Extended Excerpt-Child of War-Rising Son

The following is from Chapter Twenty-Two; Into the Night of the upcoming

Child of War-Rising Son

Child of War-Rising Son
Book #3 in the OF WAR Series
by Lisa Beth Darling
Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved

Slowly she turned to look back to the door but she was too short to see over the top of the SUV. Pump in hand, she bent to look through the windows of the car instead but saw nothing. Maybe the door hadn’t shut all the way behind her or maybe the night breeze caught the corner.

“Dawdee! Dawdee!” Rose started yelling inside the car in an excited voice. “Dawdee!”

“Dawd…dog? A dog?” Leaving the pump in the neck of the gas tank, she sprinted around to the front of the car where she saw a large husky approaching the passenger door. “Hey boy,” she said softly but when the dog turned its head toward her she backed up. Once it had probably been the most pampered of pampered pooches, the perfect house mate for a lonely old man, but now its’ once soft fur was matted. It was clumped with dirt and drying blood. Its’ beautiful soft blue eyes were hazy as they settled on her.

Alena didn’t know if it was rabid or turned feral or just hungry or if it contracted Major Falls and she didn’t care. “Get out of here! Go! Get!” Alena demanded. The dog bared its sharp teeth showing her they were tinged with blood as its upper lip quivered and then it leapt at her. No sound. No warning. Before she could try to defend herself it was on her knocking her to the hard ground with its jaws snapping searching for her throat.

Alena brought her left arm up to shield her face and neck while she grabbed at the dog with her right. Its teeth sank deep into her forearm while its sharp claws dug in at her hips. Its breath was hot and rancid as it ripping through the arm of the RED SOX sweatshirt and then chewed through her flesh looking for the even tendered meat at her throat. Heedless of the pain shooting through her, Alena pushed up and away with her arm throbbing in the dog’s dripping teeth and got a hold of the thick matted fur between its ear and neck. Bringing her knees up, planting them under its chest, she kicked the large dog off sending it flying backward. Alena scrambled to her feet to stare it down holding her left arm back while blood pooled on the ground next to her.

“Dawdee! No dawdee!” Rose screamed as she struggled to get out of her seat but was held fast by the safety belt.

The dog’s ears pricked up, it seemed to smile a cold grin, then it took off for the open hatch.

“NO!” Alena called the staff from the car to her hand as she chased after the feral animal. Summoning up a hot burst of air she let it fly from the tip but it only caught the husky’s hind leg making it skitter as it rounded the corner and jumped into the SUV knocking over precious bottles of Coke as it went. It leapt over the rear seat as it headed for the baby. “Rose!”

The little girl strapped into the seat holding on her to new teddy bear was taken by surprise and she curled up in a protective ball as she started to cry.

Alena, afraid to left a burst of magick fly in such a confined area and risk hurting Rose did the only thing she could think of, she jumped into the back of the car and grabbed it by the tail. She pulled on it as hard as she could until the husky let out a howl of pain and turned toward its captor looking for freedom at the point of its canines. Its jaws snapped and its sharp claws shredded her forearm as she wrestled with the beast trying to pull it out of the car. “Get away from her!”

Outside once more the big dog crashed to the ground with a heavy thud. Alena let go of its tail and began beating it with the sturdy staff before pointing it at the dog and letting a strong burst of wind fly. The wounded dog slid along the hard packed dirt a several feet before Alena whipped a whirlwind lifting it into the air where it began scrambling. Its legs ran in the air in a comical fashion as it yelped and cried while it spun around faster caught up in the funnel of the dust devil. Raising the staff like a baseball bat she swung it forward sending the small powerful tornado and its sole inhabitant off across the desert sands.

Alena jumped into the back of the SUV, nearly flew over the seat, and took Rose’s wet face up in her hands. “You all right, sweetheart?”

Sobbing heavily Rose held her arms out to her Mother, who, in turn, rocked her gently while he covered her forehead with kisses of reassurance. “Bad dawdee!”

“Very bad but it’s ok now, you’re safe, Mommy won’t let anything happen to you, Rosie.” Another few kisses and Alena pulled away to climb out of the SUV and slam the hatch. Ripping the nozzle out the gas tank while she looked around for any sign of the dog she twisted the cap tight and hopped in behind the wheel to shut and locked the doors while she rolled up the windows. With her heart thundering in her chest, she looked down at Rose who looked back through tear-stained eyes.

“Mama ‘rong.” Rose raised her little arms in the air and flexed her little muscles. “Wooo.”

“Thanks,” Alena replied shoving the key into the slot and pushing the START button, turned on the lights, and watched the gas gauge top out at over the FULL mark. Taking another long look at her Daughter to be sure Rose was unharmed she put the pedal to the metal and peeled out of the vacant store’s parking lot.

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