuffed,” Ryder says as he pats his stomach. He reaches out for his water, and drinks it so fast he looks as if he’s trying to drown himself.
Lakia sips her water, then says, “It was good.” She stretches her arms out and yawns.
“Right, time for business,” Ryder says as he pushes his hands down on the table and stands.
Business? I think to myself.
Lakia nods. “Time to find out what's going on,” she says as she watches Ryder walk over to one of the guards. There are guards at each end of the car, with guns held firmly in their hands.
Ryder takes a step closer to the guard nearest us and starts talking to him, but with the noise in the car I can’t hear what they are saying. I try to block everyone out. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I can see the other guards coming toward Ryder. Before I know what I'm doing I'm on my feet, Ryder can have a quick temper, and I don't think I can take all hell breaking loose on this train. The train falls silent as others notice the guards approaching Ryder.
I jump into the path of the guards before they can reach Ryder. “Lakia's got some leftovers for you,” I say, pointing back to our seats. He knows she doesn’t have any food because he finished it. Luckily he spots what I was really warning him about, the oncoming guards with their hands hovering over their guns.
“Whatever,” Ryder says to the guard.
“What did he say?” Lakia asks as Ryder sits down.
A smile appears on Ryder’s face from the attention he’s getting. He’s always been like this.
“Just tell us,” Lakia snaps.
“I asked where we were going, and he was like, ‘you will know when we get there ...’ He said we can get in touch with our parents when we get to Sector 105,” Ryder says, leaning back in his seat.
“So basically you got no information,” Lakia says, frowning.
“You see if you can do any better. They are like frigging robots, programmed with the answers,” Ryder says
My train seat pushes up under my butt.
I look to my side as I feel the warmth of a body. It's Roslin, a kid from our school.
He has scratches on his rat-like face, making it appear as if he has whiskers, and there is a painful-looking gash across his overgrown eyebrow.
I’m surprised someone like him was able to survive a vampire attack. He probably got the cut from stumbling as he ran to the train.
“You should get that looked at,” I say, wincing as I look at the nasty gash and dried brown blood matting his eyebrows.
“Yeah, going after breakfast,” he says, wrinkling his too-large nose. “They have a doctor on the train,” he blurts out, as if he’s been chugging energy drinks all night. Roslin’s dark, sunken eyes dart between us.
“What else have they got?” I ask him. He smiles at me, and a glimmer of light enters his brown eyes; he’s clearly grateful for the question.
We did a science project together years ago; he seemed like a nice kid, quiet. He’s a little bit taller than me, I’m guessing 5’4”. The way he carries himself, with his head down, makes him look smaller, which isn’t good for a boy who’s already on the small side.
“The train is full of kids. It's a private train for us going to Sector 105. The front of the train past these food cars is locked off—there are guards stopping us from going down there,” Roslin says breathlessly.
“Maybe they are there to stop kids like you from bothering the train driver,” Ryder says; he’s not impressed with our new friend.
“If you don’t have any useful information, get lost,” Ryder says, waving his thumb back to another group of seats.
“Nice friend you’ve got, Sadie,” he says, leaving.
“Jesus, Ryder. Do you always have to be a jerk?”
“Shut up, Sadie,” he said.
“You shut up. The poor kid’s on his own.”
“Do I look like I care?” Ryder snaps.
“I’m done with this.” I get to my feet, grabbing hold of my wrapped-up toast and water bottle.
“Sadie, wait,” I hear Lakia say as I exit the food car; I’m too tired to argue with Ryder.
I march down the hallway to my suite. I grip hold of my water bottle and squeeze it tightly—too tightly. The lid pops off and water squirts out of the top, splashing onto the wall and floor, and the bottle slips from my fingers.
I reach down and retrieve the water bottle and the lid from the floor; there are only a few drops left.
Frigging hell, I’m not going back in to get another bottle. Looks like tap water till the next mealtime.
The emotions start to bubble up inside of me. Not here … not now … Hold the emotions in. Wait till I get to my suite.
I take off, running to my suite, past door after door. How many kids do they have here?
There were at least thirty kids in the food car; how many other food cars are there on this train?
