Terra Nova (The Variant Conspiracy Book 3) by Christine Hart Page A

here?” Melissa looked to Josh for the answer.
    “I’m starving. We’re going for dinner,” said Faith flatly.
    “There’s a pub across the street.” Cole pointed at an awning with faded letters.
    “Are you sure that’s actually a pub? That’s open for business?” Jonah squinted at the door and a man in a newsboy cap exited.
    “It’ll do.” Cole started toward the pub and the others followed him.
    “You guys go ahead. I’ll catch up,” I said.
    Jonah took my hand and smiled. I was glad he wanted to stay. Unless I was lying in bed, I felt safer checking out of reality for the length of a vision with someone around to watch my back.
    I walked through the red brick ruins, now totally under the shadow of the office building down the street. I found the altar where I had seen Ivan, my father, place his hand and get possessed by what I could only assume was the essence of a long dead alien monster.
    My hand hovered over the crumbling stone altar for a moment. I hadn’t specifically told anyone how Ivan had picked up his inner demon. If I told Jonah now, he wouldn’t let me touch it. But, it would spark a vision. It would reveal something awesome, something amazing, wouldn’t it?
    I stared at the stone. Who are you? Where did you come from? Why here? Why us?
    I touched the cold limestone slab. Nothing happened. I wanted to cry out like Faith. Instead, I let tears roll freely down my cheeks. My voice shook. “This altar was supposed to have the answers.”
    “This is where you saw Ivan and your mother?”
    “That thing, however it got into him, it happened here.” “Maybe you should take your hand off that stone now.” Jonah’s protective instincts didn’t disappoint.
    I complied reluctantly and let him lead me across the street and into the pub. It was mostly empty so we saw our friends right away.
    The entire establishment stayed silent, focused unwaveringly on the television screen behind the bar. The volume had been turned up so we could all hear the newscast.
    “BBC correspondent Janine Knight is on location in nearby Shanghai. Janine can you tell us exactly what is happening out on the Taihu Lake right now?” said the anchorman. The screen split between the anchor sitting behind his desk and a woman in front of a government building holding a microphone.
    “Well, Roger, I can tell you that this disaster is very far from being contained,” said Janine hurriedly. “Chinese officials disclosed that a plastic manufacturing facility and a nuclear power plant both suffered small fires earlier this morning, not successfully contained. What is making this disaster so frightening is that two nearby wind-farms on the shore of Taihu Lake, one near each fire site, have somehow funneled the toxic fumes and radioactive fallout into an air current broadcasting poison out into the open ocean. If it continues at this rate, evacuation orders will be issued for the entire south coast of Japan. The attempts to evacuate Greater Shanghai have come to a virtual standstill on major highways. Air and sea evacuation efforts are ongoing, but hospitals continue to overflow with people sick and dying faster than authorities can move people out. I myself am going to have to evacuate after this broadcast.”
    “That is heartbreaking and terrifying, Janine. Has there been no attempt to shut off the wind turbines of each of the farms directing the deadly fumes?”
    “Officials have been desperately trying to coordinate with a company called Jinhua Energy, a subsidiary of Jinhua Enterprises, but the representatives of the wind-farms insist they could not possibly be responsible for the deadly air current. The next step will be for the Chinese government to take military action to shut down the wind-farms. It’s a devastating step when China has been making so much progress in moving to green energy sources. But, that’s all I have time for, Roger. I’m getting the signal that it’s time for me to board a