Free Janus the Arrival (The Janus Trilogy Book 1) by Stephen Harding

Then, as per the instructions on the worksheet, he immediately
contacted Detective Inspector Dave Sorbus. The policeman answered on the third
ring and told him he’d be there as soon as possible. He’d also instructed him
to keep the whole thing under wraps for now, but Mike wondered if it was maybe
already too late for that.
      
    Emma
and John both realised that the day would eventually arrive when their son
would want to leave home. It was and always had been inevitable. It was
something they both feared, yet they’d never really discussed the matter in any
great detail. As a consequence, they were not quite so prepared for it when it
eventually happened. During the last few days they’d realised that Janus had
been busy planning something, especially as he’d been acting completely out of character
from his usual everyday self. Something traumatic had obviously occurred. If it
was what they assumed it to be, then that would have required Janus to have
contacted Vicky Newman. Therefore, if their worst fears were correct, which
they both suspected as being the case, then the truth about his real identity
would have finally been revealed to him. Knowing that ignoring the fact would
only be putting it off and adding to their agony. It was Emma who finally took
the initiative and summoned up the courage to tackle Janus there and then.
Going upstairs, she literally stepped in his way as he strode from his room and
headed towards the bathroom, where he seemed to spend an extraordinary amount
of time lately.
        ‘Janus, please can we talk for a minute?’  
        ‘Not now mother, I’m busy.’ He responded.
    Emma
realised immediately, from the way he’d looked at her, and how he’d emphasised
the word mother, that the truth was finally out.
         ‘Please, Janus it’s really important.’ she
pleaded.
         ‘So is life!’ he retorted. Slamming the
door shut with such force, that it caused a photograph on the wall to spring
from it’s hook and crash unceremoniously to the floor. Emma bent over and
carefully picked it up, trying her best not to cut herself. Yet as she stared
at the picture before her, tears sprung to the corners of her eyes as the
happy, smiling faces of herself, John and Janus on holiday a few years ago,
appeared through the cracked glass. Deep down, yet not wanting to admit it, she
realised things would never be the same again. Everything was happening just as
they’d been told. The two of them would simply have to accept the fact that
Janus now belonged to the Dra-Na-Zee.

 
    The
next day, Janus left the house without a single word. The whole day seemed to
drag by without that much being said. That evening, once he’d arrived back
home, Emma approached him and tried once again.
        ‘Janus we must talk!’ she insisted. He had his head down, yet she knew he’d
heard her. He was just about to climb the stairs to his room when he suddenly
turned and glared at her. It was an awful moment, and it was extremely
terrifying. Catching the immediate change in his eyes, the woman felt her knees
weaken under her. In that instant she knew what real fear actually meant. She
imagined that that was exactly how a person would feel if they ever had the
misfortune to come face-to-face with a wounded tiger.
        ‘All the talking is finished!’ he shouted,
as he started up the stairs. She watched and her shoulders sagged in despair,
just before he turned back to face her.
        ‘You and John have been told already, so
just obey the rules and be good little humans.’ He shouted down. Emma no longer
recognised the person who’d turned his back on her and continued on. Yet the
thing that worried her most was the evil look he’d given her… The evil look
that warned her that this unknown creature now looked more than ready to kill.

 
    Once
he’d left the next morning, Emma and John felt a deep sense of loss and they
automatically turned to each other for consolation. They