Dozens of hands were grabbing Alexander, long nails claws at his hair and clothes trying to get a grip. The vines attached to the hand encircled him like snakes, their thorns scraping along his skin, drawing blood.

Tulsa, Oklahoma
1992

John looked down at the sleeping woman, teeth clenched, his shoulders tight. He didn't say or do anything for a long time, just watched her sleep, longing to reach out and hold her, hating what he was about to do, struggling to hold it off for just a little longer.

He couldn't wait anymore, he had to do it now or he never would.

Part 1 can be found HERE.

Friday, Early Afternoon, the FrankenCorps secret base

Iron Rain looked up from his tablet as his co-worker came in looking pissed. “Hey Scorpio, I heard your target got away from you. That sucks, man.”

Putting the old priestess and her words out of his mind, Keir turned his attention to the children and teenagers who were coming to a stop before him. They were looking at him with wide eyes, some bowed their heads when they saw him looking. The oldest boy hobbled up on a crutch, then fell to his knees, his lame leg stretched awkwardly behind him, and looked at the ground.

“So this is it?” Dela said, looking anywhere but the crack in the wall.

“Unless you want to start drinking your own pee, yeah,” Flamer replied. The cadet was tying the last loop in their makeshift rope, it would keep the crack in reality from vanishing and separating them when they went through.

Herbertstown House, Dunboyne, County Meath, Ireland:
Mona looks out the massive window in the drawing room. She wipes away the tears that have started leaking from her eyes. Her grandmother had passed away in her sleep last night. She wasn’t looking forward to calling all her aunts and uncles to let them know. She had already called her aunt Charlotte and her father.

She feels her hand nudged by a wet nose. She looks down and notices it is Lady. One of her uncle Jack’s specially bred wolves. Lady and her mate Bruno guarded the grounds and Mrs. Bounty.

There are days when you can see your whole life in a coffee cup, I guess. I certainly could, today.

Aylin looks down at her little girl. She was surprised when she found out that she had been pregnant. She was even more surprised when she went to tell her mother she was pregnant and discovered she already knew. When asked how she knew, she used the excuse that mothers knew everything about their children.

Sandy wasn’t just my spouse. I made it very clear to the professionals we hired for the campaign that there was no better political mind on the planet. Sandy almost never dipped an oar into my campaigns anymore, but I told the campaign staff, on no uncertain terms: “If Sandy says jump, you ask ‘how high?’ Don’t wait to talk to me.”

“Don’t we all need a Sugar Daddy?"

2. Cereal

I woke up when I heard Mom stumble in about 5:30 in the morning. She yelled something obscene at someone then slammed the front door and laughed like she’d said the funniest thing ever.

“Who are you? I didn’t know Jenny had a sister,” he said.

I had been reviewing for a test tomorrow at the dining room table when I got interrupted.

Jamie wakes up in the middle of the night, sweating and scared. She looks around the bedroom she is sleeping in and the pajamas she is wearing. It takes her some time to realize she is safe. She feels something wet nudge her hand. She looks down and notices it is the puppy Dakota has gotten her.