by Ryan Decaria
Anika’s phone buzzed. Blake was calling, but Anika ignored it. He’d finally made it back to school and had rejoined the Scientific Olympiad team. Claire was still president, even though she wasn’t as smart after her parents stopped experimenting on her.
The brush along the river rustled.
The alligator lumbered out and walked across the lawn toward Anika. Sasha and Boulsour didn’t even flinch.
Anika got on her knees and the wetness of the grass soaked through her jeans. She set the cooler next to her. The alligator waddled up and gazed at her.
“It wasn’t easy, and I had to demand overtime, but we found a way to make you able to speak the human language.”
Its eyes brightened.
Anika opened the cooler and pulled out a ball of meat. “Eat this and wait a bit. It should work soon.”
She held the meat out to him and smiled.
It stared at her face, examining her eyes.
“Do you trust me?” Anika asked.
Finally, it nodded and opened its maw.
Anika placed the meat inside its mouth and pulled her hand away.
The alligator slurped the meat down its throat.
Anika scooted toward its head and gingerly reached out to pet it. “Can I?”
Its inner eyelid closed.
Anika gently ran her fingers across its bony head. “I can’t wait to have a proper conversation with you.”
It waited for the medicine to take effect, letting Anika caress the scales on its head. Her thoughts drifted.
With Boulsour and Sasha at her side, no one dared confront Anika in the office. Other than some grumbling, they agreed to her No Evil mantra. She’d had a stern conversation with Linh’s parents about making sure Linh was safe and stable. She’d demoted Coralynn to the front desk.
Claire’s parents vowed to make her better, which was entirely not good enough. Hawking had had a little parental chat, which didn’t go well for anyone. He’d moved out of the mortuary and in with Sasha. They were begging Anika to do something about the entire travesty. Billie and her mom had moved in with Anika, and they still hadn’t explored the basement.
Anika had plenty of work left to do. Moreau would eventually be free from Dravovitch’s oppression. In six months, the scientists would likely go their own ways, scattering across the globe. She’d try to keep track of them, to keep them honest, but it was a pipe dream.
She’d find a cure for Jackie, make sure the other kids were safe, and then she’d burn her father’s laboratory to the ground and walk away forever.
The alligator flared its nostrils as its breathing intensified. A scientific achievement, but one nobody would ever know about. This amazing animal did not belong to this world. What life could it have? What damage could it unleash? The more it understood humanity, the more dangerous it became.
Was Anika the same? Would she become more dangerous the more she went down her father’s path? Could she save her friends and still come out again? Anika let out a shuddering breath—she wasn’t sure she belonged to this world either. Her tears dripped onto the alligator’s face as the life faded from its eyes.
Like all great monster creations, this book was not shocked to life on its own. This book monster took a village, including some villagers with pitchforks, to bring it to life. Thanks, first, to my family, who allowed me time to follow my dreams, and to my parents who never doubted my potential.
Thanks to my team at Immortal Works for embracing the madness, including Holli, Mellisa, John, Jason, and the rest. Thanks to Adam and Frank, my writing group stalwarts, who were with me every step of the way. Thanks to Kim and Monika. And to all my friends who got my back. Thanks!
Ryan Decaria is an author of monsters, teens who kick butt with science, and the special ones who are both at the same time. Raised on science fiction and fantasy novels and 80’s adventure movies, Ryan still searches for treasure maps, an alien buddy, and his own luck dragon. Check out his musings at www.madsciencefiction.com.
