Tasha (Girls of Virtue Series, #4)

8/9/2019 Tasha (Girls of Virtue Series, #4)

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Copyright 2015. Torch Legacy Publications. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner,except for brief quotations included in a review of the book. This is a work of

fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of theauthor’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events

or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.


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Tasha

GIRLS OF VIRTUE SERIES #4

A SERIAL NOVEL

by Danita Evangeline Whyte


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Hey! What's up guys?

I hope your life is fantastic. I can assure you that mineis; but before we go any further, let me introduce myself. My name is Tasha Lu Solara. I am fourteen-years-old and I livein acienda eights near Los !ngeles. "ep, I#m a $ali girlthrough and through.

ere are a few things you should %now about me thatmost of my friends %now about me& 'irst, I love dance. (nce,I won a team ballet championship in )ew "or% $ity and wenton a world tour. I also love drama. I#m theater *ueen at my high school, and star of the popular web-series turned T+

show, Code-Girl . 'inally, I love fashion, and can hardly goanywhere without my chic 'orever pairings and oho beads. !nother thing you should %now about me that almostno one %nows about me is that I love to code. TML, $SS, /0uery, 1 1, 2avascript 3 the whole nine yards. 4henever Itell someone this, I always get that annoying 5yeah right6

loo%. To all those s%eptics, I /ust say beauty plus brains ma%efor one lethal combination. ut the most important thing youshould %now about me is that I am a follower of 2esus $hrist.I accepted $hrist into my heart when I was ten-years-oldafter my ballet teacher invited me to her church. 7ver since

that day I have had 8od#s peace and /oy, the hope of eavento loo% forward to, and I have never been without a friend.

7ven though most of my family members were eitheratheist or uddhist, I didn#t tell them about 2esus for a longtime. 1artly because I didn#t %now I was supposed to tell and


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partly because I didn#t %now e9actly how to tell. It wasn#tuntil I /oined the :(7givers student club and ended up on atrip involving murdered missionaries, a white tiger

prophecy, and an ancient sect of the Ming ynasty, that my perspective about tal%ing to others about my faith changed.

)ow I#m all about that 5go ye into all the world6 thing.The truth of the 8ospel is incredible< So incredible that the whole world needs to hear about it. I hope my story shows

you why I#m as pumped as I am now about spreading 8od#slove.

1eace<

- Tasha


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chapter one: just a drea

Somewhere in the imalayas, a full moon sailed over atangled forest. eep in the thic%, damp undergrowth, Tashastood. er eyes were wide open, straining to see through thedar%ness of the trees. er ears were alert to any suddenmovements. er body tense in case she had to start running

again. She was sure her rapidly beating heart would burst outof her chest any moment now.

Tasha was hungry, scared, and tired. She didn#t %now how she had arrived in the forest. She didn#t %now how longshe had been there, but Tasha %new she had to get out. The

forest was full of white tigers. They had been stal%ing her for what seemed li%e hours and now they were closing in for the%ill. Leaves rustled behind her. She spun around. It was only a bird settling in for the night. ! twig crac%ed. ! low hanging branch was pushed aside, and Tasha saw the shadow of atiger pass in front of her. The animal let out a menacing hiss.

The tiger was so close she could reach out and touch itif she wanted. ut Tasha didn#t want to. She too% a step bac%wards, brushing against wet vines and setting off a freshrustle in the leaves. The tiger snapped its head towards herand growled.

!hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


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Their sharp points scratched her chee%s and yan%ed her hair.(nce, she stumbled and fell, somersaulting into a patch of gooey mud, but was bac% on her feet within seconds. ! flash

of white whi==ed past in the foliage to her right. Thenanother, and another.

Tasha could feel drafts of fresh air cutting through themuggy forest air. She guessed that she was near the end of the forest and the tigers were running ahead to %eep her

from escaping. (ne of them leaped over her head and landed with a soft thump a few feet in front of her. Tasha slid to astop. The animal was huge; but unli%e the other tigers itsmovement was unnatural. It had no tail. Its front pawsappeared to be thic% human %nuc%les with fingernails assharp as %nives. Its shoulder and nec% muscles bulged. Itssilver white hair was matted in some places and shaggy inothers. ar% eyes gleamed from under heavy blac% brows.

