Hello, my name is Barrett James, Jr. and I'm inviting everyone to check out my new novel, "The Legacy of Balthazar" now available at most online retailers in all formats. I posted a short synopsis earlier, so this time I thought I'd give everyone a look at a sample chapter. Take a look, and if it piques your interest, please check out my novel.

Thank you,

Barrett James, Jr.

33
Tyler, grimacing from the pain of his shattered wrist, was still trying
to pull the giant’s arm away from his father with his good hand when
he heard Ashley speaking. It took a moment for her words to sink in,
but when he finally realized what she was saying, he looked at her and
demanded, “Why? We don’t know what it’s doing to Dad! It could be
killing him, for all we know!”
Amanda, her hands throbbing from the vibration of the hammer strike,
kneeled down beside her mother and said, “Mom, are you sure?”
Ashley spoke without breaking eye contact with the giant, saying,
“Yes, dear, I’m sure. I think he’s trying to help your father, not hurt
him.”
Tyler cradled his broken arm and said, “But what about that hammer
looking thing on his belt he’s grabbing?”
Amanda looked at the object her brother was describing and said,
“He’s not taking it out, Bro. He’s just touching it for some reason.
And see how it’s glowing? I know it wasn’t doing that before, or we’d
have noticed it when we came in.”
As Tyler started to speak, Gordon opened his eyes, which then
widened with surprise to see the giant from the altar kneeling over him.
He glanced up at Ashley and asked, “What did I miss, dear?”
Ashley bent down, kissed her husband’s forehead and said, “Just you
having a heart attack, you old fool.”
“Strange,” Gordon said wonderingly. “I feel fine. No pain at all. Can
I get up now?”
As Gordon finished speaking, the giant removed his hand from his
chest, and stood up to his full height. As he rose, he took his hand
away from the strange hammer on his belt, which immediately lost it’s
unusual glow. The giant then reached one immense hand back down,
as if offering to help Gordon up off of the floor. Gordon hesitated for a
moment, then reached up and took the proffered hand with both of his,
allowing the giant to easily lift him back to a vertical position.
As soon as Gordon was back on his feet, the giant turned to Tyler,
gesturing for him to hold out his broken arm. Tyler, unsure, looked to
his parents for guidance. Ashley said, “Go ahead son. I think he wants
to help you too.” Tyler looked back at the enormous figure, then
hesitantly extended his shattered arm, holding it up with his good hand
to prevent the bones from grinding together. Although Tyler knew his
arm would heal in a matter of hours, he decided to see if this stranger
could actually speed up the process. It wouldn’t hurt to have two good
hands, just in case he needed to go another round with the giant, for all
the good he did the first time out. Not to mention the fact that right now
it was hurting like hell.
The stranger slowly reached out the same hand he had placed on
Gordon’s chest, gently taking a hold of Tyler’s arm just above the
break. Even in his pain, Tyler couldn’t help but notice that the rock
hard material that had shattered his wrist only moments before now
once again felt as soft as silk. Just as before, he placed his other hand
on top of the strange looking crystalline hammer at his side, which
again started to glow. As soon as the strange weapon began glowing,
Tyler felt relief in his wrist; the pain fading rapidly away in just a
matter of seconds. After only a few moments, the stranger released his
grip on Tyler’s arm, at the same time releasing his hold on his weapon.
Just as before, as soon as he took his hand off of the hammer, it stopped
glowing.
Then, still facing Tyler, the stranger slowly began to extend both
hands out in the direction of Tyler’s head, one to either side. Tyler,
unsure what was happening, took a step back, but his mother said, “I
don’t think he wants to hurt you, dear. See how slowly he’s moving? I
think he’s allowing you to decide whether or not you permit him to
touch you.”
Tyler glanced at his mother, saw her nod, and stepped back toward the
giant. He watched nervously as the strange being’s giant hands slowly
closed in on either side of his head. At the moment of contact, Tyler
felt a sudden pressure inside his head, much stronger than the sensation
that had led he and his sister to the entryway. Then Tyler’s head
suddenly filled with images from his life, his whole life, moving
through his mind’s eye at lightning speed. It was as if the stranger was
downloading Tyler’s entire existence in just a few seconds.
As the images blurred by inside Tyler’s head, the pressure he was
feeling inside his skull became stronger and stronger. It was rapidly
becoming unbearable. Just at the moment when he was sure his head
would explode, the stranger released his grip, and the pain instantly
vanished. As the giant’s arms returned to his sides, Tyler shook his
head to clear it, then said, “What the hell was that?”
“What happened, Bro?” Amanda asked.
Tyler thought about how best to describe what he had just experienced
to his sister, then said, “I’m not sure, Sis, but if I were Majel right now,
I’d say I’ve just been hacked. It was like he was copying every bit of
information in my head, all at once.”
“Telepathy?”
“Nonsense,” Gordon said dismissively. “Nobody can read minds.
That’s all just mumbo jumbo.”
Ashley placed her hand on her husband’s shoulder and said, “As far as
I know, no one can stop a heart attack or heal a broken arm with just a
touch either, dear.” Then, gesturing to the silent stranger, she continued,
“But that’s what he just did.”
Gordon started to reflexively object, but then realized that Ashley was
right. He stepped right up to the strangely dressed giant and asked,
“Who are you? What do you want from us?”
“Dad,” Amanda said, “He’s not gonna answer you. There’s no telling
how long he’s been in here. He probably doesn’t understand a thing
you’re saying to him.”
Before Gordon could reply, a rich, baritone voice, emanating from the
awakened giant, answered, in perfect English, “Over one thousand of
your years, child.”