Elemental Moon: The Eldritch Files, Book Three Read Online Free PDF Page A

before that. And I'll swear to it in front of a judge."
    Prescott sighed. "Miss Hawthorne, either you move and let this man take the wolf, or I will do my damnedest to put that man back in jail again." She pointed at Ivan. He looked stricken.
    "You getting all this, Kyle?"
    Everyone looked to their right where Kyle was recording the entire event on his phone. He smiled as he moved back to get a wider shot. "Yeah I am. Especially the threats of trumped up charges."
    If the threat of being filmed upset Prescott, she didn't show it. But her expression did shift from anger to something like angry concern as she approached me. I stood my ground because if she was going to attack me, I wanted it on YouTube.
    "Sam…" Prescott's voice rose in something akin to panic. "What the hell happened to you?" She reached out and pulled at my jacket.
    Oh no…the bite! I realized at that moment she was seeing in good lighting something I'd only glimpsed at in bad lighting. I tried to pull back from her but she grabbed my jacket at the same time, which exposed Bastien's handy work. I could only imagine what she was seeing and did an inner cringe when I realized this wasn't going to help my case and strengthen hers.
    "Did that wolf do this?"
    "No." I jerked away from her. I had to think of something fast. Something that would stop them from looking at my mom.
    Prescott glared at me. "I order you to tell me what bit you and where you were."
    "No."
    The captain turned to one of the uniformed officers. "Jameson, take Miss Hawthorne into custody."
    I could have hugged him when the young man in the uniform hesitated. "Ma'am?"
    "You heard me. Arrest Miss Hawthorne."
    "He needs to know why, Captain," I said as I tried to suppress the knot in my stomach. The night's anger, frustration, rage, irritation, surprise, fear—it was all coalescing into this mass of interconnecting bands that were being stretched to their breaking point. This insufferable woman thought she could just walk up to someone in their place of business and arrest them?
    With no cause?
    When Prescott didn't press the stupid order, I figured I had her on that. Her people knew their job. They were there to kidnap a wolf, not arrest the owner.
    "Lloyd, get the wolf."
    "No." I stepped in front of Grey. My stomach churned. I felt the heat of the mark on my chest and the bite on my shoulder. "You're not taking my dog."
    "Samuel," Prescott pointed to the man with the rifle. "Tranquilize the damn wolf. Now ."
    My chest was on fire and the burn spread down my spine, into my arms and hands, through my legs to my feet and ignited that ball of emotion in my stomach. I thought bad things as the periphery of my vision started to burn and curl like the edges of parchment paper tossed into a flame. I zeroed in on the guy with the rifle. I wanted him to burn. I wanted him to explode into a million pieces over and over again until he was utterly destroyed.
    No! Samantha, please! Don't give in!
    Every fountain in the shop exploded at once. The place turned into a war zone for a few seconds as water, ceramic shrapnel and plants shot through the air. Everyone ducked down as something popped and I felt someone knock me backwards. I lay on my back as every muscle in my body locked. I couldn't move my arms, kick my legs or even turn my head. I could see Arcane glittering red all around me. It filled my lungs, cut into my flesh and burrowed into my eyes. I fought to get air into my lungs as my back arched and I realized— I'm having a seizure!
    "Someone call an ambulance!"
    "Shoot it now!"
    I heard the thufp of the tranquilizer gun. I heard Kyle yelling something and I felt Grey on top of me. Mom was talking to me. Telling me it was going to be okay, that this was what happened when I kept building power and didn't release it. I didn't know what she was talking about as I looked into her beautiful face. She rested her head on my chest and I could move my arms and I put them around her. She was warm and I