Shape-shifter , Tasha thought.

The huge tiger-creature paced the ground. It hissed and

growled low before letting out a loud roar. The entire forestechoed as other tigers answered with roars of their own.Tasha shivered. Then to her great horror, the huge tiger-animal reared up on its bac% legs and lunged straight at herhead. She let out a frightened scream that sent ripplesthrough the water in the glass fish tan% on her boo%shelf and

made her sit straight up in bed.

'ourteen-year-old Tasha Lu Solara too% short, deep breaths to calm herself. She wasn#t in a forest after all. She


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was safe in her own yellow-and-green-themed bedroom withrose pin% d>cor. isco ball lights hung from the ceiling. er walls were nearly covered with certificates she had earned

from $odecademy, posters of her favorite artists 3 $hariceand the ac%street oys 3 and her favorite *uotes from theinfamous hac%er group, !nonymous.

Tasha threw bac% her sheets. She /umped out of bedand tiptoed across the rugs to her window where light from

the full moon made a silver patch on the floor. She pulleddown the blinds and closed the curtains. 52ust a dream,6Tasha whispered as she returned to her bed. 52ust a dream.6


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chapter t!o: state o" unconsciousness

Morning,6 Tasha#s uncle, 7ric Solara, greeted her asshe descended the spiral staircase into the %itchen the ne9tmorning. 5 id you have a good night? I thought I heard youscream.6

"ep, that was me,6 Tasha answered. She set her boo% bag on the floor and too% a seat at the marble island counter,still pulling a comb through her /et blac% hair. 5ThatscreamItyou heard wo%e me up from a bad dream.6

7ric grinned. 54as my birthday clown chasing youagain?6 he as%ed.

"ou still remember that?6 Tasha groaned. 5I was si9 when I had that cra=y dream; and, no, that clown wasn#t afterme. It was a tiger this time.6

7ric#s right eyebrow went up until it was touching the bottom of his slic% blac% hair.bangs. 5"ou and your dreams,6he sighed. The electric toaster beeped. e too% the two slicesof bread that popped up and put them on a plate that already held bacon slices, hash potatoes, and a lemon seed ca%e.5 utter or /am?6 he as%ed Tasha.

oth,6 she answered, whipping her hair through the white scrunchie she held until it formed a neat ponytail. Sheheard her grandmother#s voice in the hallway and left thecounter to say good morning.

Shortly after she was born, Tasha#s parents had sent


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weren#t even born when !lfred went into this coma. 7ven if he were to regain consciousness, it is very unli%ely that he would ma%e a complete recovery. I#m beginning to agree that

it is time to let him go. I also thin% it#s time for me to get to wor% and for you to head to school.6 She pic%ed up herleather handbag from the phone table and bent slightly to%iss Tasha#s forehead. 5I#ll see you tonight.6

Shan :hen went through the side door to the garage.

Tasha watched from the front hall window as her gray hairedgrandmother pulled out to ma%e her daily thirty-minutedrive to 1asadena where she wor%ed as a community collegeprofessor. Tasha#s aunt, @u "i, also was a history professor atthe same college. She had left an hour earlier for wor%.

Someone#s brea%fast is getting cold,6 7ric called fromthe %itchen. Tasha hurried bac% to the counter. She pic%edup the lemon seed ca%e first and stuffed half into her mouth.5 id you hear what 8ramma is going to do?6 she as%ed.

