The Snatchers

Kate Cabral-McKeand

Description

In the first book of the Tree Dwellers trilogy - The Clan, Brill, and his young couriers have returned home from a successful grain-gathering mission at Memmcaro’s grain facility. Their community, known as The Clan, resides high in the hidden canopy of the tallwoods. The couriers stole their way into the corrupt seed conglomerate Memmcaro’s compound, but in doing so, it cost them the lives of their friends.
Captain Mullins and his ruthless Rooks run Memmcaro. They control the compound where tainted and rare, untainted grains are stored. Horrific experiments on innocent children snatched from their homes also occur at the complex. Through these experiments, Mullins hopes to develop a serum that can cure the toxic effects of the diseases that affect virtually everyone on the ground. At a different location, Mullins’ nemesis, Civantes, is also conducting cruel experiments on the children. These endeavors have been unsuccessful due to the lack of healthy specimens - until now.
Mullins wants to capture the tree dwellers whom he has seen. He wants them for their healthy compositions but also because they blew up his Farm, where battles to the death between men and mutated monsters took place.
With the help of friends they have met, the companions must find and destroy Mullins, Civantes, and his deadly mutant men - The Snatchers - before being discovered. With the invaluable help of Mama Kilee’s knowledge, SheShe’s loyalty, and the antics of their pets, Cat and Dog, they must avoid the relentless Demonis, the silent Shivers, and the terrifying Humonsters if they want to live. Their mission is no longer about food. It’s about friendship, hope, and survival; time is running out.

Sujets

• Trilogía (desambiguación)
• Adventure (Guyana)
• Science fiction
• Trilogy
• Adventure
• Sci-Fi
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: AuthorHouse
• Date de parution: 01 mars 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781728377834
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

THE SNATCHERS
 
 
 
 
 
 
KATE CABRAL-MCKEAND
 
 
 
 

 
AuthorHouse™
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.authorhouse.com
Phone: [phone]
 
 
 
 
 
 
© 2020 Kate Cabral-McKeand. All rights reserved.
 
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.
 
Published by AuthorHouse  02/28/2023
 
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7784-1 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7782-7 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7783-4 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023901098
 
 
 
