True Friends: Kidnapped by Lulu Nighthaven & Breeana Willow Vala (best books to read non fiction TXT) 📕

Mike yelled.
Turning she neatly dodged the left hook Gary sent her way, and, just as neatly, sent out her right foot to strike him where any guy would go down when hit. While he was down, she grabbed his hair and rolled him over, walking over to his wrist and twisting it till she heard a satisfying crack and his surprised and pained shriek.
"Look out Raven! Jim has a needle!" But it was to late, she felt the needle pierce her shoulder, through her sweaty shirt, and, as she staggered a little, she felt Rambo sized arms lifting her up into the air. They made it to the elevator before she conked out, she could hear all the kids cheering her from the hall and she could hear Gary's moans of protest at losing a fight to a couple of shouts and a girl.
"Looks like she broke her nose again," She heard one of the security guards saying.
Crap, she thought, as sound faded away, what have I done now...?


When she woke up, she wasn't in Rambo sized arms anymore but in her bed at the main building.
"It's going to take a lot of time to get someone to take her again." A male voice said, she knew who it was automatically and closed her eyes all the way to ease drop. It was Dr. Franklin, the physcologist for the social services building here.
"I know, but we have to do it and do it soon. She is trouble, she may be a little girl, but that is no excuse. She should have came and gotten an adult. Not fought with the boy!" She heard Mrs. Clyde saying, not surprised or hurt by the words.
"Who is going to take a trouble making girl, with a record for making good parents into abusive parents, and on such short notice?" The Doctor asked
"I don't know, but we need to make it happen, and fast. We can't have another fight like this happen."
"I agree, but it will still be difficult."
With that, she heard them leave the room, and for a while, she just laid there. When she heard footsteps outside her door, she pretended to be asleep again.
"Raven, are you asleep?" She heard a young boy voice ask.
"Maybe, depends, who's asking?" She questioned, knowing he wouldn't go for it, but wanting to be sarcastic if only to be annoying.
"It's me, Mike. Are you asleep now?" He asked, actually taking her seriously.
"You're not very bright are you, Mike?" She asked, "No, I'm awake, what do you want? Isn't it bad enough that I had to defend you, now you come in here to what, congratulate me on another broken nose?" She asked, getting mad because, if he had just gone out the front door of the kitchen the entire mess could have been avoided.
"I'm not a light bulb if that's what you mean. If I was, I would never be scared of the dark again! Actually, I came because I heard you were gonna get in trouble and I wanted to warn you so's you would know. I didn't want you to get in trouble, really, and all that stuff you did was so cool! Can you teach me that stuff?"
"No, I can't. They are getting rid of me as soon as possible and if I try to teach you that you would have to trust me and I am not someone you want to trust. Now go back to bed and leave me alone!" She said, getting very annoyed at the boy. She rolled over and covered up; ignoring the nagging in her head that only bothered her when she took her anger out on an innocent.
"I'm sorry, really, I'll go now. By the way, I'm not stupid; I'm just a little slower than other people." He said, and headed for the door, before he got there she broke.
"Ok, you win, come on. You can stay in here tonight. I prefer the floor anyway. And thanks for the warning kid, didn't mean to snap at you." She said as he climbed into the bed in buzz light-year pajamas. A teddy bear and a small red blanket.
"Thanks Raven! No problem, you helped me, so I wanted to help you. And I didn't mind, I'm used to people snapping on me, I'm the little guy, and at least you didn't do it just to be mean! Night!" He whispered in a hurried voice as she pulled her cover up to her chin.
"Sure, whatever. Just go to sleep kid." She mumbled, laying on the hard wood floor, and slipped into a familiar, dreamless, oblivion of darkness.


