by Gareth Otton
I failed, he thought.
He had no dreamcatchers left, there was a handcuff on his wrist, his sister was in prison, and that bastard dreamcatcher was still alive to keep doing what he did to Lucy. He’d failed her just like he had everyone else.
Somehow, through the dark thoughts and constant pain, he slowly became aware that he wasn’t alone. The light had come on in his room and there was a woman standing at the edge of his bed. She was only short, barely an inch over five feet, and she had steel grey hair that was worn at shoulder length. Intelligent grey eyes sat behind rimless glasses, and they studied him carefully as he slowly became aware of her presence.
“I’m delirious,” he muttered to himself. How else could he explain seeing this woman of all people at the end of his bed? She was even dressed as she always was on TV, in a navy pantsuit that made her look even older than she already was.
“Not quite,” Candice Andrews answered. “Though I wouldn’t blame you if you were.”
“You can’t be here,” Kuruk said. “What would the President of the United States want with me.”
The woman stepped around the bed, coming closer so Kuruk didn’t have to strain and lift his head to see her. She was studying his scars, tracing the designs with her eyes and smiling gently.
“You know my history?” she asked. “You know I served, that I understand what it means to go to war and risk everything for what you believe in. Well, surely it makes sense that I would respect a man who had done the same and got hurt in the process.”
“You… You agree with what I did?”
“Of course I do,” she answered. “It was me who set up the task force Astur was running, and it was me who gave the command to get the names to you. You don’t realise it, but you’ve been working for your country this whole time.”
“But… I mean… Why didn’t anyone tell me?”
“Because the rest of the world doesn’t know what we know. They see these changes as good things, as something to admire and be fascinated by. They don’t understand the evil that has been unleashed on our world or why we have to fight it. But they’re starting to.”
Before Kuruk could say anything, she traced the shape of one of his burnt dreamcatchers in the air with her finger, and asked another question.
“Tell me. Was it just your sister who knew how to make these?”
Kuruk hesitated, wondering where this was leading. Finally he shook his head. “No. She just remembered them first. Ten’s a genius and she came up with the idea of how to make them and she’s the only person I know of who can design new ones. But once they’re designed, all you have to do is copy them exactly under the right circumstances.”
She smiled at that and her hand dropped back to her side.
“That is good news. Tell me, how would you feel about getting out of this bed soon and rather than going to prison, coming to work for me. You’ll be given people to train in these arts, to learn dreamcatchers as you used them. Then, together, you’ll start training more people in a slightly different way. You’ll be tattooing them, just as you were tattooed, and you’ll be preparing them for how to use their new powers effectively.”
“Why?” he asked, knowing he shouldn’t but unable to help himself. He should be grabbing this gift with both hands and never looking back. However, his question was out there now and there was no helping it.
“Because unnatural beings walk this earth, devils in human form. America needs to deal with them now before they get a foothold in our world and become too strong to be removed. I need you, Kuruk, because when I go to the Borderlands to rid the world of this evil, I can not have the magic of their devils holding me back.
“So, tell me, Kuruk Campbell. Is this something you can help with?”
Kuruk hoped this wasn’t just his pain addled brain playing tricks on him, because he desperately wanted this to be true.
“How soon can I start,” was all he said in answer, and it brought a triumphant smile to her face.
“Soon, brave hero. I’ll be back before you know it, so rest up, because we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
The End
Afterword
I want to thank everyone who has read this book and have stuck with me on this journey. I hope you’ve enjoyed the story so far, and you’re as eager as I am to explore what comes next for Tad, Stella, Jen and Tony.
This book takes us past the halfway point of this series as there are only two books left. I would love to give you expected dates for those books, but I tried to do that at the end of the last novel and look where that got me (Sorry, by the way). So I’ve learnt my lesson about promises and I’ll only say that I’ve already started writing the next book and it’ll be here as soon as possible.
While waiting for that, if you have enjoyed this book, please leave a review on sites like Amazon and Goodreads. Reviews really help the algorithms that run those sites know that my book is worth recommending to other readers, and are a massive help in general to self-published authors.
Also, if you know anyone who might like these books, please let them know they exist. Good word of mouth will always be any author’s best friend.
For the latest news and updates about my future books, you can follow me on Amazon and Goodreads, as well as Facebook (@gareth_otton), Instagram (@gareth_otton), Twitter (@gjotton) and my website (www.gareth-otton.com).
Thanks again.
Gareth Otton.
