Bones in the Sand, Julie Steimle [best books to read for students .TXT] 📗

boy beat him to it. "And if you think you can threaten us, remember that things on your home front are still - how do I say it? - at risk."

The head FBI operative went white and swallowed.

Jafarr lifted his eyebrows, his mouth curling up at the end with a pleased look, then turned to pick a spot to set up a tent without further ado.

Professor Pratte blinked. He stepped toward Agent Sicamore. "Did he just threaten you?"

The agent closed his eyes and tried to control his breathing. When he opened his eyes toward Professor Pratte and Kyle, who were still watching him and the two new arrivals, his lips pressed together stiffly. Saying nothing, he turned and headed back into his silver trailer. He slammed the door behind him.

Kyle raised his eyebrows. He turned to Professor Pratte who was still standing there waiting for an explanation.

"I suppose this means those two are now in charge, huh?" Kyle asked.

The professor looked to him and shrugged.

Chapter Ten: Breakfast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"They did not eat, much less digest.

Instead, they took the fresh, living blood of other creatures, and inject it into their own veins." p. 100

 

 

The arrival of the two strangers had a stirring effect upon the camp, much like that of a child shoving a stick into a beehive and stirring it around. Not only were all the FBI agents and operatives in the area looking like they wanted to sting something, shooting the two teenagers such peevish glares as the pair attempted to build their dome tent, but the noise disturbed the archaeology students so much that they woke up early and climbed out of their tents to complain about the racket the FBI had made. And yet, once Kyle (who was cooking up a large batch of pancakes, bacon, and sausage) directed them toward the two teenagers, they all gaped, wondering how they got there in the first place.

"Who are they?" one of the girls wearing nothing but an over large t-shirt finally asked Kyle. She had been rubbing her eyes while staring at the two teens who were currently attempting to lay the ground cloth for the tent. The wind kept blowing it and both looked annoyed.

Kyle shrugged, his eyes on them also. "I'm not sure. But Professor Pratte thinks they are aliens come to take the ship away."

The girl choked on a laugh. Professor Pratte's ancient-alien musings had always been a joke among the students - until they had found the helmet. They were still having a hard time coming to grips with it. But her laugh vanished as she stared at the pair of pale invaders. Their extreme complexions, notwithstanding - their conversation was weird and it carried down into their camp just enough to be overheard.  

"Jafarr, just read the directions. What does it say we do next?" the girl named Zormna said, looking up at the dark-haired boy. The boy she called Jafarr was unfolding the plastic instructions that were sewn into the side of the bag of pegs. He angled it to one side and squinted in the morning sun to read the worn writing. The sun glared against the smooth polyester tent cloth making it even harder to read.

"I think it says to first unfold the tent out onto the ground cloth and hammer the loops into the ground with the metal stakes." He squinted at the plastic then looked down at Zormna.

She shrugged and unrolled the tent that had been crammed into a tight drawstring bag. Darren had dug it out of his family's garage for them to use, so they didn't exactly know what to expect.

"I think you want the door facing into the campground," Jafarr said, pointing to the zipper-closed side.

Zormna turned it around so it faced into the college students' camp area then stood up to look at it.

"Now you hammer the stakes in," he said, pointing.

"You're making a girl do all the work?" one of the watching college boys called up, glowering at him.

Jafarr glanced back down the hill into the camp at all their watchers. The commentator was a rather large, tanned young man in a holey t-shirt and blue sweats. The college boy walked up the hill towards them, scratching his side where he itched. He had joined Kyle's group that was staring at them near the portable grill.

"She wanted to do it," Jafarr said, with a 'why should I care' shrug. He looked back at Zormna, who was busy shaking the steel pegs from the bag and counting them.

Looking befuddled, Zormna kept searching around the bags. Finally, she threw up her hands. "There's no hammer." She turned to Jafarr, "Did you pack a hammer?"

Jafarr grimaced and shook his head. "Are you kidding? I've never set up a tent before. How was I supposed to know we needed a hammer? Why didn't - " But Jafarr stopped himself before he let slip that Darren had helped them. They didn't want to give the FBI a reason to harass Darren. The boy had steered clear of 'Mars prattle' that last year and didn't deserve the trouble.

Zormna turned with a glance to the watching crowd. "Maybe someone in our audience has a hammer."

Audience was right. Jafarr smirked then turned with a nod that looked like a bow. "Maybe you should ask them. They're staring at you the most."

That wasn't entirely true. But the men in the crowd did tend to linger and stare for the same reason any boy lingered and stared at her.

