“Hey, I missed you too. Where’re Mom and the rest of the girls?”

“I’m the only one home. We did the summoning and they all had to scoot, except Mom. She’s waiting for you in her office.”

A shadow crossed over Serena’s face and Frankie was instantly on alert. She’d learned long ago to trust her intuition and right now it was screaming in her ear. Her belly rolled over and she grimaced. Something was up.

“Everything all right?”

“I’m not sure.” Serena shrugged but Frankie could tell the girl was worried. “A lot of stuff has been happening here lately and none of it has been good.”

“Like what?” Frankie asked, her voice tight.

“I don’t know. They won’t tell me.” Her sister answered bitterly. “They all think I’m too young.”

“Well, why the fuck wasn’t I brought back earlier?”

Frankie was pissed. Again.

“I didn’t raise my daughter to speak to people using those words.”

Her mother’s voice sliced through the gloom, and Frankie glanced up towards the mezzanine that led to her office. A tall woman of regal build leaned against the railing. The hair, still as dark as her own was scraped back into a severe bun, but it did nothing to deter from the beauty that still lay there after fifty-odd years.

Warmth washed over her at the sight of her mother and she quickly made her way up to the next level, kissing her on both cheeks in greeting.

“I’m sorry. I just don’t like being left out in the dark.”

Her mother’s eyes, so like her own pale blue ones, held a hint of sadness and she felt her heart constrict. “It’s good to see you, chica, it’s been too long, but we have no time to visit. Your sister’s right. There’s been a lot going on, but the more pressing issue is a time shift we need you for.”

Frankie followed her mother, curiosity biting at her mouth, but she kept silent. She closed the door behind her and fell into the comfy chair that was kitty corner to her mother’s large oak table. Her long, leather-clad legs draped casually off the side, and she settled back, waiting expectantly.

On the wall to her left a virtual map of the seven known galaxies twinkled with light. She could see that one planet in particular was glowing in the galaxy centered amongst the rest. Looking closely she noted it was their sister planet, Earth.

“So where is everyb

ody?”

“Your sisters are all out on assignment.”

“All of them? That’s just…” She paused, confused, “we’ve never all been out before.”

Her mother paused and rubbed her temple. Her gut clenched. Rachel Black looked tired and worried. Not a good omen.

“Like I said, a lot has been happening. I’ll fill you in when you get back, but this target is a level one.”

A sick feeling was slowly starting to flood her system, and her breathing slowed as she became aware of a few things.

Normally The Black Opal was hopping with men and women, lots of them. There had only been a smattering of air streamers out in the parking lot, and now that she was taking the time to observe, there was a problem with noise; or lack thereof. If she had to guess, she’d say that the number of agents chilling or training was drastically reduced.

Meaning they were all out in the field.

Shit, that couldn’t be good.

“So, guess I’m heading to Earth?”

Her mother arched an eyebrow, her face relaxing somewhat. She glanced towards the map, nodding her head slightly.

“Yes. You’ll be shifting back three hundred years.”

Frankie was surprised but didn’t say shit. She’d never shifted that far into the past. Usually her older sister, Sasha, did those kinds of things. She’d been the ace in history during studies.

Tags: Juliana Stone Black Opals Science Fiction
Source: readsnovelonline.net