by Greg Barron
Victoria is tremoring in Marika’s arms. Marika knows not to try to remove the knife, but there is already blood in the corner of the young woman’s lips, and her eyes have that knowing yet frightened stare that Marika has seen before.
‘Get going, back to the ship, hurry,’ she screams. The medical facilities there are only ten or twelve kilometres away now. Kutay has the first aid kit out, and he acts as nurse, holding swabs, ampoules and syringes for Marika.
The stone knife, however, has penetrated deep. Victoria Dalby is bleeding inside, and the morphine they pump into her veins does nothing to stave off the inevitable.
‘Soon you’ll be in a hospital,’ Marika promises, ‘they’ll fix you up.’
‘He was going … to kill Tasman … better that it’s me.’
‘You will get back to London. You’ll have your old life back.’ Marika says, squeezing Victoria’s hand, urging her not to give up the fight.
Victoria’s hand turns slack and cold. Not all at once, but by increments. Finally, with Albion’s silhouette growing on the horizon, Marika feels for a pulse in Victoria’s neck. She closes one eye, then the other, with her thumb.
As the RIB flies across the water Marika’s jaw sets in a hard line. Somewhere along the evolutionary line, she thinks to herself, killing our own kind became too easy. Her eyes rove upwards, past where PJ sits with his head buried in his hands, to the moon and the stars, drawing strength for what lies ahead.
THE END
If you enjoyed this, check out the full-length Marika Hartmann novels, Savage Tide and Rotten Gods. Both are available worldwide at all e-book retailers, and in all Australian and New Zealand bookshops. The third full length instalment, Lethal Sky, will be released in July 2014.
About the Author
Greg Barron has qualifications in education and science, and has studied terrorism at Scotland’s prestigious St Andrew’s University. He has lived in both North America and Australia, and has travelled widely, combining his interests in politics and current events with a passion for new horizons. His favourite places include the African savannah, the Canadian Rockies and Australia’s Top End. Along with abseiling, offshore boating, skindiving and canoeing, his greatest adventure was a three-hundred-kilometre trek through the wild East Alligator region of Arnhem Land. Greg lives on the North Coast of New South Wales with his wife and two sons. For more about the author visit gregbarron.com
Copyright
HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in Australia in 2014
This edition published in 2014
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Greg Barron 2014
The right of Greg Barron to be identified as the author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
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Cover images: Figure by Jon Spaihts; all other images by shutterstock.com
