Seed of Evil by Greig Beck (smart books to read TXT) 📗

Johnson Nightbird grunted softly, and then turned back to the smoking shaft. “But it was me that called him to save Eldon.” He faced her. “And you.”

Karen wiped her eyes and stared back at the mineshaft. The flames were dying down, but there was still an orange glow coming from deep down in the mine’s throat that made it look like the entrance to Hell.

“Thank you, Mitch,” she whispered. “Thank you for saving us.”

EPILOGUE

Minneapolis, Minnesota – Population 453,325

“What have we got here? Desmond Morrison was President of Landers Supermarket Chain that had stores in every state, bar Alaska. And he was working on that.”

He looked at the crate of emerald green bottles—Eldon Spring Water—Super Health Tonic was printed on the label in stylized green calligraphy and blazed across images of a crystal-clear lake, waterfall, and trees with colorful birds. Eye catching, he thought.

Danny Barker lifted a bottle free and cradled it in his hand. “It’s the next big thing, and free samples for our new customers. It tastes great and contains no caffeine, sugar, or artificial flavorings. Natural mineral-infused water from the pristine underground lakes of Eldon. With just a hint of lemon zest.” He held it out. “Try it.”

Desmond eyed him suspiciously for a moment and then took it, twisted the cap off, and sniffed. He seemed to approve as he tilted it to his lips and firstly sipped, but then kept going until half was gone.

Danny worked to suppress his shark-smile as he knew he had him. In sales, it was called getting the prospect to take ownership.

“We’re only doing 100,000 units per day, so numbers are limited for now.” He shrugged. “It’s a little more expensive than our usual products, but I think you’ll agree it’s well worth it.”

Desmond lowered the bottle and looked at the label for a moment more. “The next big thing, huh?”

“Bigger than goji berries and coconut water combined. And only available from Eldon Spring Water Company.” He grinned and waited.

“Volume discount?” Desmond raised his chin.

Danny’s face became serious. “Not really, but for you, I can knock off two percent if you take 10,000.”

“Five,” Desmond countered.

Danny shook his head. “Demand is already too high; three percent, best I can do. And that’s only if you take 15,000 units.”

Desmond eyeballed him for a moment, but then stuck his hand out. “Done. Organize the paperwork.”

“You got it.” Danny gave him a firm I-mean-business handshake. Truth was, he’d closed every deal today with the new drink. It was proving a big mover, and the test run they’d done in the hometown of Eldon had shown an overwhelming approval rating. Eat your heart out, Candy Cola, he thought.

“I want it on the shelves first thing Monday morning.” Desmond got to his feet. “Let’s make everyone in the country as healthy as they are in Eldon.”

“That’s the plan,” Danny replied, as he surreptitiously scratched at the strange pebbly rash on his arm.

END

Read on for a free sample of The Cavern

Chapter One

Rope zipped through Jim’s carabiner with a high-pitched whine as he abseiled down the rock wall, bouncing out one last time before hitting the ground with a thud to join his wife. Ancient limestone walls surrounded him, smooth and dry to the touch. He glanced up at the shaft’s opening, thirty metres above. Discovered in the Australian Outback by a farmer barely three weeks ago, the near perfect circle of blue sky marked the only known access to the cave system. A twenty-metre wide sink-hole had broken through into the ceiling of a limestone cavern, granting access to a previously hidden world, unseen by any human eye.

Jim unclipped his harness and peered into the gloom for his wife. He spotted Beth on the far side of the main shaft, shining her torch down a tunnel branching off to the south. He zipped up the front of his coveralls against the cool subterranean air, and began to pick his way across the rubble strewn ground.

Beth’s eyes were bright as she turned to meet him. “I can’t believe we’re the cave’s first explorers!”

“A bloody expensive privilege,” muttered Jim under his breath, still smarting at the two thousand dollars he’d paid Mr. Anastas for access to his land.

“Let it go, babe. I would have been happy to pay three times that.”

Jim clenched his jaw for a moment, then forced himself to exhale and relax. There was no going back now. He’d seen the state of Anastas’ sheep and knew his cash was probably already gone, spent on feed for the farmer’s drought stricken livestock.

“All right, no more talk of money.” He shrugged off his backpack and dumped it at his feet, raising a small cloud of fine dust. “But before we go any further, let’s do one last safety check. Can’t afford any accidents while it’s just the two of us.”

Beth huffed at the delay, but waited as he systematically reviewed their gear. Both wore a set of old State Emergency Service coveralls. Jim’s pack carried most of their stuff, including rope and a spare light source amongst other safety equipment.

He pulled a waterproof sheet of grid paper from his sleeve and made a mark for their beginning position along with a bearing off his compass. Jim fastened the strap on his helmet, before taking time to memorise the rock features around him. “Which way do you want to go?”

His wife shone her torch down each of two branching tunnels before settling on the option to the right. “This one, I reckon.”

Beth took point, weaving between larger slabs of rock that had dropped from the ceiling. The passage sloped steadily down, the uneven roof skimming scant inches above their heads before dropping down to waist height, then a length of tight squeezes.

At forks in the tunnel, Jim created a simple cairn, no more than three rocks balanced atop each other to mark the way back. He stopped for a moment to take a drink of water while Beth