IOSEFA PUT UP A hand, saying, "It's okay, brother." Mr. Efoti nodded and stepped back from Isaac. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done," Iosefa admitted. "When Caroline told me she was pregnant and that she wanted to raise her baby with its father, I had to honor her wish and hope that I could last until we could be together. I went home to Australia, trying to put as much distance between us as possible." Caroline pressed her face into his chest, as he continued. "For some reason our bond allowed it. It was very difficult, but bearable. I'd already hurt her and her family enough. Many years later I traveled to the States on business, and the closer I got the stronger I felt that something was wrong with my mate. I tracked her to the Nasaru but I couldn't find a way in. I became a madman trying to get to her. I turned to my family for help and my brother connected me with Ira. He wasn't easy to convince. He'd believed that Caroline perished with the rest of her family. But when

Tru Parker - TodayREDWOOD TREES BLURRED, BECOMING a long streak of auburn brown as the winding road took us out of the forest, away from the twins' house and from everything I didn't want to think about or admit. Unfortunately, the distance didn't seem to ease the familiar pressure building in my chest. An image of my mom suddenly came to mind. She was bent over some paperwork in the living room wearing her disappointed face. Or had it been sad? With my new perspective, I challenged the memory and thought that maybe I'd been wrong. It had been a few weeks before her death and I'd assumed that she'd been grading papers, which often made her irritated. I'd avoided her that night. Had she been writing a letter to Caroline? Or to me? I'd never know now. Recently, I'd discovered my mom's hiding place where she'd stored secret letters to her sister and pictures of them. It was an old pottery jar with carvings on it; images of a wolf, a dragon, and a bird. Today, Caroline told me that

THE SEATBELT WAS PINNING me down too tightly, having gone into crash mode after Ruthie's abrupt halt, and I choked, trying to catch my breath. Unhooking my seatbelt, I slowed my racing heart before leaning forward to peer through the windshield. There was something familiar about the figures in front of us."Move forward a little," I urged Ruthie."No way!" she said, jerking her head from side to side."Just do it.""Fine." She inched closer. "Aha!" I yelped, causing Ruthie to slam on the brakes again. "Geez, girl!" I hissed. "You scared me."I rolled my eyes. "I think I recognize them."Suddenly, our cell phones started going off with a cacophony of different ringtones. We both jumped. Multiple text and voice message alerts popped up on our screens. "Guess we're back in cell range," she said, her voice a little shaky, but we ignored our phones. She rolled the car forward a few more feet. "Whoa! Aren't they the new kids from school?""Yeah. What were their names?" The boy

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

"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