The Lifeboat Page 44

  It was an odd, empty feeling – one moment Bruce was probably the most powerful person on the planet and he had revelled in this knowledge, if the truth be told. Now, he had no less power but events had moved on and had in many ways rendered him irrelevant.

  Maybe he should join the exodus to Skid despite his intention not to. If so, there was a difficult, but perhaps not unexpected, conversation coming up with his old man, then Ngaio, who he expected he was going to share the next passage of his life with.

  Bruce walked over the rise behind the house in the pre-dawn darkness, through the long, damp grass to the dog kennels. The dogs sensed his approach and started barking noisily. He let them out one by one, and they all raced energetically around the paddock and then approached Myfair as he emerged from the old shearers’ quarters.

  “Morning,” Bruce said, greeting the Skidian who as usual didn’t bother to respond.

  The two of them drove out to the back of the farm in silence, through the new self-opening gates, until they stopped on a ridge from where they could see the whole farm laid out at their feet as the sun started to peek over the horizon.

  Bruce drove a little further up the track, to the highest point on the ridge, from where he could see the whole paddock, almost the entire farm and the beach spread out below them.

  “Get back, get away back,” he said to the dogs as they leapt off the back of the ute. “Way back.”

  Can and Punch took off along the track then dived down the fence line to get around behind the mob of sheep and start them towards the gate. Cop sat by Bruce and watched the other two dogs go about their work.

  Both dogs barked loudly, stopping momentarily, looking back at Bruce to reassure themselves they were doing what they were supposed to, then they were off again. When they reached the bottom of the hill Bruce had them stop there while the mob of sheep started on its way through the gate and into the next paddock.

  Bruce leant back on the bonnet of the ute as the odour of greasy wool and urine, mixed with dust from several thousand hooves, filled his nostrils.

  “You know,” he said turning to Myfair, “there are worse places to live.” Finally, he thought he would be content to live out his days right here.

  * * * * *

  This novel was intended to be the third and final volume in a trilogy. It should have been the end of the Skidian story and brought the narrative to a logical conclusion. However, the story has a way to go so keep an eye out for Part Four of the Skidian Chronicles.

  If you have made it to the end I hope you have enjoyed the book. If this is the first book in the series you have sampled, I hope you will download and enjoy the others in the Skidian Chronicles series- Skid - the first Skidian Chronicle and The Second Coming

  I would really appreciate a review as every review helps independent writers like myself get noticed and sell more books. If I start to get generate enough sales to get by on, she who must be obeyed might let me give up my day job and write full time.

  Liking my Amazon author page also helps, you can also sign up for my blog at http://scifibookshop.co.nz/ where I post various updates about the books and like the Skidian Chronicles Facebook page where I also post updates.

  Cast of characters.

  Bruce Harwood - New Zealand farmer. Abducted by aliens from the planet Skid in the first novel of the series.

  Sue Clark/Harwood-from Portland, Oregon. Also abducted by Skidians and taken to Skid where she meets Bruce. Bruce and Sue get married at the end of the second novel.

  Little Bruce - immaculately conceived son of Sue. Bruce is probably the father.

  Transcendents - original Skidians who have uploaded themselves to a galactic version of the cloud.

  Skidians - current inhabitants of Skid.

  Main Processor Unit or MPU - buggy artificial intelligence developed by the Transcendents to look after Skid after they uploaded.

  Myfair - Skidian security operative and pilot involved in Bruce and Sue’s original abduction.

  Leaf- Skidian security operative.

  Trevor Todd - runs a Kiwi ethnic bar in Portland. Bruce’s best man.

  Dick Todd - Trevor’s older brother. App developer and project manager.

  Colonel Wisneski - former head of security at the airport where Myfair landed his space ship.

  Ngaio Tauroa - Bruce’s adolescent love interest and daughter of his father’s best mate and neighbour.

  General Smith - tasked with protecting the Earth from the killer asteroid headed in the planet’s direction

  Doctor Bill Roach - leader of the team that identified a killer asteroid impact and brought the information directly to the attention of the Presidential Science Advisor.

  Doctor Shelly Shaw - assistant to the Presidential Science Advisor.

  Mrs Pratt - elderly neighbour of Sue who becomes a self -appointed nanny for little Bruce.

  Mitch - President of the United States who has suffered a possible nervous breakdown.

  Ronald Chump - Presidential nomination campaigner with incriminating personal issues.

  Cyril and Mavis Harwood - Bruce’s parents.

  Rangi Tauroa - father of Ngaio, neighbour and best mate of Cyril Harwood.

  Fleshies - organic bodies ready for the Transcendents to download into if required.

  Cop, Can, and Punch - Bruce’s team of farm dogs.