7ric didn#t loo% up from chec%ing unread te9ts on his

i1hone. 5)ot going to do,6 he said. 58ramma said she wasthin%ing about ta%ing 8rampa off life support. She didn#t say she was going to do it.6

4ell, when people thin% about doing something, they usually follow through and do it,6 Tasha replied. 5 ut you won#t let her. 4ill you?6

7ric was silent. 5 ad, you won#t let her?6 Tasha as%edagain loudly. 5"ou won#t, will you?6

Tasha, I#m only 8ramma#s son-in-law. !lfred is herhusband, and if she feels it#s time to ta%e him off, then she


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has the legal right to do so,6 7ric said. e frowned at hisphone screen. 54hy are you so concerned about someone you#ve never met before anyway?6

I#ve seen pictures of him,6 Tasha said. 5 esides, it /ustseems wrong. It seems to me that ending his life support would be li%e %illing him. I mean, he#s not dead now; but, heisn#t fully alive either. e#s somewhere in between. @ight?6

@ight,6 7ric agreed slowly. e gave a half shrug. 5I#m /ust afraid it#s not that simple to label. $omatose patients area really complicated sub/ect. I met !lfred several times whenI was dating @u "i. e was a man with a brilliant mind,e9treme curiosity, and a deep thin%er. So deep a thin%er that

sometimes I thin% he thought too much.6 7ric chuc%led.Tasha smiled. 5 e was always busy on some scientificpro/ect,6 7ric continued. 5There is a part of me that wants to believe some light or switch is still on in his body, but I don#t%now. 8ramma deserves credit for holding on as long as she

has. I thin% she#s slightly afraid of what might happen if hesuddenly does wa%e up.6

4hat might happen?6 Tasha as%ed.

e might not remember her,6 7ric answered. 5!ndthat would devastate her.6

! sharp car horn sounded outside. 5There#s my ride,6Tasha said. She hurriedly ate her second slice of toast, stoodup from the counter, and swung her boo% bag over hershoulder. 5See you after school?6


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Sure thing,6 7ric answered. Then he snapped hisfingers. 5)o sure thing,6 he *uic%ly said. 5!lmost forgot Ihave a nine o#cloc% flight to Las +egas for 7'$(). I

probably won#t be bac% until ne9t wee%.6

The car horn hon%ed again. Tasha headed for the halland the front door. 54hatever,6 she called bac% to him. 5See you whenever, then. ring me bac% some notes.6

Sure thing,6 7ric said. 5Sure thing.6


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chapter three: ain#t !hat it used to be

ue to the fact that their /obs as college professorsre*uired them to leave early on wee%days and 7ric#s /ob as agame developer often had him at conventions and e9pos onany given day, Tasha#s grandmother and aunt had hired achauffeur to drive her to school and the other places she had

to go. 7ven though she loo%ed forward to the day when she would be granted her license, Tasha en/oyed being drivenaround.

!nywhere special?6 !l 8race as%ed as she slid into thepassenger seat of the blac% M4. e wore shades even

though the sun was not up yet.2ust school,6 Tasha answered. 5I thin% we can s%ip the

donut shop today.6

!l smiled. 5To school it is,6 he said. esides beingTasha#s chauffeur, !l 8race was a retired Los !ngeles

1hilharmonic violinist who still had a passion for goodmusic. e had tried unsuccessfully to teach Tasha the flute. !s they pulled out of the driveway of Tasha#s taupe-colored,two-story home, !l 8race %ept turning the dial on the radio.e drove down the *uiet, tree-lined street of the $asablanca7states neighborhood toward the gated entrance that led tothe main road. Strea%s of pin% and orange were /ust beginning to brighten the early morning s%y.

!l switched the stations furiously. 5My goodness,6 hesighed. 5Music these days /ust ain#t what it used to be. I


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my basement. I also loved 2oplin. She was a cra=y girl whocould sing. I cried my eyes out when she died. )e9t for me would be $reedence $learwater @evival, each oys, whoa-6

4hoa?6 Tasha mimic%ed. 54hoa was a band?6

!l 8race pointed to the line of vehicles ahead of themon the road. 54e shouldn#t have such heavy traffic thisearly,6 he said. !l 8race slowed down until the M4 stopped behind a white Ma=da. Some people were standingon the road beside open car doors, straining to see what washappening on a small bridge that stretched over a foggy river.

