Free Pandora (Book 3) (The Omega Group) by Andrea Domanski

neck, and now they’ve
decided to send a liaison to tag along with us.”
    The entire group erupted with objections until Myrine raised
her hands to quiet them. “I know it isn’t an ideal situation, but it’s what
we’ve got. Finley says they’re concerned this might somehow be a terrorist
attack. He’s run as much interference as he can, but they made their decision.”
    “A terrorist attack? Really? Do they think some jihadists
suddenly gained the power to control the weather?” Although it sounded absurd,
Mirissa had to admit they weren’t that far off the mark.
    Her father, always the voice of reason, spoke up. “This is
the government we’re talking about here. They’re going to waste massive amounts
of time, money, and manpower just so they can say they did something. I’m
actually surprised they’ve left us alone for as long as they have.”
    “Whether we agree with it or not, it’s happening. We’ll just
have to find a way to work around the guy.” Myrine glanced over to Flip, who
still slept in his chair. “And speaking of tag-alongs, what are we going to do
with him?”
    As if on cue, Flip opened his eyes. “Sorry. I must have
dozed off.”
    Orano, with his arms crossed over his massive chest in what
was quickly becoming his “annoyed stance,” gave Flip a droll look before
addressing Myrine. “Are we going to be protecting him out of the goodness of
our hearts, or can he actually be useful in some way?”
    Myrine looked at her watch, then at Flip. “Mr. Petrakis, you
said you were able to decipher the ancient writing your colleague found at
Pella. If I show you another sample, can you translate it for us?”
    “Of course,” Flip said as he rose from the chair, stretching
his limbs. “It’s not rocket surgery.”
    Mirissa giggled as Flip once again mixed up a common saying.
“Science, Flip. It’s not rocket science .”
    The odd little man looked confused for a moment before
shaking it off and continuing. “Where is your sample?”
    Myrine pulled up the images of the key on the laptop. Julian
had taken several photos before the writing disappeared. She turned the screen
toward Flip, who absentmindedly rubbed the palm of his hand as he read. After a
few moments, he looked at Mirissa, his expression pained.
    If the look on his face was anything to go by, the symbols
on the key weren’t good news. The fact that he was staring at her gave Mirissa
a pretty good idea of what they said. She gave him an almost imperceptible
shake of her head, hoping he’d understand her meaning.

 
    ********

 
    Flip’s gut clenched as he read the words that were meant for
the key-holder. Your essence is mankind’s
only hope. Modern-day language gave many meanings to the word essence: a
person’s nature, character, even personality. In ancient times, it had only one
definition: Life force.
    Mirissa would have to sacrifice her life to lock Eris back
in the box. Flip opened his mouth to read the translation to the group, but
stopped himself when he saw the girl shake her head. She knows already. But why would she want to keep it a secret from
her friends? From her family?
    The sickening feeling in his belly wasn’t the only foreign
sensation Flip was experiencing. In all of his exceptionally long existence,
he’d never once witnessed any god sacrifice even the smallest thing for the
good of all the others. They simply took whatever they wanted, with no thought
of anyone but themselves. Although he himself had sacrificed much over the years—his
dignity usually—it had always been forced upon him by a higher god.
    There was so much he didn’t understand about humans. Their
emotions and connections to each other were incredibly strange. This group had
known Phillip Petrakis for less than a day, and to them he was just some
archeologist who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Yet,
already they’d risked their own safety to ensure his. Even the behemoth
begrudgingly protected him.