Connor by Dormaine G. excerpt

Excerpt                                                           "He raised the black cane and struck the floor with it not twenty feet in front of us. The striking motion made a loud crackling sound, spontaneously creating electricity in the air.     It was such a strong surge that I started to walk toward it, but Tanzia physically stopped me.     A lightning bolt struck in the middle of the room, but it did not disappear like it should have; instead it lingered a while. It grew in size, opening up to form a big circular bright silver light. It sounded like a gush of water or wind similar to what Scott said he heard in the basement.     This had to be a portal to ‘time’, that unsafe place for us. Tochia yelled get back, but my legs locked. I didn’t move. I needed to see up close who or what felt our lives were so expendable.     Out stepped a man, an extremely tall man, who wore a black suit and a top hat. He just stood there smiling at us. It was the strangest thing I had ever seen. He didn’t look real. I slowly backed up to the others, wanting to get as far away as possible from him.     His aura was powerful, almost suffocatingly so. The light behind the tall man closed like a vacuum, and it was calm again in the room.     “Let me introduce myself to those who have not had the pleasure of meeting me. My name is Tanner.” He bowed when he introduced himself, top hat in hand, like in a theater. He acted as if he was on stage, putting on a Broadway show.     Ronin tossed the man the black cane, then stood off to the side and leaned against the front wall eyeing me. “Thank you, Ronin.” Tanner gestured toward the couch, smiling as if he wanted us to take a seat, like the show was about to begin any minute.     We just stood there ignoring his request, but rather observing him, strangely waiting for him to make a move. He pulled out three vials of something I could not make out, but this time insisted we take a seat.     Tochia tried to electrocute the man as he turned away for a brief second, but he was too fast for her.     Before the electricity could even get close to him, he moved out of the way, took one vial out, and threw it down on the floor, smashing into pieces. At first it seemed like nothing occurred, then Tochia dropped like dead weight, not moving.     As I reached for her, Tanner replied, “I would not do that if I were you. Even though I don’t need a vial for you, I would love to punish your babysitters for your actions.” I slowly moved back and sat down.     “If you’re wondering what this is, young lady, it’s my guarantee that your Keepers will behave. We can thank your oh-so-trusting Keeper Khan for these, te-he,” he said, making a sound, which I could only guess was a laugh.     I asked Tanzia what was in the vials, but Tanner answered for her. “I can answer that, young lady. Oh, don’t look so surprised. You have not learned to block your thoughts yet, so I hear you loud and clear,” he said, staring at me with that bizarre smile on his face. “My goodness, Tanzia, what are you teaching these kids nowadays?”     “Get on with it, Tanner. We did not come here to sit around and watch you perform. Trust me, you are the only one amused,” Bynder said.     “Well let me first explain to the girl,” he said to Bynder then turned toward me. “These keepsakes are part potion and part Keepers’ blood, your Keepers’ blood to be exact, young lady, te-he. It, oh, how can I say this nicely, kills them.”     Dead, Tochia is dead..."                 Amazon US        Amazon UK