Patriot (A Jack Sigler Continuum Novella) (16 page)

EPILOGUE

Three Days Later

Reardon’s Mark

Atlantic Ocean

King stood on the quarterdeck of the
Reardon’s Mark
, carefully navigating the ship into the deeper waters of the Atlantic. The plan was to sail out toward the islands, then turn north, to make for Philadelphia as quickly as they could. The trick would be avoiding any British patrols still scouring the water in search of their missing expedition, but King thought he was up to the challenge.

He glanced out off the port side and saw the
Presley’s Hound
keeping pace. He knew the watchful eyes of his own crew would keep them safe from almost any assault they might encounter.

“The crew’s a bit shaken, but I think most are excited to start the journey home,” Franklin said, as he ambled up the steps to the quarterdeck. “Only twelve of them remain, but that should be more than enough to sail this little cutter.”

King nodded, keeping his hands fixed to the wheel.

“Listen, I know what you gave up for me back there,” Franklin said, biting down on his pipe and lighting it. “It was a way home, wasn’t it?”

“It could have been. But whatever that thing was, it had no intention of allowing me to use it.”

“About that…do you think it really was that poor slave? William?”

“I honestly have no idea. I never really believed in magic when I was younger, but I’ve seen things in my time that have made me rethink my position,” King said. “It could have just as easily been a natural phenomenon of some kind. You probably don’t know this, but there are actually types of fungi that attach themselves to insects and control their actions. Lead them to water so they can thrive, even at the expense of the insect’s life. So who knows what was inhabiting that tree?”

They continued in silence for nearly half an hour, watching a pod of dolphins playing on each side of the ship. Finally, Franklin spoke up.

“So what will you do now? Once you’ve safely delivered me to General Washington?”

King winced at the question. He wasn’t sure. His soul still felt ripped apart by the image of Sara dead in his arms and by the haunting accusations she’d hurled at him. He didn’t know how far into the future he’d seen. Wasn’t certain when in her life she would eventually die, but one thing was clear…when he was finally with her again, he’d do whatever it took to become mortal again. To grow old along with her. And hopefully, he’d be there with her when that final moment came. But for now, he’d have to live with that memory, and he wondered if he wouldn’t be better off returning to Kavo Zile to hide from the world once more, until it was time to see Sara and Fiona again.

“I honestly don’t know,” King said, realizing it had taken him far too long to answer if he wanted to avoid a potential pep talk from the great Ben Franklin.

Fortunately, the old man was far wiser than King gave him credit for. Instead of the anticipated lecture, Franklin merely nodded, then said, “Well, if you’re interested, I believe we might have some work for you in the coming days. We could definitely use a man of your...ahem...talents.”

King smiled, then gave him a nod. It was still a long journey to reach Philadelphia safely. Plenty of time to consider his next move. But he had to admit, a chance to experience the events that would ultimately lead to the formation of the greatest nation on Earth was a temptation he found himself struggling to turn down.

He was, after all, a patriot.

A NOTE FROM JEREMY ROBINSON

Dear Reader,

I wanted to take a moment to thank you for reading
Patriot
. I hope you have enjoyed this slice of King’s journey into the past. If you did enjoy the book, please show your support by posting a review at your online retailer. E-book websites work on algorithms, meaning the more people review my books, the more the e-book retailers will recommend them to other readers. And the more people buy my books, the more I get to write them, which is a good thing for both of us (assuming you enjoyed the book). If we can get
Patriot
moving off the virtual shelves, we might just see another of King’s adventures in the past.

Thank you!

—
Jeremy Robinson

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Jeremy Robinson
is the international bestselling author of fifty novels and novellas including
MirrorWorld
,
Uprising
,
Island 731
,
SecondWorld
, the Jack Sigler thriller series, and
Project Nemesis
, the highest selling, original (non-licensed) kaiju novel of all time. He’s known for mixing elements of science, history and mythology, which has earned him the #1 spot in Science Fiction and Action-Adventure, and secured him as the top creature feature author.

Robinson is also known as the bestselling horror writer, Jeremy Bishop, author of
The Sentinel
and the controversial novel,
Torment
. In 2015, he launched yet another pseudonym, Jeremiah Knight, for two post-apocalyptic Science Fiction series of novels. Robinson’s works have been translated into thirteen languages.

His series of Jack Sigler / Chess Team thrillers, starting with
Pulse
, is in development as a film series, helmed by Jabbar Raisani, who earned an Emmy Award for his design work on HBO’s
Game of Thrones
. Robinson’s original kaiju character, Nemesis, is also being adapted into a comic book through publisher American Gothic Press in association with
Famous Monsters of Filmland
, with artwork and covers by renowned Godzilla artists Matt Frank and Bob Eggleton.

Born in Beverly, MA, Robinson now lives in New Hampshire with his wife and three children.

Visit Jeremy Robinson online at

www.bewareofmonsters.com
.

J. Kent Holloway
is the international bestselling author of six paranormal thrillers. He also co-writes Jeremy Robinson’s Jack Sigler Continuum series.

Kent is currently hard at work on his first forensic crime thriller. With more than twenty years of experience as a forensic death investigator for two different Medical Examiner offices within the state of Florida, as well as several years of work as both a private investigator and as a newspaper reporter following the crime beat, he brings a unique and authentic perspective to the genre.

Find Kent at his website:
www.kenthollowayonline.com
or by following him on
Facebook
.

Older E-reader device?
Click here for e-book store
.

(
Click here
for older devices.)

ALSO by JEREMY ROBINSON

Standalone Novels

The Didymus Contingency

Raising The Past

Beneath

Antarktos Rising

Kronos

Uprising
(aka:
Xom-B
)

Flood Rising

MirrorWorld

Nemesis Saga Novels

Island 731

Project Nemesis

Project Maigo

Project 731

Project Hyperion

SecondWorld Novels

SecondWorld

Nazi Hunter: Atlantis

(aka:
I Am Cowboy
)

The Antarktos Saga

The Last Hunter – Descent

The Last Hunter – Pursuit

The Last Hunter – Ascent

The Last Hunter – Lament

The Last Hunter – Onslaught

The Last Hunter – Collected Edition

The Jack Sigler/Chess Team Thrillers

Prime

Pulse

Instinct

Threshold

Ragnarok

Omega

Savage

Cannibal

Empire
(2016)

Jack Sigler Continuum Novels

Guardian

Patriot

Cerberus Group Novels

Herculean

Chesspocalypse Novellas

Callsign: King

Callsign: Queen

Callsign: Rook

Callsign: King 2 – Underworld

Callsign: Bishop

Callsign: Knight

Callsign: Deep Blue

Callsign: King 3 – Blackout

Chesspocalypse Novella Collected Editions

Callsign: King – The Brainstorm Trilogy

Callsign – Tripleshot

Callsign – Doubleshot

Horror Novels

(written as Jeremy Bishop)

Torment

The Sentinel

The Raven

Refuge

Post-Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Novels

(written as Jeremiah Knight)

Hunger

Viking Tomorrow
(2015)