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Chapter 145: Southern Hospitality
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The True Nature Series Chapter 146: Dante's Revenge
PAIN ROUSED ME BACK to consciousness and I groaned. As my vision cleared, I saw Luke and Wynona walking toward me. I struggled to move, but I couldn't budge against the vines and thin branches that bound my entire body against a tree. The more I fought against them the more tightly they wrapped around my body, making it hard to breathe. A few feet on either side of me, Ruthie and Maverick wrestled against their bindings, too. They gasped and choked when the vines contracted and crushed them tighter against the rough bark."W-what are you doing to us?" I wheezed. "H-how?""That's not the way this works," said Wynona. "I ask the questions and you answer." She stood ten feet away from me. "Luke," she said. "Not so tight. They gotta talk."Next to her, Luke waved his hands, appearing to direct the vines. If I weren't having trouble breathing, my mouth would have been on the ground in shock. Within seconds the pressure eased and I sucked in a gulp of air."You're such a loser," said Rut
The True Nature Series Chapter 147: Mind-speaking
LUKE GAVE HIM A ten-second stare down before complying and tucking his hands into his jean pockets. He gritted his teeth as Wynona helped him get to his feet.Zander walked across the road with his gun pointed at the new kids and one eyebrow raised toward Maverick. "I know you. You work at Tru's gym.""Guilty as charged," said Maverick matter-of-factly. "You on our side?" That simple question was packed with a challenge and Zander's eyes narrowed."I'm on Tru's side," he said. That seemed to satisfy Maverick and he nodded coolly, visibly relaxing. "That will do." But I could see something underneath Maverick's expression that had everything to do with Uncle Ira, who was the leader of his organization. Maverick believed he was dead; killed by the Nasaru. I needed to tell him about Uncle Ira soon. I also had a feeling he knew who Zander really was. He had to be brimming with questions for me. "Hey," chirped Ruthie. "Help a girl out here?"A few minutes later, Ruthie and I were
The True Nature Series Chapter 148: Field of Landmines
BY THE TIME MAVERICK and Ruthie returned, I had worked up the courage to approach Wynona. If my dad had gone missing, I'd want to know what happened to him even if he were dead."When was the last time you saw Dante?""Why do you care?" she replied, spitting on the ground as if she were aiming at me. I took a step back."Nasty habit," muttered Ruthie. "Were you raised under a rock?" Wynona's jaw tightened but she ignored the barb. I sent my friend a dark look and she moved away to lean up against a tree."Look," I said gently, trying to be patient. "How much do you know about what he was doing here?""Aha! So, you did do something!""What do you know?" I repeated, tightening my jaw.Wynona and Luke shared a glance. He nodded his head as if urging her to tell me something. "I don't know what he was doing," she said with a scowl. "But I do know that everything they say about him is false. He wouldn't hurt anyone."I sighed, "You're wrong." Her face tightened. Before she got ang
The True Nature Series Chapter 149: Peace Treaty
"LOOK, PEOPLE. HE'S JUST kidding. No one is shooting anyone. And you are not going to fling someone around with your ..." I waved at his hands. "Whatever."The guys glared at each other, nobody backing down.I squeezed Zander's hand again. "Please," I begged him along our mental path. "Stow it, Rambo," Ruthie ordered Maverick. "If Tru says it's okay, then it is."I sent her a grateful smile. They finally tucked their guns away and Luke obediently kept his hands lowered. Despite his bravado, he looked truly ill, hopefully regretting his stupid joke. Or, maybe the pain from his injured leg was getting to him. Turning to Wynona, I said, "He looks like he's going to pass out. Maybe he should sit over there." I pointed to the base of a redwood tree with a bed of soft pine needles nestled around it. Wynona looked anxiously at her friend and hustled him into a seated position. He wasn't happy about it, but didn't seem willing to fend off the petite brunette. I settled on a log across
The True Nature Series Chapter 150: True Dream
"WHAT'S A TRUE DREAM?" asked Luke."Tru has visions of the past. We call them true dreams," said Ruthie. "And for freaking fried chicken, can you let her up already?""Like right now," said Maverick with his gun pointed at Wynona's head. Once again, he'd crept up on them unawares."Seriously!" yelled Ruthie. "Everyone just calm the halibut down and lower your guns." She looked pointedly at Luke. "And fingers. Because I'm about to go all Karate Kid on you again. Geez! It's like happy hour at the NRA!"Suddenly, the pressure on my throat was completely gone. I threw the branch away with a grimace. Zander stuck his gun in the back of his pants and helped me up. Maverick lowered his gun when Luke re-sheathed his hands in his pockets, but this time he didn't put it away.I dusted off my backside. "I'm fine," I said, impatiently brushing away Zander's hands as he tried to examine my neck."That's better," said Ruthie. "Now, Tru, do your thing."I rolled my eyes at her. "It doesn't hav
The True Nature Series Chapter 151: Twin Talk
AS WE STEPPED OVER to our vehicles, we heard a familiar voice yell, "Wait!" I looked up the road with a smile, expecting to see the twins and did a double take. Ruthie was just as surprised as I was, but unlike me, who simply stood in the middle of the street with my jaw on the ground, she raised her arms with excitement and squealed like a Jonas Brothers fan girl. When Luke let loose a string of words that my mom would have called potty words, I rushed over to slam down on his arms. Despite his earlier promise, they'd been up and ready to do battle. "What are you doing?" yelled Wynona."It's okay," I said.I couldn't blame them for being startled, though. It wasn't every day you saw a giant wolf bounding toward you. But this wolf wasn't charging aggressively. His loping run had a cheerful canter to it, like he was almost as excited as Ruthie. Phoebe huffed as she ran alongside him, a shoulder bag slapping against her back. Based on Ruthie's delighted reaction, I knew she and I wer
The True Nature Series Chapter 152: True Mates
"YES," ADMITTED PHOEBE. "BUT, it just works between the two of us. Like, don't worry. We can't read your minds or anything like that."Zander caught my eye. "Don't tell them about us.""Okay," I agreed, wondering why we had to keep our new method of communication a secret."So freaking awesome!" said Ruthie. "I thought it was a twin thing. You know, your weird knowing-what-the-other-is-thinking kind of thing."Phoebe gave us a big smile, "Well, I don't know about the rest of them, but it's our twin thing." I was both startled and charmed by this new side of Phoebe. She must have hated keeping that side of her life a secret. "Anyhoo," she went on. "Where are you rushing off to? Backstage Boys in town or something?"Everyone but the twins looked at me as if I was in charge of this crazy show. Ruthie gave me a hopeful grin, her eyebrows shooting up her forehead. I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Why not?""We're going to Dr. Frankler's," Ruthie gushed with enthusiasm. "She's th
The True Nature Series Chapter 153: Package Deal
"RELAX," SAID PHOEBE, HER voice smooth and soft, as if she were speaking to a child. It seemed to work because the almost visible friction in the air dissipated and Isaac's eyes darkened, returning to their normal brown. "Don't worry, he's not going to bite anyone," she promised. When he growled, she shoved her shoulder against him hard. "Knock it off!" she ordered, not an ounce of softness in her voice this time.Finally, Isaac lowered his eyes to his sister's angry face. The two of them seemed to be having one of their silent conversations, and now that I knew they were communicating, I wondered if Zander and I had the same spaced out look when we talked with our minds."Anyway," Phoebe said, moving on as if Isaac hadn't almost made us all pee our pants a little. "If that's the case," she waved a hand between Zander and me, "then you really need to hear what Gerard Hughes did to our parents." Her lips tightened and Isaac grumbled again. "Fine," I said. "What did he do?""Thei
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