p style="margin-bottom: 0cm;" /p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Chapter One./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Jim Shannon beamed his torch from gutters to roofs, windows and doors, searching for any sign of a disturbance along the narrow streets of Terra Nova./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Beside him, Commander Taylor walked straight and silent, his eyes a perpetual pendulum, his hand never straying from the gun holstered at his hip./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Only minutes ago, they'd arrived back at the barracks to find an anonymous note pinned to the door. The message had been short. Simple, yet odd./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"I did it on Williams Street./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;""Did what?" Jim Shannon had asked as he scanned the note a second time. The words looked to be cut from the pages of a book, stuck to the slip of paper with still damp splotches of glue./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Taylor had furrowed his brow and scratched his beard thoughtfully. "Probably just some teenagers idea of a prank." He said, taking the note and studying it./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;""Do you want to check it out?" Jim asked./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Taylor nodded. "Storm's coming in. I'll get Wash to check the towers, maybe someone saw something."/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"And so they'd headed out into the thunderous night, the warm air swirling around them like the words of the note in their head. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"A heavy feeling had settled in Jim's stomach as they'd entered Williams street. Was it really just a teenagers idea of a prank? Most people in Terra Nova were good people. People who were grateful for the second chance Hope Plaza had given them. But occasionally, the greed and destruction they'd all left behind in 2149 reared it's ugly head here in the past too. Only last year, Terra Nova's first murder had been committed.../span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;""Shannon."/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Jim followed Taylor's hand and aimed his light across the street. Number 11. It's door gaped open, light pooling out into the windswept dirt. Even from here, they could make out the scracthed lock and splintered paint./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Taylor had his gun drawn before they crossed the street./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Jim drew his as they entered the house. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Bathroom to the left. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Living area to the right./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"All the lights on./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Kitchen right ahead./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Large, grotesque shadows followed their every move./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Why was it so quiet?/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Who lived here?/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Commander Taylor saw her first. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Jim heard his boss's breath catch, a split second of hesitation before he motioned to Jim to continue checking the house./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Jim caught only a brief glance as he walked through the kitchen but it was all he needed to know what the note had meant./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Bare feet. Skirt around her thighs. Bruises on her waist./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"I did it on Williams Street. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"emHe/em did it on Williams Street./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"And he'd done it to Evie Danvers. Sweet, sensitive, Evie, who'd come through on the twelfth pilgrimage 3 months ago and started Terra Nova's first library./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Shy, kind, Evie Danvers, who right now, lay bloodied and bruised, face down on her kitchen floor with Commander Taylor already leaning over her to look for a pulse./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"As Jim Shannon exited the kitchen and headed for the bedroom, a thousand silent curses echoed through his head./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"br /br /p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Chapter 2./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She was freezing. It was the only thought she could think as she lay there on the hard floor., unable to move./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Somewhere in the distance she could hear footsteps. Moments later, a calloused hand was touching her neck, feeling for something. A pulse! They were checking for a pulse. Did they think she was dead? She tried to say something but the hot dry tunnel her throat had become allowed only a hoarse cry to escape./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;""span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"It's alright ma'am." Came the soft reply. She recognised the voice of Commander Taylor. Only he didn't sound like the Commander Taylor she knew. He sounded unusually kind and patient. Not at all like when he was running around barking orders or shooting dinosaurs or leading Terra Nova through the dawn of a new civilisation. In all the three months since she'd arrived she hadn't said anything but hello to the man. He kind of frightened her. He was too confident. The sort of person that always knew what to say and just how to say it. The sort of man that could beat pretty much every other man in a fight. He was powerful. Not that she'd ever seen him abuse his power of course, but the potential was there all the same. And it frightened her./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Something warm that smelt vaguely of leather and sweat was placed over her back. His jacket. He'd put his jacket on her. Now he was pulling her skirt back down over her knees. Now he was gently rolling her into the recovery position and zipping his jacket closed to cover her up./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She tried to open her eyes. She wanted to thank him for his kindness and say she was sorry for thinking he was nothing but a scary soldier. But her eyes refused to open./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"More footsteps. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;""span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Is she alright?" It was Jim Shannon./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She strained to listen to their voices through the ringing in her ears./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She could sense Taylor still crouched over her but his voice sounded far away. "Radio for a medical team, make sure your wife is among them. And get Wash over here."/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"The footsteps retreated. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"A steady hand held something soft to her nose, dabbing carefully. "It's going to be alright Evie." The Commander's voice rumbled quietly over her. "You're going to be just fine."/span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She could feel the blood dripping out of her nostrils. She knew it wasn't the only part of her that was bleeding. A gash over her eyebrow had welded her eyelids shut with dry blood and through the pounding in her head, she could feel the distant throb of her left wrist, the ache in her legs and cramping in her stomach. She couldn't think about the other places that hurt. Maybe she wouldn't need to tell anyone. Maybe, if she just pretended she was ok, then nobody would need to know. Yes. That's what she'd do. As soon as she got out of this fog she'd tell everyone she was perfectly fine and everything would go back to normal./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Footsteps sounded again. Several sets. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"Commander Taylor retreated and two warm, feminine bodies replaced him. /span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"The kind voice of Elizabeth Shannon assured her she was safe, while the skillful hands of Leuitenant Washington pulled a blanket over her cold limbs./span/span/p
p lang="en" style="margin-bottom: 0.35cm; line-height: 115%;"span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"span style="font-size: xx-small;"She wanted to thank the ladies too. She wanted to hug them for being so considerate, so kind, so gentle. But all that she could manage was hot tears that escaped from under her fused eyelids and melded with the blood on her kitchen floor./span/span/p