Chasing A Spectre (War for Dominance Book 0) (4 page)

“But I didn’t
do
anything!” the Spectre wailed. “I really didn’t!”

“You can stop the denials,” Milos said with a laugh. “I know you didn’t do anything.” He pulled a small mirror out of his bag and gazed into it, saying something that the Spectre strained to hear, but couldn’t. The Spectre recoiled in horror as
Milos’ face melted, the flesh turning liquid and rearranging itself according to some predetermined pattern unknown to him. The result was sinister to behold.

“But, but, but, if you knew I didn’t do it, why didn’t you tell them?” asked the Spectre, his brain refusing to accept what his eyes had just seen.

“That wouldn’t have been very smart,” Milos replied, patting his face into place as it hardened, “since I was the one that really
did
take them.” He got up. “That reminds me.”

Milos walked out onto the balcony and pulled a handful of shelled peanuts from a pocket. Placing them on the table, he waved over the railing. Within seconds, a flock of crows flew in and started feeding. “Thank you for bringing those things up for me,” he said, stroking the one closest to him.

“So you are just using me to take the blame?” asked the Spectre as Milos returned to the room.

“Of course I am,” replied Milos. “You are as stupid as those other two fools. They got so excited to see the crown that they will take it back to our world and destroy their one way of coming back here before they realize it’s a fake. You’re helping me start my new life.”

“But, didn’t they do some sort of spell or something to see if the crown was stolen?”

“Of course they did,” replied Milos. “They checked it the same way they always do, which is why I had the forgery made out of the gold and gems that I had stolen previously. It glowed like it was stolen by me, because it
was
stolen by me...just not from the time and the place they thought it was.” He pulled a crown from his bag. The gems shone with an internal light and brilliance that the other crown didn’t have. Milos smiled. The queen’s crown was more valuable than anything he had ever seen or held. Not only was it worth a fortune, Milos knew that it also held a significance that dwarfed its monetary value.

Milos’
laugh was gleeful and maniacal at the same time, leading the Spectre to believe that the person he was dealing with was not entirely balanced. He didn’t like where that led his thinking.

“
Wha...what are you going to do with me?” he asked.

“With you?”
asked Milos with a laugh as he walked over to gaze at his reflection in the mirror on the dresser. He pulled a chair over and reached forward to adjust something on the mirror. “Nothing. You are trivial to my plans. No one in my world knows you exist, and no one in this world will believe you if you tell them about me.”

The Spectre knew he was right. Anyone that came in and saw him chained to the floor would think that it was some sort of sexual tryst gone
bad, not a case of inter-dimensional theft and recovery. He could never tell anyone about this; they would lock him away forever. “But what about you?” he asked. “What are you going to do?”

Milos smiled as he stepped up onto the chair. “What am I going to do?” he asked. “Anything I want to.” He stepped through the mirror and was gone.

# # # # #

The following is an

Can’t Look Back

___________________

Chris Kennedy

Available from Chris Kennedy Publishing

November
, 2014

eBook
and Paperback

A stranger in an even stranger land...

John rolled onto his back. Some of the aches and pains eased; others intensified. His head cleared a little, to the point that he realized the buzzing noise in his head was someone snoring. He rolled a little further and saw that there was a man asleep on some sort of no-frills bed. It was nothing more than a couple of thin blankets over a wooden frame, and it looked less comfortable than anything John had ever slept on in his life. The only thing it had going for it was that it was better finished than everything else in view; the snoring man
might
not wake up full of splinters.

John levered himself onto an elbow, nearly passing out with the increased pain. Slowly the blackness faded back to the edges of his vision, allowing him to see again. The light level in the room grew as a cloud passing in front of the moon passed. Moonlight shone through the window, glinting off the blade of a very large sword leaning up against the
head of the bed. It looked ready to use at a moment’s notice...like if the occupant of the bed woke up and found a stranger in his room.

He needed to leave and he needed to do it now.

* * * * *

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Chris Kennedy is a former aviator with over 3,000 hours flying attack and reconnaissance aircraft for the United States Navy, including many missions supporting U.S. Special Forces. He has also been an elementary school principal and has enjoyed 18 seasons as a softball coach. He is currently working as
 an Instructional Systems Designer for the Navy.

Titles by Chris Kennedy:

“Red Storm: The Chinese Invasion of Seattle” – Available Now

“Occupied Seattle” – Available Now

“Janissaries: Book One of The Theogony” – Available Now

“When the Gods Aren’t Gods: Book Two of The Theogony” – Available Now

“Terra Stands Alone: Book Three of The Theogony” – Available Now

* * * * *

Connect with Chris Kennedy Online:

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/chriskennedypublishing.biz

Blog:
http://chriskennedypublishing.com/

Twitter:
@ChrisKennedy110

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