Tasha rolled down her window to get a better loo%. Twocars had pulled off the road and were par%ed one behind

each other. The first car was empty. ! boy had climbed ontothe roof of the second car and was calling to a man holdingon to the other side of the bridge. Tasha strained to hear what they were saying.

Sir, please thin% about all you have to live for,6 the boy

said.

I have nothing. My boss /ust fired me. My girlfriend isin love with someone else,6 the man said. is head washanging. The fingers that clung to the iron railings were white. 5Stop tal%ing to me. I#m going to end it now.6

The boy glanced down at his mother who was standing beside the car. e turned bac% to the man. 5I#ll stop tal%ing when you come down,6 he told him. 5Things are going to get better for you. I %now they will.6


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The man shoo% his head. 5)o, no,6 he cried. 5)o onecares what happens to me --6

I care what happens,6 the boy *uic%ly replied. 5!nd8od cares. e loves you, sir.6

8od?6 the man *uestioned, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

"es, e said so right in is oo% that e wrote for

you.6 The boy flipped through a red ible he was holding.5Let#s see...o%ay...right here. 'or 8od so loved...uh...for 8odso loved $ody $arter that e gave is only begotten Son,2esus the $hrist, that if $ody $arter believes in im, he won#t perish, but will have everlasting life.6

The man#s head /er%ed up. e loo%ed over his shoulderat the boy on top of the car. 5 ow did you %now my name?6

I told you 8od wrote a oo% /ust for you, didn#t I?6 the boy answered. e held out the ible. 5Let#s do this. efore you /ump, you read this entire oo%. If you still thin% 8oddoesn#t love and care about you when you finish, the bridge will still be here.6

The man hesitated. The boy waved the ible towardshim. 5(%ay,6 the man agreed. and over hand, foot overfoot, the man made his way carefully bac% to the road. Thepeople standing outside their cars started clapping to

encourage him. Tasha clapped too. 4hen the man was safely bac% over the bridge, the boy /umped down from the top of the car and hugged him. e gave him the ible.

Slowly, the cars started moving again. Tasha rolled up


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her window. !l 8race got bac% inside the driver#s seat andstepped on the gas pedal. 51eople these days,6 he sighed.5They ain#t what they used to be either.6


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chapter "our: cassius

oney, do you want chic%en nuggets?6 the platinum blonde haired lunch lady as%ed loudly over the cafeteria dinat acienda igh. Tasha had /ust finished history class and was standing in line behind a girl wearing an outdated Li==ieMc8uire t-shirt.

I#m allergic to chic%en products,6 the girl answered thelunch lady.

4ell, hamburgers and pi==a are also on the menu,6 thelunch lady said. 5"ou can have chic%en nuggets, ahamburger, or pi==a. 4hich one?6

I don#t eat por%, so the pi==a is out,6 the girl said. 5 o your hamburgers have pic%les?6

"es,6 the lunch lady said. She was getting impatient.

Tasha sighed. 4hy did she always get stuc% behind theI#m-allergic-to-everything girl at lunch? The boy behind herseemed to thin% the same. 5 ey, let#s cut,6 he whispered.5She#s ta%ing too long.6

Tasha moved ahead of the I#m-allergic-to-everythinggirl who shot both of them a dirty loo%. Tasha ordered pi==a.She turned to the boy behind her and recogni=ed himinstantly. 5"ou were on the bridge this morning,6 she toldhim.

! hamburger and pi==a, please,6 the boy told thesecond lunch lady. e gave Tasha a pu==led loo%. 54hat


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bridge?6

The one that the man was about to /ump off of,6 Tashareplied. 5I would %now your hair anywhere.6

The boy put up a hand and touched the top of his seveninch high afro. 5Than%s,6 he grinned. 5I#m $assius.6

Tasha,6 Tasha returned. 5 ow come I#ve never seen you here before?6 She pic%ed up her tray and *uic%ly spotted

two of her friends sitting at a table by the windows. Sheheaded toward them.