Chapter Four


U.K., June 1st

"Mum! I'm home!" Yasmin called as she dumped her bag in the living room.
She ran through to the kitchen and tossed two pieces of bread in the toaster. She was starving.
"Crappy lunches we get here", Tracy had remarked at lunch-time at school, stirring what was meant to be spaghetti and meatballs round her plate with her fork.
Yasmin agreed with her.
As she went to the fridge to get a drink, a timer went off and the toast came flying out of the toaster. Yasmin ran backwards and just managed to catch the toast before it fell on the floor.
She chucked the food onto a plate and went back through to the living room.
"Mum?" she called again, her mouth full of toast crumbs.
That's when she noticed a note on the coffee table. She picked it up.
"'Hi honey'", she read aloud, "'Didn't get to tell you this morning because you slept in, but I'm going to be working late. There's soup left out for your dinner, and the number for my work is on the counter. See you tonight, love mum.'"
Yasmin rolled her eyes and picked up the phone. She didn't need to look at the piece of paper with the number on it; she had put it on speed-dial the second time mum had been working late.
She brushed her sandy-brown hair out of her eyes and held the phone to her ear. Someone picked up at the other end after just one ring.
"Hello, Rainbow Dentistry, how can I help you?"
"Um, hello, may I speak to Dr. Brooke please? It's her daughter Yasmin."
"Oh! Of course Yasmin! Just one second...", the receptionist said before putting the phone down and calling, "Beth! Can you get Dr. Brooke? I've got her daughter on the phone."
A few seconds later a different voice came on the phone.
"Yas?"
"Hey mum."
"Is anything wrong?"
"Not exactly..."
Dr. Brooke gave an impatient sigh.
"Yasmin, I've told you time and time again: don't phone me at work unless it's an emergency! I was in the middle of pulling someone's tooth out!"
Yasmin gulped.
"Really?"
"Well... I could have been! As luck would have it, I was just giving someone a check-up, but that's not the point! The point is..."
"That I don't phone you at work unless it's an emergency", Yasmin finished. "Yeah, I get it mum. Bye."
She slammed the phone down and flopped down on the sofa, shaking toast crumbs everywhere.
'Why does mum always have to work late?' she thought.
Then she felt guilty. At least she had a mum and dad, even if they did work all the time, unlike Raven and all the other foster kids.
Yasmin stood up and started picking up the toast crumbs.
Two weeks. It wasn't long to wait for a letter back. And who knew? Maybe she and Raven would end up being really good friends.


Chapter Five


Alabama, June 3rd

Who the heck is this from, Raven thought, the army? Staring at the letter with enough stamps for five dollars in change. Mrs. Clyde had given it to her at breakfast saying it had a letter from someone very special in it.

Opening the letter Raven was surprised to find a return address on the back of the envelope that said it was from the U.K.! Taking out a piece of paper she read it slowly. Not having been in school much she wasn't very good at reading. But, thankfully, she knew most of the words the girl named Yasmin had used. Mike came up behind her so she read it aloud for him to hear.

Dear Raven Night,
Hi! My name's Yasmin Brooke. I go to a school in Glasgow in the UK. Sounds like you've been through some tough times. I mean three nose breakings! Flipping heck, what'd you do to deserve that? I've only had my nose broken once, when I was six. I got in a fight with my friend's big brother over his skateboard. I wanted a go on it and he said we were too small, so I kicked him where it hurts, and he got so mad that he punched me in the face and broke my nose! It hurt. Huge understatement, it reeeeeeeally hurt. I hope you write back! I've got loads more gory stories, if you want to hear them. Well, talk to you soon!


From, Yasmin Brooke, xxx

"Wow! You got a letter from a cool girl in another place! Do you think I'll get one?" Mike asked in an excited voice.
"In truth, Mike, I have no idea, but I guess it's sort of cool." She said, not knowing if she should throw it away or write back. In the end, the gory stories were way to tempting for her to pass up. So she got out a paper and pen and began to write.

Dear Yasmin,
Yes, I have had my nose broken, a lot. It has been broken twice since my doctor updated my physical condition. I broke my nose the first time when I was four and got into a fight with one of the other foster kids. I had decided that I wanted to play with her toy but she did not want to share, so I took it. Next thing I know she is throwing toys at me. She decided toys were not enough and picked up a REAL hammer someone had left out! She threw it at the back of my head! Then I threw it at her and missed. She picked up the caboose of a toy train and threw it at my face. It broke my nose into four pieces! Why the heck didn't you just kick him again?! I would have, but then again I'm great at starting fights over nothing so you don't want my advice in that area. Yeah, it hurts the first few times. But after a few breaks you barely feel the bone breaking anymore. I would like to hear them, especially if there as funny as the one about the skateboard. Ok, can't wait.