Sovereign: The First Chapter Read online

turned around and knocked me away. The tongue wrapped around my leg and dragged me closer to it. My leg 

  burned as the tongue was coated with what felt like acid. My father must have noticed this and cut the creature's tongue off. 

  The monster squealed and pushed my father away. He bumped into me and I fell through the window onto our lawn below. My father looked out from the window. I saw the look in his eyes. It didn't see hate, I saw love and hope. Then he was pulled back in by the monster. I turned my head and saw police lights before blacking out. 

  I woke up inside of a police station filled with survivors. My head was pounding and my leg was bandaged. I looked around and saw soldiers running through the halls. I tried to sit up, but I collapsed back into my bed. There was something jabbing me in the side, so I reached into my jacket and pulled it out. I still had the severed claw. 

  I'm alive right now thanks to my father. He had given up his life twice to save mine. I just hope he didn’t die in vain. I thought today would be just another ordinary day. But, everything changed. I have hope that one day, I will avenge my parents. And kill all those things that came from the forest. That they'll feel the same pain that my parents felt. I hope that we will cross paths again. And when we do, I will be stronger.

  Family First 

  I sit at my desk contemplating what's left of my life. Taking a glimpse out of my penthouse window, I wonder. What's a life worth living if you can’t live it with your loved ones? Someone knocks on my office door. "Victoria, cancel all of my appointments today. I'm not in the mood for it now." Out walks Rex Brighten, the owner of every pharmaceutical company in the world. He struts in arrogantly, wearing his signature white suit. 

  "Christopher Hall, I don't pay my presidents to sit and lounge all day. But given the circumstances, I'll make an exception." He extends his hand out. 

  I stand and make my way around my desk, "My apologies, Mr. Brighten, I've been a bit troubled lately." I reach to give him a handshake. 

  He pulls away and gives me a stern look. "No, Mr. Hall I must apologize, where are my manners? You've lost your family in a horrific car accident and I waltz in judging your work 

  performance. Please accept my condolences." He grabs my hand and then pulls out a baby wipe to cleanse his. 

  I swallow my pride and mutter, "I appreciate your gratitude, sir. However, I must ask about your reason for coming. I can't imagine you came here just to tell me that." 

  "Well, Chris I've been having a few problems lately and I was hoping you would be of use to me." 

  My chair squeaks as I take a seat, "Sure, go ahead." 

  "My home was broken into a few days ago and some of my personal belongings were taken. Would you know anything about that?" 

  "No sir, but you have made a lot of enemies in your career. You put thousands of companies out of business when you took over a few years ago. Any of those people would have a reason for it." 

  Brighten walks toward one of my windows, "I suppose, but there's one problem. Only a few people in this company know where I live." 

  I jump from my seat, "Mr. Brighten, you can't be implying that I had something to do with this burglary!" 

  "No, not at all Mr. Hall," he snickers. "You wouldn't have a reason to do that. I've made you the president of the Eastern regions of the United States. You wouldn't betray me, would you?" 

  "Of course not. I've dedicated my life to this company, I've given everything to make RexCorp successful." 

  "I know, Mr. Hall. You spend a lot of your free time trying to help the company. Especially with all the various emails you send, trying to partner up with other businesses." 

  He walks towards me with a sinister look in his eye. "Mr. Hall, two weeks ago you sent an email to an unknown source. A day later, my house gets broken into and all of my research is missing." 

  "I can understand your reason for being cautious Mr. Brighten." 

  "No, let me finish. I didn’t believe someone as smart as you would underestimate my ability. I check the security tapes and I see you snooping through my personal files. And inside those files were my plans for the next era of this company." 

  I get up from my seat, "The next era? Is that what you call it? You want to poison millions of innocent people just so you can make more money!" 

  He chuckles, "Mr. Hall, you must understand it's not just the money. It's the power that I need. I make the decisions that others fear to make. I do this to ensure a better future for this world." 

  "You're psychotic, Brighten. And sooner or later, someone is going to find out what you're trying to do." I make my way to the door. 

  Rex starts clapping, "Bravo Mr. Hall, go on ahead. Be the hero, save the world." I open the door and before I exit, Rex says, "If you leave you'll never know about Amiyah and Angel." 

  I turn around, "What?" 

  "Oh, did I forget to mention that? Your daughters, Angel and Amiyah have been staying with Uncle Rex for a while." 

  "But, my family died in that car crash last week. I saw the bodies!" 

  "You saw bodies, Mr. Hall. Just not those of your daughters'." Brighten smirks. 

  "They're alive? Are you saying that my girls survived the crash?" 

  "Yes, they did. And when you're wealthy and powerful, you can tell anyone what to do. The medics, the cops, the reporters, they all work for RexCorp eventually." 

  "You planned all of this." 

  "I had to make sure. I didn't want my secrets spilling out from your mouth." 

  I walk over to him and push him against the wall, "Rex, where are you keeping my girls?" 

  "I told you, they're in my home. But, you'd better keep your hands off me Hall. I don't want you to do something that you'll regret." I release him and he adjusts his tie and wipes the dust from his suit. 

  "Rex, what do you want?" 

  Rex pulls out a suppressed pistol from his jacket. "I don't like loose ends, Mr. Hall." He places his gun on the table next to him. "I'm going to leave, and my security is going to come back here in a few minutes. When they enter this room, the RexCorp president of the Eastern regions will be dead. They'll retrieve the weapon and you can spend eternity with your dead wife." 

  "Rex, you're sick!" 

  "And if you aren't, Angel and Amiyah, will suffer. And I'll tell them that their dear old daddy didn’t care about them enough to save them." Brighten exits the office. I take a seat and contemplate my options. 

  A few moments pass as I struggle for a way to save my girls. I won't let him take them from me again. If I must die, so that my daughters can live, I'll gladly accept my fate. A guard walks into the room. I put the gun to my head. 

  "Hurry up, I don't have all day," the guard barks at me. 

  "Can you at least tell my daughters something for me?" 

  "I'll ask Mr. Brighten when you're done. What is it?" 

  I point the gun back at the guard and shoot him. "Daddy's coming."

  Thank you for reading my very first book. It’s been a long journey and it means a lot that you took the time out to read my work. If you liked it, please feel free to leave a review at your favorite retailer.

  -Mark