$assius grabbed his tray and followed her. 5It#s a pretty big school,6 he said in answer to her *uestion. 5I still don#t%now half my teachersD names and I started last year.6

ey Mads< ey $ollette


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hamburger. e put the top bun bac% on and too% a bite.Mustard smeared around his mouth. 54ell, it sorta is,6 hesaid. 52ohn E& F says for 8od so loved the world. The world

includes $ody $arter, so it#s a sensible substitute. !nd Ididn#t guess. I saw his 4al-mart name tag.6

(h,6 Madison laughed. She tapped the stac% of papershe had set down with his blac% messenger bag. 5 o youmind?6

$assius shoo% his head. 5)o, I#m passing them out.They#re fliers for the new club I#m starting tomorrow. It#scalled :(7givers. :oe means life. It will be acienda igh#sfirst faith club where students can come and discuss 8od andpray together and stuff li%e that. So far there#s me, Shannon,

2amie, and 7nri*ue.6I#ll /oin,6 Tasha and Madison both said together.

$ool, sign here,6 $assius said. e slid them one of thefliers and loo%ed at $ollette.

I don#t %now,6 she shrugged. 5I#m already a member of three clubs. Maybe later.6

! shrill scream caused the four %ids to /ump. Thecafeteria noise was immediately silenced. 5Is that someone#screepy grandpa?6 a voice called out. The eyes of Madison and$ollette, who sat facing the long window, widened. $assius

and Tasha turned slowly around in their seats. (n the otherside of the window stood a man. e was thin. is hands were bony with nail-less fingers. is feet were bare. ! %nee-lengthhospital gown blew around his legs. is face was gaunt. ishair was graying and wild. is eyes wilder, and he was


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staring straight at Tasha.

$assius# mouth fell open. ! pic%le slipped out.57bene=er Scrooge?6 he whispered.


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he had contacted her to see if she would be interested inturning it into a television show. (f course, Tasha had /umped at the chance. So, along with her long-time show

side%ic%, uddy 1eace, the second wee% of production wasnow underway for season one.

! vacant apartment building that stood on the groundsof the Strontium Studios comple9 was being used to filmseveral television shows. The third floor was where Tasha

and the Code-Girl cast rehearsed, performed show run-throughs, filmed actual episodes, and met for brainstormingparties. The Code-Girl floor featured colorful lighting, lots of beanbag chairs and e9ercise balls, striped stairs, camerae*uipment, arbitrary props, and a roadway-themed cafe. Iteven held a vintage subway car and a large replica of theT@S-BH home computer. ! secret room could be revealed by tapping in the correct password to a hidden door made toloo% li%e an i1hone.

eeeeeeeere#s Tasha


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himself up off the cameraman. The cameraman pic%edhimself up off the floor. 5I do loo% different,6 uddy turned bac% to Tasha. 5My braces came off today. See


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ospital gown guy again?6 Tasha said ta%ing the whiteenvelope. 5 e must be following me.6

4alton shrugged. 51robably /ust a secret admirer,6 hegrinned. 5$ameras are on in ten.6

Tasha ran the rest of the way to her dressing room. !fter changing clothes, she e9amined the small envelope. )oaddress or name was written on it. She opened the adhesiveflap and pulled out a smaller piece of paper. (n one side inred in% was drawn two $hinese characters.

(h, great,6 Tasha said to her reflection in the mirror.52ust because IDm $hinese doesn#t mean I spea% it.6 7venthough her grandmother had wanted her to, Tasha had neverfelt the need to learn to spea% $hinese. She could hear

4alton calling on the set, 5!nd one, and two, and three...6

Tasha narrowed her eyes at the red characters on thesmall paper. 5This day /ust %eeps getting weirder,6 shesighed. er reflection in the mirror sighed with her.

4alton#s voice called again, [email protected]

Tasha crammed the note in her poc%et and dashed outthe door.

