Below is an excerpt from The Guardian’s Wildchild, my novel published by Omnific Publishing. In celebration of my novel’s publication anniversary, I’ll be posting excerpts. In the scene below, Sidney Davenport (Wildchild) and her brother have been cornered by an underground agent, Badger. He’s pushing them to help stop the study of the sun crystals – rumored to have special powers.
“Call me Badger. Sit down, shall we?” Badger placed a chair near a table and motioned for Sidney to sit.
Sidney glanced at Danik, standing with his fists clenched. She smiled. “Relax. Let’s see how many more rules I can break today.”
Danik escorted her to the chair but remained standing while Badger sat down across the table from Sidney and folded his arms across his chest. The other two men remained at the door.
“Well, let’s hear it,” Danik demanded.
Badger carefully chose his words, revealing nothing of where he was from or whom he represented. “Like I said, we need your help. It concerns a file known as Thy Kingdom Come.”
Sidney frowned. “Yes, Ryan said that file had to do with Admiral Garland discovering a new source of energy. Sounded routine except that he was hoping to have full control.”
“Do you know what that energy source is?”
“No. I figured it was some new technology.”
The man shook his head. “Ryan never told you?”
“No, and actually, I wanted nothing more to do with his underground activity.” She leaned toward Badger. “And I still don’t.”
Badger was unmoved by Sidney’s defiance. “You must! If we don’t stop Admiral Garland, we can all forget about singing, or dancing, or, or breathing. You see, this new energy source is sun crystals.”
Sidney looked up a Danik. “How could he … that is, how would the admiral know?”
Danik turned to Badger. “Just what do you know about sun crystals?”
“I know that most people can’t make them work. People have said they’re evil and will cause ruin. Ryan says certain people called Guardians use the crystals to create whatever they wish. That means if the admiral has just one Guardian in his back pocket, the consequences could be devastating globally.” Badger shook his head. “Would you agree with that assessment, Danik?”
Danik took a deep breath and sat down beside Sidney. “The power of a sun crystal, well, it doesn’t differentiate between good and evil. It only does the bidding of the one who’s able to connect with its energy source. Its power is limited only by the clarity of the user’s communication. Even Guardians seldom use them without the Elders’ approval.” Danik looked back at Sidney. “Badger’s right. This admiral has to be persuaded to give up the project.”
Badger snorted. “The admiral is only one player, and we suspect he is not the one pulling the strings. Listen, most of what we know is from the evening you and Ryan bugged the meeting between Admiral Garland and his scientists. And a few weeks later, a woman who worked with the admiral presented us with some coded information. She was killed shortly afterward. We’ve sent three men in and, well, they’ve all disappeared. We suspect they’ve been executed.”
Sidney stood up and backed away from the table. “Okay, Badger, out with it.” She was more angry than frightened. “Why have you come to us?”
Badger stood up and hesitated momentarily to respond. “Ryan says you and your brother have special abilities and that you’re in with this so-called Guardian cult. You, in particular, can get into places and do stuff that normal people can’t do. Is this so?”
Sidney considered denying the truth of her Guardian skills. However, it would mean that Ryan’s testimony would be considered a lie and that might cause him trouble with Badger and his men.
“I have some telepathic abilities and a sensitivity to energy. If conditions are right, I can manipulate energy a little, unlock doors. That’s about it,” she said, downplaying her powers. “Just exactly what is it you’re hoping I’ll do for you?”
Badger approached and stared into her eyes. “You can get the complete Thy Kingdom Come file from Admiral Garland’s office.”
Sidney laughed, backing away. “You’re crazy if you think I’ll — ”
“I’m not crazy! Just desperate enough to risk revealing our plan to someone not in our ranks,” Badger barked.
Romance Under Fire 