Karina's Journey Boxed Set: Plus Free Novella - Girl Unbroken

Karina's Journey Boxed Set: Plus Free Novella - Girl Unbroken

From House to Home

Never in my life would I have imagined Iâ€™d be homeless. But here I am, fifteen and sleeping on a park bench with nothing but the clothes on my back, twelve dollars in my pocket, and a backpack full of useless school books.

Itâ€™s incredible how fast things can change. One minute Iâ€™m walking home from the bus stop, and the next my mother is being carted off by the police for drug- dealing and I am left with no family to take me in.

Just as I resolve myself to entering a group home full of bullies and cockroaches, my principal finds a peculiar name on my emergency contact list. Thatâ€™s when my world totally changes and I am thrust into a situation completely beyond my control.

And to top it off â€“ I do have family! Turns out my mother lied to me all my life. And thatâ€™s not all she lied about. Unbelievable!

From Good to Bad

Aunt Kari glances toward the sound of the ringing phone with a puzzled expression. She looks back at the two of us, shrugs, and then rushes into the kitchen to grab it before it goes to voicemail.

I stop and listen for a second. Nothing big, just polite conversation. I continue sweeping, thinking itâ€™s probably someone trying to sell eco-friendly cleaning products or something. But then, her voice rises in a very Un-Aunt Kari like tone.

â€œWhat? . . . This canâ€™t be happening,â€ she cries. â€œThereâ€™s no way Iâ€™m letting her go back there.â€

At the mere tone of her voice, my heart drops into my tennis shoes. The subconscious threat that has hovered in the back of my mind suddenly leaps into my chest. My stomach squeezes into a ball at the realization â€” Iâ€™m the her sheâ€™s speaking of. I drop the broom, and it bounces to the carpet, making only a muffled thump. Still, Uncle Derek glances over at me. Evidently, he hasnâ€™t heard the conversation going on in the other room.

Thatâ€™s when I realize the inevitable has happened â€¦ My mother is out of jail.

From Lies to Truth

â€œGuess whoâ€™s back at school this year?â€ Amy asks before I get a chance to sit down.

â€œWho?â€ I donâ€™t know why I inquire, because Iâ€™m sure I don't know who sheâ€™s talking about, anyway.

She leans in closer to me â€” so close, I can smell the cheeseburger she just took a bite of. â€œJosie Mendez,â€ she whispers so softly I can barely hear her.

Who in the world is that and why would I care? I stare at her politely puzzled. Wait a minute. Why does that name sound familiar?

â€œHey, slugger. Whatâ€™s the big secret?â€ Chris walks up behind me and places his hands on my shoulders. Thatâ€™s when it hits me. Like a plug thatâ€™s been pulled in a sink with an open drain â€” Josie Mendez. The girl who accused Chris of raping her when he was a freshman.

â€œThe Josie Mendez?â€ I turn around to see Chrisâ€™s brows tighten into rigid lines. â€œHis Josie Mendez?â€

â€œWhat about her? Havenâ€™t we alreadyâ€”â€

â€œSheâ€™s back.â€

Girl Unbroken

As I stare at the off-white ceiling of the ambulance, my body is numb, my eyes blurred. Tight straps confine me to yet another prison â€” a gurney. For my own protection, they said. The muffled blare of sirens echo in my ears. But even after all Iâ€™ve been through, all I can think about is that strange, haunting voice â€” The girl on the other side of the door. It ricochets off the sides of my skull.

Iâ€™m not going to leave you, she whispered from the other side of my prison cell. The police are on their way. It was so gentle, caring, so self-assured. Whatâ€™s your name? she asked. Mine is Karina.

How could she be so calm? Soon the monster would be back, and he would do to her what heâ€™d done to me. I wanted to scream at her to run. Get out of there as fast as she could, but she was my only hope. Hope for what? There was nothing left to hope for. Still . . .
Country USA
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2018-09-04
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2018-09-04
Format	Kindle eBook

Karina's Journey Boxed Set: Plus Free Novella - Girl Unbroken

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