Free Aegis Incursion by S S Segran Page A

just a matter of time, isn’t it? We’re going to lose our crops soon, aren’t we?”
    “Don’t think like that, Julia.” He shut his eyes tightly. “We can’t afford to think like that.”
    “Hugo . . . ”
    Keeping an arm around her, he pointed the remote and turned the television off. “Come, supper is getting cold.”
    As he led his wife away from the living room, Hugo swallowed the lump that was rising in his throat. He kept telling himself that they had gotten lucky; that whatever virus or bug it was that was killing the crops had missed their farm. To think any other way would not bode well for him, and especially not for Julia, whose health was easily affected by stress.
    They ate silently. His attempts at making her smile were met with barely a lift of her lips.
    “We’ll be fine, meu amor ,” he murmured. “You’ll see.”

9
    R ows of serrated teeth gnashed menacingly from the jaws of a flattened, cone-shaped snout. The head of the creature merged with a grayish-brown body with two dorsal fins. Its cold, dark eyes followed the curious beings that, in turn, seemed to be watching it without a trace of fear. It stared them down for a few moments more. Then, with a swish of its tail, the sand tiger shark swam away.
    The five stood in a circular swimming pool at the Golden Nugget Hotel in Las Vegas. They were peering into a two-hundred-thousand gallon shark tank located right at the center of the pool. The Tank, as it was known, hosted three hundred different types of fish, including sixteen sharks. A water slide went right through the tank, allowing vacationers to zip past the marine life that resided on either side of the tube.
    “I’m glad we’re staying here for the night rather than rushing to Santa Barbara,” Aari said, smiling as the fish he was having a staring competition with swam away. “Feels nice to unwind, especially after what happened yesterday.”
    The four turned around and motioned at Kody to join them, but he hung back.
    “Come on, Kode-man,” Jag called. “You’ll get a better view from here.”
    Kody folded his arms.
    “What’s up with you?” Aari asked.
    Kody pointed at the tank. “Look, I like food. I just don’t want to be food, okay?”
    Jag pursed his lips and went over to splash Kody in exasperation. “There’s acrylic between us and the sharks, dude!”
    Kody waddled away from Jag. “Only six inches of it! How can anyone feel safe?”
    “You’re missing out, Kody.” Mariah looked back at the marine life as they swam around. She watched the smaller fish move around with ease, not seeming to be bothered that there were eight-foot-long predators circling in the tank.
    As she observed them, something caught her eye in the glass. She squinted slightly, then froze. There was a reflection of a man staring in the five’s direction. Her heartbeat quickened.. It was the bearded man from Salt Lake City—the one who’d attacked them.
    She spun around, sending water spraying everywhere, and scoured the crowd, once, twice, three times. The man was nowhere to be seen. She raked over the visitors again but he seemed to have disappeared into thin air.
    “Mariah?”
    Tegan was staring at her in concern. Mariah reached out and grabbed her friend’s wrist tightly. “He’s here,” she told Tegan in a low voice, her teeth clenched.
    “Who is?”
    “The man with the smoke grenade.”
    Alarmed, Tegan scanned around. “Are you sure?”
    “Yes!”
    “I don’t see him. Where is he?”
    Aari overheard them and looked over. “He who?”
    “Mariah’s saying she saw the guy who attacked us yesterday,” Tegan replied.
    “Where did you see him?” Aari asked.
    Mariah waved her hand vaguely. “I was looking into the tank and I’m sure I saw him in the reflection, but when I turned around he wasn’t there.”
    Aari took a careful look at the crowd, then gave Mariah a reassuring smile. “He’s not here, ’Riah. Maybe it was someone who looked like him.”
    Mariah