Lucas Ryan Versus: The Hive (The Lucas Ryan Versus Series) Read Online Free Page B

lifted my arm and found myself straining. It was heavy...real heavy. It felt as if I was holding a bowling ball in my palm. Holding the stone to my chest, I made sure no one could see the beautiful burden in my hand.
    “Incredible,” Renee said, mimicking me. I snapped out of my daydream and found her curious stare. She nodded towards me with a smirk and hung up the office phone. In my foggy state, I hadn’t even heard the office phone ring.
    “What?” I asked, nervous.
    “You can go.”
    “Huh?” I was lost.
    “Today’s your lucky day. Ms. Chan can’t make it right now...family emergency.”
    “Emergency?”
    “Yep. Principal Garner is on vacation too. So, you get out of jail free today.” She laughed at her remark, more proud than she should have been. I let out a deep breath and reached over for my backpack. I made sure not to let the unbelievably heavy stone fall from my grasp.
    “Okay, I’ll see ya tomorrow,” I joked. She shook her head with another laugh.
    “Stay out of trouble, Lucas.”
     
    I raced out of the office and headed straight for my locker. The mysterious object reflected my worried eyes within its shiny surface and started to feel cold. Ice cold and growing heavier by the second. Within the first few steps down the hallway, the muscles in my arm were already beginning to ache. I wasn’t sure how much longer I would be able to carry it.
    Moments later I was walking up to my locker. Urgently, I opened its door and scrambled to make a clear spot for the rock on the bottom of the locker. When I tried to set it inside, my fingers felt stuck to it. Almost as if we were one. After a few seconds of trying to shake my hand free, I had to use my other hand to pry it away from my fingers. Slowly, it separated from my skin, leaving a cold pink welt on my palm. It fell to the bottom of my locker with a metallic thud. I glanced around the school corridor to be sure no one else heard it. With a deep gasp, I slammed the locker door shut.
    “This is impossible. What have I found?” I asked the locker door. Was I in some crazy science fiction movie? Was I dreaming?
     
    ~ Pick me up. ~
     
    The metallic voice was back. I didn’t know what to do.
     
    ~ Pick me up. ~
     
    I ripped open the door again and found the mystical orb lying there like a glassy piece of coal. It looked a little bigger than before. I pulled my cell phone from my pocket and snapped a picture of it. The flash from the camera flickered three times. It was only supposed to flash once. It seemed to happen in slow motion.
    On the first flash of light, it looked like my locker was engulfed with faint smoke. The smoke looked black and filled with moving particles. They were bright yellow and rushing through the blackness like fireflies. On the second flash, those streaks of yellow reached out and wrapped themselves around my phone. If it hadn’t happened so fast, I might have dropped my phone, but I didn’t have time to react. On the third and final flash, the smoke was gone and the golden fireflies entered the smooth glass screen of my cell phone. It tickled my hand as it did. Flashing yellow streaks swirled around the screen, bouncing off each other like fireworks before settling into the background. It left a small, pulsating birthmark on the touchscreen.
    “What the...” I thought I was going crazy. I slowly closed my locker again and slid down the sheet metal of the lockers, to the floor, and caught my breath.
     
    ~ Pick me up. Please. ~
     
    “What is happening?” I asked, trying to ignore the voice in my head. From above me someone answered.
    “Soundcheck.”
    “Huh?” I said, dazed. From the floor Morgan smiled above me. She looked curious and sweet. Her schoolbooks loosely clutched to her chest, and her hand pointing down the hall.
    “Tonight’s the big concert, Luc. Remember the flier...from this morning...”
    “Umm...” I stared up at her.
    “They’re setting up now for a quick soundcheck,” she said, with a