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
 
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
CONTENTS
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter 1     Double Life
Chapter 2     Time to Go
Chapter 3     Footprints
Chapter 4     Captain Mullins
Chapter 5     The Falls
Chapter 6     Horror at the Homesteads
Chapter 7     The Children
Chapter 8     The Waterways
Chapter 9     Shadow
Chapter 10     The Arena
Chapter 11     Wild Dog Attack
Chapter 12     Treachery
Chapter 13     Death Escapes
Chapter 14     Chaos
Chapter 15     Escape
Chapter 16     Sneaking with the Snatchers
Chapter 17     Bus Ride
Chapter 18     Separation
Chapter 19     Unlikely Allies
Chapter 20     The Sales Ring
Chapter 21     More Children
Chapter 22     The Retreat
Chapter 23     Snag’s Story
Chapter 24     Silent Support
Chapter 25     The Ride
Chapter 26     Memories
Chapter 27     Tickleberry
Chapter 28     Puppa and Bumma
Chapter 29     Preparing for Battle
Chapter 30     The Extended Family
Chapter 31     A Little Heaven
Chapter 32     Night Raid
Chapter 33     Liberation
Chapter 34     An Oasis
Chapter 35     Permissible Fruit
Chapter 36     Good and Bad Therapies
Chapter 37     Unknown Horrors
Chapter 38     Callow’s Concerns
Chapter 39     Reoccurring Nightmare
Chapter 40     Where to Hide the Children?
Chapter 41     Unwanted Guests
Chapter 42     Uneasy Allies
Chapter 43     Help from Afar
Chapter 44     Fight to the Death
Chapter 45     An Unwilling Mentor
Chapter 46     Shadows in the Night
Chapter 47     Another Principal Location
Chapter 48     Young Apprentice
Chapter 49     Home at Last
Chapter 50     Uneasy Uncertainty
Chapter 51     Preliminary Battle
Chapter 52     A Hero from the Past
Chapter 53     The Calm Before the Storm
Chapter 54     The First Strike
Chapter 55     The Ambush
Chapter 56     The Battle
Chapter 57     A Close Call
Chapter 58     Mountainous Revelations
Chapter 59     Reap What We Sow
Chapter 60     The Assaults
Chapter 61     Perilous Reunion
Chapter 62     Rollercoaster Ride
Chapter 63     The Belly of the Beast
Chapter 64     Escape from The Mount
Chapter 65     The End to an Evil
Chapter 66     Justice for Some
Chapter 67     The Chase Continues
Chapter 68     On the March
DEDICATION
I n my canopy, I am very grateful to have my wonderful friend Carol Ann Belanger, whose insight gave me direction and a clear path on my travels. Along with my patient and kind cousin, John R Postma who gave those travels a destination. Without you both my efforts would be futile. Thank you for allowing me to keep my head near the clouds.
PROLOGUE
I n the first book of the Tree Dwellers trilogy - The Clan, Brill, and his young couriers have returned home from a successful grain-gathering mission at Memmcaro’s grain facility. Their community, known as The Clan, resides high in the hidden canopy of the tallwoods. The couriers stole their way into the corrupt seed conglomerate Memmcaro’s compound, but in doing so, it cost them the lives of their friends.
Captain Mullins and his ruthless Rooks run Memmcaro. They control the compound where tainted and rare, untainted grains are stored. Horrific experiments on innocent children snatched from their homes also occur at the complex. Through these experiments, Mullins hopes to develop a serum that can cure the toxic effects of the diseases that affect virtually everyone on the ground. At a different location, Mullins’ nemesis, Civantes, is also conducting cruel experiments on the children. These endeavors have been unsuccessful due to the lack of healthy specimens - until now.
Mullins wants to capture the tree dwellers whom he has seen. He wants them for their healthy compositions but also because they blew up his Farm, where battles to the death between men and mutated monsters took place.
With the help of friends they have met, the companions must find and destroy Mullins, Civantes, and his deadly mutant men - The Snatchers - before being discovered. With the invaluable help of Mama Kilee’s knowledge, SheShe’s loyalty, and the antics of their pets, Cat and Dog, they must avoid the relentless Demonis, the silent Shivers, and the terrifying Humonsters if they want to live. Their mission is no longer about food. It’s about friendship, hope, and survival; time is running out.
CHAPTER 1
Double Life
F or days after the events at The Farm, the elders and Mama held meetings with everyone in the canopy to discuss the recent food mission and to inform them about what was happening outside of their world. The crowd was on edge as Gotl, Brill’s father, explained the letter from Dr. Hamm to Dr. Swallow detailing the imminent arrival of Civantes’ Snatchers, who were searching for them and their home in the canopy. Paralyzed with fear, the atmosphere above the tallwoods was ripe with rumors and misunderstandings about their future.
The elders held nightly discussions in the center square, allowing anyone to voice their concerns but also to help them understand the urgency of their current situation. Several debates got so heated that they were quickly adjourned to avoid physical confrontations. While this occurred, the couriers; and the pets who assumed residence in Mama’s nest were shielded from the discussions. The kids had enough to worry about, so they were isolated to focus on regaining their health, planning for the upcoming mission, and grieving the loss of their friends before heading out again.
When Ilse’s involvement behind the scenes at The Farm was exposed, everyone in the canopy was astonished at his clandestine role in the competitions and with Civantes. They were shocked that one of their elders, who had lived with them for as long as anyone could remember, could be so deceitful and scheming while living such a secret life amongst them. As a result of his shocking betrayal of The Clan, neighbors became suspicious of one another and even of their family members. Everyone became suspect except Mama Kileee, whose dealings with Ilse were not seen as a threat to the others but as an example of a victim whose relationship with him was forced and coerced.
As the fearmongering within The Clan settled down, Gotl and Mama turned their attention toward Ilse. They went to his nest for anything they could find to aid Brill and the others on their next mission. Meticulously, they searched his belongings without finding any reference to his double life. Feeling frustrated that he could have concealed his true agenda from them without a physical trace in his nest home, Gotl looked up. High above his nest was a thin rope stretched across the branches and foliage and seemed to end at the tree trunk. Gotl swiftly scaled the tree and retrieved the string and the small black bag attached to the end hidden in a crevice.
“He must have been in a hurry and forgot to conceal the string in the hollow,” Gotl said to Mama as he jumped beside her.
The bag was tightly sealed until Gotl cut the knot with his knife. They found maps from other provinces, and routes were highlighted on each map. There was also a list of names and clinical notes detailing various medical treatments and procedures and the results of those treatments. The last piece of paper was a bulletin announcing the time and locations of the upcoming man and beast competitions.
Mama looked around the nest while Gotl continued to investigate the bag. She noticed that the dust on his shelves had been lightly disturbed. Below the shelves, there were fresh markings on the floor. She wondered if someone else had gotten into Ilse’s nest before them. Mama thought that even though Ilse was older, like many people in the canopy, he was still quite agile, evidenced by his constant comings and goings from the canopy. She also believed that he would find it exceedingly unnecessary to climb up the tree to retrieve the small bag to review his messages in his nest. It seemed odd that they hadn’t seen a single item of interest among his belongings.
The info in the small bag could help the couriers find Mullins and Civantes and may help them to avoid the many other dangers that lurked in the outside world. As Gotl placed the items back into the sack, Mama continued to investigate Ilse’s belongings, sure they were missing something. As she followed Gotl out of the doorway, she looked around Ilse’s nest before leaving and wondered how many other secrets he had been keeping from them