!nd...action


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chapter si$: givers o" li"e

It was Monday when Tasha and Madison /oined$assius# club. (n 4ednesday, :(7givers met for the firsttime in !rt @oom number E at acienda igh. 5 ey everyone,6 $assius began as the last members filed in and saton the floor mats or in folding chairs. 5My name is $assius

2ac%son. I#m so thrilled to have all you--6 e paused andglanced at the faces in the room. 5So thrilled to have all yougirls /oin. I guess I#m the only guy for now.6

Some of the girls laughed. esides Tasha and Madison,there were thirteen others in the room. 57nri*ue#s coming,6

fifteen-year-old Shannon +as*ue= spo%e up. She had straight waist-length brown hair. ! ible lay open in her lap. 5 e has bas%etball practice, remember?6

(h, yeah,6 $assius said. e loo%ed relieved. 54ell, do you girls have any boyfriends, because--6

(f course,6 Shannon +as*ue= spo%e again. er face brightened. 52esus is my boyfriend.6

)o, e#s )-(-T,6 the hot pin% lip gloss wearing girlsitting behind Tasha said. er name was 1orschia. She wasacienda igh#s cheer s*uad captain and had a habit of

spelling things out.(h, yes, e is. !nd do you %now why I love im so?6

Shannon as%ed and then answered before anyone else could.5 ecause e first loved me.6


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1orschia rolled her eyes.

e#s more /ust li%e your Savior,6 Tasha said.

1orschia popped her pin% bubblegum loudly. 5Shannonis a -(-L-"-@-(-L-L-7-@,6 she whispered.

Shannon loo%ed at her serenely. 5I heard you and Iforgive you,6 she said.

!m I late?6 7nri*ue as%ed, pushing the !rt @oom door

open. is hair was shaved short in a bu== cut. 5 ave youguys started?6

arely. 2ust discussing whether 2esus can besomeone#s boyfriend or not,6 $assius answered.

7nri*ue gave him a confused loo%. e left his gym bag

by the door, =ipped his /ac%et up over his sweatshirt, and satdown beside Madison.

)ow that we#re all here,6 $assius began again. 5!s Isaid before my name is $assius 2ac%son. 4elcome to:(7givers. I want to than% everyone for /oining, and I want

to encourage everyone to tell your friends about our club andinvite them to come. "ou don#t have to be a $hristian oranything to /oin. "ou /ust have to be a student of acienda.Since this is our first meeting, we#re not going to have a longible study but there are some important things we need toget straightened out.6 e pointed to a girl with sunspotspec%led chee%s and wavy hair. 52amie, why don#t youe9plain our name first.6

Si9teen-year-old 2amie 2iao came to the front of theroom. 5:oe is the 8ree% word for life,6 she e9plained. 5The


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reason $assius and I chose this for the club name is becauseall of life, whether physical or spiritual, always comes from8od. @emember 8enesis & ? In the beginning, there was

nothing but emptiness and dar%ness until 8od came alongand created stuff and gave us the breath of life. 2esus the$hrist called imself the way, the truth, and the life.Somewhere in 2ohn, I thin%--6

2ohn & ,6 Shannon suggested.

"eah, than%s,6 2amie said. 5In 2ohn & , it#s writtenthat in 2esus was life and that life was the light for the whole world. 4herever 8od is, there is life. e offers us eternal,everlasting, abundant, vibrant life, and we want to be giversof that :oe or life. So that#s how we came up with the name.6

'abulicious


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their hands with Madison.

)o offense, but I thin% $assius should be president,6Tasha said. 5 e started it. 2amie should be vice-president.6

7nri*ue nodded. 5I agree.6 e pulled a stac% of purpleconstruction paper from a des% and started writing the rolesdown. 5$assius for president; 2amie for vice-president. 4ho will be secretary?6

Madison,6 Tasha suggested. 5She#s a fantasticorgani=er.6 7veryone was in agreement with this. 7nri*ue wrote her name down. 5Treasurer?6 he as%ed.

olly, a girl in leather pants and a red bandanaanswered. 54hy not you? "our dad#s a 4all Street $@(.6

e#s retired now and that doesn#t ma%e me good atmoney.6

"ou raised almost ten thousand with your attle of theands idea at last year#s fundraiser,6 Madison reminded him.5!nd you won acienda#s financial literacy award for the

second time, so I say 7nri*ue for treasurer. 4ho#s with me?67veryone was.

