The Last Note: Song of Teeth 4

By Eve Hathaway

From the Publisher that brought you popular short story series Witching Call, Hostile Hearts, Earthbound Angels, The January Morrison Files Psychic Series, Ralph's Gift, Children of Time, Chains of Darkness, Song of Teeth, Tropical Storms and Friend Zone...

“Every voice erupted in a cacophony of howls, roars, and guttural barks..."
ONE MAN MUST TAKE A STAND

With Ally captured by the rival scientist Dr. Kyle Rubidio, Mark, Tatiana, and Dr. Sanders reel from the loss of their work and this new threat to their friend. After each tries and fails in their separate ways to rescue Ally and their research, the three turn to each other again for help. After exhausting all legal options, they resort to any means necessary to save Ally—and possibly her entire species—from Dr. Rubidio’s cruelty. Their secrets are in danger of being exposed, and their loyalties are severely tested. But help appears in several unexpected places....

Eventually, tensions and old fears erupt in a horrific clash between reptile and human that will leave the city of Fontel reeling, and forever change the lives of everyone involved in an instant. The human world can no longer ignore what exists beneath its feet.

In the meantime, Mark’s home life causes further strain when he learns his brother has been arrested. Faced with the enormous task of saving an entire lost civilization, and with trying to repair his relationships with his family and Tatiana, Mark must find the courage and reason to withstand the greatest challenges of his life. Everyone must decide what is worth sacrificing, and what is worth saving.

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EXCERPT
Without another word, Tatiana reached into another pouch and retrieved her new digital recorder. Holding it above her head, she played the file they had recorded of Ally’s choked singing in the tank. Her sputtering voice against the faint backdrop of violins resounded through the cavern, seeming to silence even the placid trickling of water. Every breath was stifled, every movement suspended. The recording ended, and a moment as eerie and still as the emptiness before a tsunami trapped them all. Then, an explosion of chaos.

Every voice erupted in a cacophony of howls, roars, and guttural barks. The stone towers themselves vibrated with the deafening thunder; it was if a pin had pricked the thin membrane of silence and let a brutal ocean burst through. The crowd behind Mark, Tatiana and Dr. Sanders started lunging at them, forcing the guards to throw them back into other members of the crowd. The guards, joined by a few other guards that ran up from behind the leader, drew tight around the humans, turning their powerful jaws against a writhing sea of furious reptiles. Calling out in the rattling cry that Mark recognized from their first encounter, the leader tried again and again to calm the crowds, but even his influence could not stop them. A riot of thrashing tails, scrabbling claws, and gnashing teeth swept through the entire population.

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Sandra Ross
• Release date: Aug 14, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301669844

Book preview

The Last Note

By Eve Hathaway

Published by Publications Circulations LLC.

SmashWords Edition

All contents copyright (C) 2013 by Publications Circulations LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this document or the related files may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, companies and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.

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CHAPTER ONE

HE'S THE ONE you should be arresting! Tatiana waved her arms wildly, pacing in distraction. She bumped into one of the hard-cushioned chairs scattered around the biology building's lobby and kicked the leg reflexively.

Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to calm down. In a level but warning voice, the broad-shouldered police officer held up one hand. I was already on my way to investigate Dr. Sanders' call when I got the call from Dr. Rubidio. No one's getting arrested until I hear the whole story. Though the officer moved slowly and evenly, Mark noticed his other hand hovering near the can of mace clipped on his belt.

Pulling her arms close and holding her in a combination hug and restraint, Mark muttered in Tatiana's ear, It's ok, T. We'll tell him what happened but he'll listen better if we act like the rational ones.

Seething deep breaths through her teeth, Tatiana stopped moving and nodded. Yes, yes, I'm ok. Sorry. I'm calm. Very gradually, Mark released his bear hug, and although Tatiana's shoulders still heaved with the effort of her breathing, she kept her arms and legs still by her side.

Lowering both his hands, the officer pulled out a pad of paper and pen. All right, now how 'bout you two tell me what happened in your own words?

In the after-hours quiet punctuated by the fluorescent buzzing of lights, Mark and Tatiana described a sporadic, heavily edited version of how they discovered Dr. Rubidio had hacked into Dr. Sanders' computer and stolen their research. Whenever the exact topic of their research came up, they would interrupt each other or exchange confused glances.

So, what you're saying, the officer broke off their vague ramblings, is that this secret 'research,' was stored on Dr. Sanders' profile of the campus network and tonight, you found out it was missing. Right?

Right. They both nodded. And Dr. Rubidio stole it, Tatiana added.

But how do you know he stole it?

The question caught and strangled a sentence in Tatiana's throat before she could say it. Crossing her arms, she replied, He was the only one with administrative access to the other professors' profiles.

Folding up his notepad and capping his pen, the officer tilted his head. So, he could log in and access your research at any time?

No no, Mark jumped in, it was all password protected so only Dr. Sanders could access it.

Uh huh. So again, how do you know Dr. Rubidio was the one who hacked in? His expression blank, the officer looked long at Mark's face, then at Tatiana's. How do you know it was stolen at all? Maybe there was a glitch somewhere and it accidentally got deleted.

Uncrossing her arms, Tatiana clenched her hands into fists at her side. We know it was him because we saw him bring... she cut herself off with a long sigh ...bring something into the lab, that he could only know about if he had read our notes!

"Right. And that brings us back to where we started with Dr. Rubidio's call. He said you were trespassing into the lab in an attempt to steal his research."

He's lying! Tatiana's voice shrilled into a scream. He's trying to take advantage of us because we're young and no one will believe us! I've worked so hard on this-

Ma'am, ma'am, I need to ask you to lower your voice. The officer took a step back, his arm muscles visibly tightening.

Tatiana... Mark touched her wrist, now trembling at her side but she jerked her arm away.

I have a right to be upset! she shouted, then turned her back to them and hid her face in her hands.

Turning to Mark, the officer said, Look, I'm not saying you're not telling the truth. But without any kind of proof, there's nothing I can do. Especially if you can't even tell me exactly what kind of 'research' has been stolen. And there are witnesses who say they saw both of you in the lab. A sob escaped from between Tatiana's fingers, and the officer's