Read Dark Creations: Hell on Earth (Part 5) for Free Online Page B

hands.  He allowed his cradled head to drop forward until his elbows rested on his knees.  He felt a small hand sweep across the fabric of his dress shirt and knew by her touch that Melissa had joined him on the couch.  She rubbed his back again then squeezed his shoulder gently.  He looked up and was met with her pale green eyes.
    “You know more about him than I do, know what he’s capable of,” Jack said.  “That’s why I’m here.  We need your help.  I need your help.”
    He, like Yoshi, wanted no part of going, but he also knew that he didn’t really have a choice, if what Jack said was true, Terzini had to be stopped now, before it was too late.
    “I’ll go,” Gabriel said.  “Yoshi and I will go, but the two of you are staying here where it’s safe,” he said to Melissa and Alexandra.
    “You’re not going anywhere without me,” Melissa said, her tone leaving no room for argument of any kind.
    Melissa was not the kind of person who would hit him over the head with her opinions or feelings.  She did not need to storm around to punctuate her point.  But Alexandra was, and judging from the furious expression on her face, Gabriel knew a blustery wind was about to blow.
    “What the fuck, you two assholes think you’re leaving us behind?” Alexandra s houted, and turned toward Yoshi. “Is that what you were talking about back there?” she surprised Gabriel by saying.
    “Look Alex, I love you, and I’m not going to risk your life again,” Yoshi began in a calm voice, but was quickly cut off.
    “Who the hell do you think you are telling me where I’m going to go, or what I’m going to do? Planning it in the other room without us like you have any damn say in the matter is bullshit!  We are going and I don’t want to hear another word about it,” Alexandra fumed with finality.
    He and Yoshi knew Melissa and Alexandra would be difficult to convince, but neither had imagined they’d react as strongly as they were. 
    “The girls can stay at the base.  They will be safe there,” Jack assured them and Gabriel looked to Yoshi who shook his head and rolled his eyes. 
    Thanks Jack!  So much for leaving the girls home , Gabriel thought. 
    “I’m going , too,” Daniella said and Gabriel opened his mouth to speak, to tell her that there was no way he was risking yet another of his friend’s lives, but Alexandra spoke first.
    “This isn’t a trip to the Bahamas, Daniella,” Alexandra said flatly.  “When we were in California, I was nearly raped and killed.  All of us were nearly killed.  This is not some fun-filled adventure.”
    “Yeah, kids.  You’re not the Scooby Doo crew planning your next spooky adventure.  This shit is real,” Jack chimed in.
    “You think I don’t know that? ”  Daniella snapped.  “You think I wasn’t listening when all of you told me about what happened?  I was.  And I wish I could have helped somehow.  Now I can.  And I will.  I know the risks.  I know what we’re up against.”
    “Do you?” Melissa asked. 
    “I do,” Daniella answered.
    “You’re not going alone,” Ryan surprised everyone by saying in a voice that was no longer soft spoken as it had been in the past.  “I’m coming with you, if for no other reason than to make sure you come back.”
    “I guess we are the Scooby Doo crew then,” Jack mumbled, but no one , other than Gabriel, acted as though they’d heard him.
    Gabriel watched as Daniella’s eyes welled with emotion.  She turned to Ryan and allowed herself to be swallowed by his barrel chest and thick arms.  He wished they would all abandon the notion of coming along, wished they’d abandon him, for their own good.  But they would not.  Their loyalty to him, though treasured, felt undeserved.  Much like Melissa’s love and devotion felt undeserved.  He wondered how a being such as him, created in defiance of nature by an egomaniac, had managed to earn the friendship and allegiance of so many,