The Harvest (40 page)

“We don’t have a choice,” Dr. Blain added,
firmness in her tone that he’d never heard before. “You have to
trust us.”

After his interaction with the soldier in the
escape pod, Shane wasn’t certain who he could believe. Rescuing
Kelly was everything to him, and he’d sign with the devil if that
was what it took. In hindsight, much of the alien’s story didn’t
make sense. For now, he had to side with the rebels. Even if they
were the enemy, he’d use them until he guaranteed Kelly’s
safety.

“Will we be able to get her back?” he
asked.

“There’s a good chance, yes.”

“A good chance?” Anger flashed in him.

“They’ll suspect a tainted harvest,” Jones
growled, sounding impatient. He was standing on the other side of
the dimly lit room, which had no windows and only one old, wooden
door. It smelled dank and earthy, probably underground. The
captain’s worried gaze changed to angry frustration. “The Anunnaki
will find them if we don’t do this.”

Shane looked at each of the people in the
room. Both the rebels and Tracy and Steve’s faces said they’d
already debated over this while he was out. They’d decided it was
the right thing to do. He was surprised they were even asking him,
though it did give him more faith that the rebels could be
trusted.

“I’ve made the connection,” Lily said
excitedly. “Everyone’s earbud except Kelly’s has been
deactivated.”

“Shane,” Dr. Blain urged. “We don’t have
time.”

“Do it,” he said, afraid of losing her
forever.

Lily nodded and returned her attention to the
computer. Shane looked at Steve, whose brow was heavy with concern.
Then he glanced at Tracy, grateful his friends were alive. She
returned his gaze, her eyes expressing the same heartache he was
enduring.

“We will get them back, Shane,” she said,
sounding so determined that it fanned the little flame of hope
still burning in his heart.

“You’re right,” he replied, his voice growing
steady. “We will.”

The End

I want to thank my wife Amanda, who reads
everything I write and cheers me on through the joys and
tribulations of being a writer. Thanks to Emily and Logan, my
beautiful children, who constantly remind me that we are born with
imagination abound, that we just have to remember to listen to our
inner child and creativity will come naturally.

Thanks to the amazing Clean Teen Publishing
team. From the first interaction I had with you, I knew I was
dealing with a rising star in the publishing industry. Thanks
Rebecca Gober, Marya Heiman, and Courtney Nuckels. And thanks to
Cynthia Shepp, my editor, who found a home for orphaned commas,
ironed out confusing sentences, and was always there, tirelessly
helping with edits to the last detail.

Thanks to Jennifer Anne Davis, my writing
partner from the beginning and my friend of many years. I am happy
to follow in your footsteps and learn from your persistence and
unwillingness to settle for anything short of success. And thanks
to Celso who had the patience to see past the crudeness of my rough
drafts and offered enthusiastic encouragement. Also thanks to the
beta readers at Clean Teen Publishing and Melanie Newton and the
Clean Teen Publishing Street Team for reading and promoting my
book—you are integral to the success of all CTP writers.

Born at the end of the Vietnam War and raised
on a horse farm near small town north Georgia, N.W. Harris’s
imagination evolved under the swaying pines surrounding his
family’s log home. On summer days that were too hot, winter days
that were too cold, and every night into the wee morning hours, he
read books.

N.W. Harris published his first
novel—Joshua’s Tree—in 2013. It was no wonder, with his wild
imagination and passion for all things word related, that N.W.
Harris was named a quarter finalist in Amazon’s Break Through Novel
Award Contest. In early 2014, N.W. Harris joined the ranks with
Clean Teen Publishing when they signed his new young adult
apocalyptic adventure series—The Last Orphans.

In addition to writing, N.W. Harris has been
a submarine sailor, a corpsman, and business owner. His studies
have included biology, anthropology, and medicine at UCSB and SUNY
Buffalo. He is an active member of SCBWI and lives in sunny
southern California with his beautiful wife and two perfect
children. He writes like he reads, constantly.

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If you enjoyed The Harvest by N.W.
Harris, we recommend you check out Wind Warrior by Jon Messenger.
The first book is currently FREE!

THE EARTH GIVES WAY TO THE SEA,

THE SEA BOWS BEFORE THE WIND,

THE WIND FEEDS THE FLAME,

THE FLAME BURNS THE WORLD OF MAN DOWN TO THE
EARTH.

The sleepy town of White Halls harbors a
dangerous secret. On a picturesque street, two houses down from a
lovely little park, in a quaint little home with a wraparound
porch, lives a family that seems rather normal. Sure, their
twenty-year-old son, Xander, still lives at home, but he’s going to
college and dating the leader of the schools top sorority. It’s all
very… normal. However, when a man is miraculously saved from being
hit by a bus, Xander’s life turns in to the living embodiment of
the tornadoes he can suddenly create with a flick of his wrist.
Whether he wants this gift or not, Xander must learn to use his new
‘super power’ quickly if he wants to survive. For his kind is a
dying race, and when this sleepy town has a sudden influx of new,
blonde, fire wielders, no one is safe, especially Xander. It
doesn’t help that one of these blondes happens to be the most
beautiful girl he has ever seen. Xander can’t deny the instant
connection he feels to her so, when she tries to kill him, it
certainly makes things complicated.