!lright,6 7nri*ue agreed. 5Treasurer I am.6 e wrotehis name down beside his role.

I thin% Tasha should be in charge of events,6 $assius

said. 54e#ll need posters and fliers to promote :(7giversand Tasha does fantastic computer wor%.6

Maybe you can promote us on your web show,62amieadded. She cupped her hands around her lips and mouthed,5I#m a I8 fan.6


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Tasha grinned. 5Than%s< I#ll build an app for our clubso everyone can stay connected and updated.6

!wesome,6 olly said. 7nri*ue wrote Tasha#s namedown. 5The last role that needs to be filled is for volunteering. I thin% Shannon should do that,6 he said.

7veryone, e9cept 1orschia, agreed to this. 5I shall do allmy duties to the glory of 8od,6 Shannon beamed.

)ow that :(7givers had its leaders, the membersturned to when they would meet. Since Tasha had filming todo on Mondays and Tuesdays, 1orschia and Madison hadcheer practice on Mondays, 7nri*ue had bas%etball practiceevery afternoon Tuesday thru Thursday, and some of theothers had either sports or after school activities on those

days, they decided to meet on Tuesday mornings and 'riday evenings. (n Tuesdays, they would meet for prayer in !rt@oom number E before classes started. (n 'ridays, they would meet at each othersD homes for ible study groups. If :(7givers grew really big, they would consider meeting on

Saturdays too. 4hat boo% should we study first from the ible?6

2amie as%ed.

)umbers,6 Madison suggested. She cast dreamy eyesat 7nri*ue. 5I was loo%ing through it the other day and didn#t

see your number in there.6 Tasha and 1orschia bothlaughed. 7nri*ue shoo% his head. 54hy don#t we /ust doSolomon#s oo% of Love Songs?6

I vote we stay as far away from that boo% as possible,6$assius said.


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4hat about 1salms?6 olly as%ed.

Too long,6 $assius answered.

2ob?6 Shannon said.@eally, really depressing,6 2amie answered. 5I was

hoping we could start with something more positive.6

4hy don#t we /ust start with 8enesis,6 Tasha said.5Then after 8enesis, we can study Matthew and go bac% and

forth between the (ld and )ew Testaments.6$assius and 2amie loo%ed at each other. 5Sounds good,6

they said. efore Shannon could do it, Tasha *uic%ly volunteered to host the first ible study group at her houseon 'riday at F pm.

'inal *uestion,6 olly said as the first :(7giversmeeting ended. 54ho#s in charge of snac%s?6

1orschia blew a large bubble before popping it. 5I#ve gotthat covered.6


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chapter seven: "ig leaves "ashions

'riday evening came fast. Tasha#s aunt arrived homefrom wor% the same time !l 8race dropped Tasha off fromschool. Together, they prepared snac%s before the othermembers of :(7givers turned up. 5 o you thin% any of yourclassmates will want dinner?6 @u "i as%ed, arranging small

cups of iced mint tea onto a tray.(h, no,6 Tasha answered. 51orschia is bringing pi==a.6

!lright, you can ta%e these drin%s into the sittingparlor. I#ll pour some fruit punch and finish getting thepret=el mi9 ready.6 @u "i pushed the tray across the counter

before straightening her shoulder length blac% bob cut.54hat are all of you meeting for? 2ust homewor% or anotherfund-raising idea?6

Ch,6 Tasha hesitated. She pic%ed up the tray of icedmint tea. 5ItDs for a new club that /ust started. This is only our

second meeting.6@u "i nodded. She loo%ed li%e she was going to say

more, but a scene on the muted television screen by therefrigerator caught her attention. She turned the volume up.Tasha hurried to set the tray in the parlor that led to the

home library where they had already set bowls of butterscotch pudding, a huge bag of butter popcorn, andstac%s of chips. 4hen she returned to the %itchen, a newsreporter was spea%ing.