When I got to the train with Blake, everything was a blur. I should have at least looked to see how many other cars there were.
I push open my train suite door, my new home.
Chapter Five
“Wait.” A piercing scream comes from outside of the train.
I jump up and search for my stake. My mind feels heavy … I was asleep and I didn’t have nightmares. Nothing, until now, but this is not a nightmare, I am awake.
My stake is on the table. I grab it and wrap my fingers around it. I look out the window, where the scream came from.
It's a terrified girl. She’s running toward the train, which is moving slowly, as if we just stopped.
Behind her there is a pack of people chasing her. It's a pack of vampires. Where is her guardian?
I slam my fist against the window; she sees me.
Her eyes are wide open, whites bulging, and she has raw, bloody gashes across her face. Her clothes are ripped as if she has just survived a brutal attack.
“Stop the train,” she screams.
I run out of my suite and into the hallway.
“Stop the train,” I scream as I run, but there is no one around. The hallway is empty. My heart races as fast as the train is moving away from the girl.
“Why are you awake?” a guard says as I turn a corner and he spots me.
“Stop the train,” I repeat, running in his direction. “Stop the frigging train. A girl is being chased down by vampires, we have to help her.” He stands there as if shocked to see me, then turns and walks away from me.
“Stop—the girl,” I scream as I grip hold of his shoulder and pull him around to face me.
He spins around to face me, then swiftly raises his arm and jabs me in the neck with a syringe. He injected something into my neck. Whatever it is takes effect instantly.
The train hallway starts rocking from side to side as if I’m on a boat, not a train. My feet feel like they are heavy weights sinking into the floor. My body slams up against the train wall as if I’m drunk; I lean up against it, using it as a guide. I have to get back to my suite … the girl.
Curling my hands around the cold metal door frame, I peer into my suite.
There are people—no, vampires—running along the side of the train, outside my window.
One of them turns and faces me: an overgrown vampire. He smiles and reveals his sharp white fangs …
“You’re next ...” I read from his lips as he sprints forward with the others.
“Help me.” Pleading screams sneak through the gap in the window.
I stagger toward the window. The smell of rotting death fills the room. My head tilts sideways. Bile flies out of my mouth and I vomit onto the floor.
I can feel myself drifting in and out of darkness. Don’t stop moving.
I kneel on the seat and slam my hands on the window. The vampires have stopped moving.
As the train approaches them, heads turn to face me. Their faces are covered in crimson red blood that glows in the sunlight. The girl’s body is in the middle of them, with blood seeping from every vein.
It feels like the train has slowed down, so I can get a clear view of the horror in front of me. They look as though they are smiling at me, like hunters proud of their kill.
A bloody hand slams up against my window. I shriek in fear, diving backward, backward, and land on the floor. My head crashes against the door. Stars appear in the corners of my eyes, followed by darkness ...
“Sadie.” I can her a soft female voice. “Sadie, time to wake up, we are nearly here,” the voice adds.
I can see the redness through my eyelids; it feels like I'm in a bright room.
Gently I open my eyes, trying not to blind myself with the light. There is a lady leaning over me, rubbing my arm to wake me.
“Ah, just in time,” she says, and warmth travels up to her eyes as she smiles.
She has a white coat on over her clothes.
“You took a nasty fall,” she says with a concerned look on her face.
“A fall?” I question.
I raise my hand to my head, I can feel a bandage. I don't remember falling. It must have been some force. A little shooting pain runs up my shoulder, like a bolt of lightning has traveled through my body. I must have landed on my side.
“You will recover from these injures quickly,” she states as she looks at a handheld computer.
“Can you continue?” she says in a flat robot tone, like her emotions are gone.
“Continue?” I ask.
“With the training,” she says flatly.
“What if I can’t?” I look her straight in the eye because I want to see her reaction.
Her eyes bulge just a little as she looks upward, then flicker back. What is she looking at?
“Please wait until you get to Sector 105 before you make your decision. I know you will make the right choice,” she says as she puts the handheld computer down.