She glared at Jafarr, but stepped away from their tent-to-be toward the watching college students. The group took in a breath. And a few stepped back from her as she approached. As always, Zormna up close and on first sight gave the impression of a goddess visiting mortals.

"Do any of you have a hammer we can borrow?" she asked, trying to sound less irritated than she felt.

The men shared looks among themselves and whispered. The ladies ducked behind the men, which was a first. But then the rumor that she and Jafarr were aliens had spread through the camp like a little brushfire, and her dark inquiring eyes of such intense green only verified the veracity of the rumor.

One of the men finally left the group, going to his tent where they had left their tools. He came out with a small pick hammer for their digs, handing it to her. Unlike any hammer Zormna had ever seen before, she stared at its odd shape. "Is this strong enough for hammering in stakes? It looks tiny."

Laughter rippled through the crowd at the one who had fetched it for her. Three other men left the group while laughing, heading to the Professors' camper. Watching them go, Zormna finally sighed with a shrug and carried the small pick hammer back to Jafarr, handing it to him.

He laughed.

"Don't they use something larger than this?" Jafarr looked back at the group.

Zormna shrugged as she took the hammer back, crouching down to tap in the stakes with what she had been given.

While chuckling, Jafarr left Zormna to her work. He went down the hill, watching his feet as he descended to where the watchers stood. His dark eyes took in the crowd's stares as he addressed them. "You don't happen to have a claw hammer or a sledge hammer or something? I see you got your tents up and - " He heard the camper door close and stopped, turning.

The three men came out from the camper, hopping down the small metal steps then immediately marched over the hillocks of sand and rock to where Zormna was tapping in the stakes. Efficiently taking away her small pick hammer and stakes before she could react, they heaved their heavy hammers and hammered in the stakes for her.

Jafarr smirked with a shrug to himself as he watched them, heading back. "Well, I guess it pays to be pretty."

Zormna got to her feet and huffed. The three men assembled the thin poles for the two-man tent and shoved them through the slots in the nylon canvas before Zormna could get over her shock to protest. They had the tent up and covered with the rain fly quicker than a blink. Zormna tromped over to Jafarr.

"Jafarr, look what they did! They took over and blasted finished the tent before I could do it." Her voice nearly finished in a whine.

The girls around gazed at her with unblinking eyes. Most of them stared especially when they heard her accent, seeing her up close and realizing that she was not a figment of their imaginations.

Kyle smirked.

Shrugging, Jafarr grinned knowingly. He angled his head as if it was too sad, but business was done. "What did you expect? Men like that can't help showing off to a woman like you."

Her smoldering scowl pierced him with complete lack of amusement. She looked likely to punch him.

The three men approached her as soon as they completed the tent, grinning while carrying their tools down to the camp. Faces and hair were dusted with desert sand from a job well done, the men grinning with pleasure as they presented the tent like a prize in a gameshow.

"It's all done," one young man said, lifting his rather grown chest into the air with pride. All three looked utterly pleased with themselves.

Zormna moaned, sullenly hanging her shoulders, which surprised them.

Jafarr elbowed her in the ribs. "Be polite."

With a scowl at Jafarr, she peered then at their new home with resignation. But three men, when they saw him jab Zormna, they stepped forward.

"You shouldn't be hitting a girl like that, kid."

The other two echoed his sentiment, flexing their pectorals and shoulder muscles while menacingly growling down at Jafarr.

Jafarr only smirked and bowed to them as if he were a Japanese boy in a karate match - maintaining eye contact. "I am sorry that I have offended your sensibilities, but Zormna's tougher than she looks. I was merely trying to get her to accept your gracious help in building our tent."

"Your tent?" the large man asked. "You aren't sleeping in there with her?"

Jafarr shrugged with a casual glimpse at their handiwork. "Actually, I think it looks rather small for two people. So I'll probably be sleeping outside."

Zormna also glanced over and nodded. Then she looked to Jafarr with a wistful expression. "Or I could sleep outside. I think it would be rather nice to sleep out under the stars."

He grinned as if he had expected her to say that, peeking at the reaction from the men who had just established a shelter for her. The three men shook their heads almost in tandem.

"No. You really should sleep in the tent," one said.

The others agreed, their eyes raking in small figure, which up close looked less fragile than from on the hill. She had that porcelain doll quality about her - especially with how white she was.

Zormna's face fell.

"The jury has spoken." Jafarr laughed, folding his arms. He walked back to their tent and opened up his backpack as they didn't seem to recognize that she was annoyed by their actions.

Left below, Zormna glanced up at the insistent (and leering men). They saw her suppress a shudder as she bowed to the men out of old habit then dashed