Dragonsapien by Jon Jacks Read Free Book Online

other reason why they’re putting so much of their
resources into this case is standing right here before
us.’
    As he nodded in
Jake’s direction, he lowered his eyes menacingly.
    ‘I know it’s an
awful thing to say,’ he added casually, ‘but they would have put
less effort into solving his murder than they’re putting into
solving his kidnapping, hoping to find him alive. It might be safer
for everyone if–’
    At last noticing
Leon’s simmering antagonism towards Jake, Erdwin broke in
urgently.
    ‘We can’t return
him just yet, Leon. We’ve let George and Fiona – Jake’s parents –
know that he’s fine. That might take the heat off the police
investigations.’
    Leon frowned
bemusedly.
    ‘Wow! That’s
what I call loving parents, Jake!’ He glanced Jake’s way again,
this time with what could have been interpreted as either a pitying
smile or a smirk, depending on your opinion of Leon. ‘According to
all the papers, you’ve been abducted by a bunch of callous killers;
and your parents treat it all like it’s just some elongated
sleepover?’
    ‘They know the
Volances would never hurt me,’ Jake snapped back.
    ‘We knew Jake’s
parents, Leon.’ Celly’s mum was embarrassed, defensive. ‘They know
we’re not like…well, however the papers are describing us! They know we’re not like that!’
    ‘I’m sorry, Mrs
Volance; I didn’t mean to upset you, I just meant that with all
those photos of those police officers appearing in th–’
    ‘Yes, yes; thank
you Leon,’ Erdwin interrupted. ‘We do have an idea what the
papers will be saying and showing. But Jake’s an old friend of
Celly’s – his parents do know he’ll be safe with us; and the
letter from Jake will reassure them even further.’
    ‘Still,’ Leon
persisted, ‘I would feel a lot happier about my parents
coming out of all this undiscovered if only we could somehow, say, return Jake safe and sound back to his parents – ensuring,
of course, we can trust him not to reveal what we are. Oh; but I
don’t suppose that would be possible, would it?’
    Jake simmered
with fury. Leon had managed to sound throughout as if he were both
concerned and considerate, but there was an unmistakable barb at
the end – that Jake was a threat to them all.
    What made the
accusation so strong, however, was that it was correct. Jake had
realised this himself just a few days ago. How could the Volances
return him when he knew that they weren’t human, but an entirely
different species? He had hoped, of course, that he could be
returned as soon as the police worked this out for themselves. But
what if they didn’t work it out? Why should they even consider such
a seemingly unlikely possibility?
    And even if the
police did discover the truth, what then? Would the Volances still
hold him here to prevent him revealing their island hideaway? Yes,
he had lost all sense of direction when they had flown out here;
even over land, they had been far too high for him to obtain any
idea of where they were heading. Yet just by describing the island
– its vegetation, the curve of its beaches, the climate – he could
provide more than enough clues for someone to figure out its
general position.
    ‘It’s true,
isn’t it?’ he said bitterly. ‘You can’t let me go back, can
you?’
    Erdwin and
Perisa smiled wryly at each other, a sign, Jake presumed, that they
had been caught out, that now they would have to tell the
truth.
    ‘The truth is,’
Erdwin said sadly, turning to Jake, ‘that, yes – we can and will
let you go back.’
    ‘What?’
    Jake and Leon
spoke at the same time, Jake in amazement, Leon in
anger.
    Erdwin now
turned to Leon.
    ‘Your father,
Leon; he knows the police don’t believe his version of events. How
could they, when there isn’t any story he could make up that
reasonably covers everything that happened that day? Our lawyers –
Kubrick and Stanhope – are fighting a losing battle in preventing
the police from holding