“You are free to leave when you are ready. We will be stopping in a few minutes,” she adds as a smile appears on her face. This time it doesn’t reach her eyes. With that she leaves the room.
Leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I look around the windowless room for a mirror. On a side table there are tools like the kind dentists use to look inside your mouth, along with a mirror that’s about the size of a quarter.
As I jump down off the bed, the paper rustles beneath me. My legs feel like jelly. How long have I been knocked out for? There are no clocks in the room; it has the familiar splattered gray walls. How can there not be one single clock on this whole train?
My eyes stop in the corner of the room, where the doctor’s eyes rested. There is a speaker like the one in my room, splattered with gray paint.
As I stare at it deeply, inside it, I can see a red light. I push the lone chair near the speaker and step up on it. My legs are still a bit wobbly, so I lean on the wall for support.
Standing on tiptoe, I can just see in. There is a small black box with a red light on top.
Quickly I jump down. Damn … it's a camera. Why do they have hidden cameras? What are they looking for? If they were for our protection, which I would understand, they wouldn’t be hidden. There would be no reason to hide them—unless they are watching us. Not the vampires.
Jesus, and there I was giving whoever is watching a full blown view of my face. They are going to be watching me now ... even more than they already were.
I need to get out of here.
I grab my jacket off the chair and slip it over my shoulders, stopping me from feeling quite so naked in front of them. Whoever they are ... Sadie, stop being so paranoid, I tell myself, shaking my head. There must be a reason for it. Protection—there is a train full of kids being hunted by vampires. I turn away from the camera and laugh ... my concerns are laughable. If it wasn't for the government, I would be dead.
The End
About the Author
HJLawson is an English author who currently resides in New York. When she's not writing, she spends her time watching movies and hanging out with her family. She is the author of the following young adult books: The War Kids Series and The Sanction Series.
Read more from H.J. Lawson:
www.hjlawson.com
Blood Moon
Emma Nichols
Blood Moon, The Druids: Book One © 2016 Emma Nichols
Copyright notice: All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Blood Moon
The Druids: Book One
Hiking Yellowstone couldn’t be farther away from her comfort zone. Returning to Yellowstone could help him fulfill his destiny.
Autumn and her boyfriend were on the outs. After six months together, he’d decided they weren’t compatible. Determined to prove him wrong, she agreed to go hiking one October weekend. While she pictured a romantic stroll around the lake, he booked them a grueling weekend in Yellowstone, where he promptly humiliated her, dumped her, and left her all alone in the wilderness. Yet again, she’d fallen for a guy who treated her like a project. All she wanted was love and acceptance. By the time Autumn dried her tears, snowflakes covered the trail, darkness had fallen, and her demise appeared imminent.
Ronan Cormac had some decisions to make. Though he’d become one of the most sought after agents in Hollywood, years of superficial relationships had worn him down, making him long for a meaningful connection. In other words, the wolf shifter was ready for a mate and LA made it impossible for him to find one. When his sister called him home for a family emergency, Ronan rushed back to Yellowstone. In order to save the Druids, his pack, he’d have to find a mate and become the Alpha before the Blood Moon.
Prologue
15 years earlier
Ronan
“We need to have a talk, Ronan.” Father walked into my room with a solemn look on his face.
I sighed and sat up as he reached over and turned down my stereo on the dresser and then moved to sit on the end of my bed. Apparently, this was important. Closing the script on my lap, I turned to give him my full attention. “What do you want to talk about?” I tried to keep the edge out of my voice, but it wasn’t easy. Auditions for Phantom of the Opera were taking place the next day at the community theater, and I wanted to be the phantom more than anything else in the world.
He reached out and took the play from my hands. Flipping through, he frowned. “I know how much you’re looking forward to auditions.” He seemed to be struggling for the words. “I don’t want you to get your hopes up.”
“I’m really good, father. If you’d only listen to me practice, you’d see…” I threw my hands up in frustration. It was bad enough we lived on this ranch in Wyoming, and his idea of culture was taking all of us to a movie once in a great while, but now he seemed determined to kill my future aspirations. “Just because you let your dreams wither up and die, doesn’t mean I have to!” My nostrils flared as I glared at him.