Three inmates are believed to have altered


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identification badges in their escape from the Twin Towers$orrectional 'acility of Los !ngeles. !ll have a history of mental illness, have been treated with psychiatric

medications, and may be dangerous if encountered. !nyone with information about their whereabouts is re*uested tocontact police immediately.6 The screen switched to show mug shots of the three escaped inmates. Tasha gasped as thedoorbell rang twice.

Something wrong?6 @u "i as%ed.The one in the middle,6 Tasha replied. She pointed at

the screen as she headed for the front door. 5 e was the oneoutside my high school on Monday.6

Shannon arrived first with her ible. 2amie 2iao was

right behind her. (ne new student had /oined :(7giverssince 4ednesday. e arrived last with 7nri*ue and Madison.5 ey, )ic%,6 Tasha greeted when she opened the door,recogni=ing him from theater class. )ic% $rotty had sandy brown hair and wore green contact lenses.

ey,6 )ic% returned following Madison and 7nri*ueinside. 5$assius was telling me yesterday about the differentthings you guys are doing in the club. !t the end of eachmeeting, he said I could tell some /o%es. I %now some really good ible /o%es.6

$an#t wait to hear them,6 Tasha said.2ust when everyone had settled into their seats, and

2amie started to pray, the doorbell rang again. ! stoc%y,curly-haired fifteen-year-old was standing on the porch when Tasha opened the door. 5Isn#t :(7givers meeting here


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tonight?6 he as%ed.

"es,6 Tasha answered. 5!re you a member?6

)ot yet, but I want to be,6 the boy told her. e showedher a sheet of paper. 5I got a flier in my loc%er today.6

$ome in. 4e /ust started.6

$assius frowned when he saw who was following Tasha when she returned to the parlor. 52oshy?6 he as%ed. 54hat

are you doing here?62oshy caught sight of the snac%s table and headed for

them. e smiled at $assius and waved his flier again. 5I gotone of these today. "ou said all students are welcome to /oin,didn#t you? on#t I loo% li%e a student? 4ell, here I am.6

4hatever,6 $assius sighed. 5 ut there#s a no-tolerancefor troublema%ers. (ne wrong move, 2oshy, and you#regone.6

2oshy#s mouth was full of popcorn. e swallowed hard.5Sure that#s not a rule you /ust made up, preacher boy?6

$assius# frown deepened. 5 on#t start calling me that.The name#s $assius.6 2oshy /ust laughed. e put three slicesof 1orschia#s pepperoni pi==a on a paper plate and found aspot on the sofa beside Tasha. 5I mainly came for thegoodies,6 he whispered.

!fter 2amie prayed for 8od to bless their time together,the %ids too% turns reading the first three chapters of the boo% of 8enesis. Most of them had noteboo%s to ta%e notesor were using their smart phones. 2oshy was starting on hisfifth cup of punch when they finished. 5That wasn#t too bad.


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! lot more interesting than diagramming dopey 7nglishsentences,6 he said with a full mouth. 5Let#s %eep reading.6

4e can read some more ne9t wee%,6 Shannon said.5Let#s all discuss what we#ve read tonight. oes anyone haveany *uestions?6

olly nodded. 5Since 8od made everything else, whatmade 8od?6 she as%ed.

8ood *uestion,6 $assius said. 5It really has a simpleanswer. )o one did. 8od has always been in e9istence.6

olly loo%ed unsure. 5I thought something can#t comefrom nothing,6 she said.

It#s probably better to understand it this way,6 7nri*ue

e9plained. 5The universe needed a cause to e9ist, right? Thatcause was 8od. ut if 8od had needed a cause to e9ist, ecould not be 8od. There has never ever been absolutely nothing; there was always something. 7ven before the beginning of time that something was 8od. To have beenable to create an entire universe and everything in it, 8odhad to be uncreated.6

I have a *uestion,6 2oshy said seriously. 54hy did 8odcreate !dam and 7ve na%ed in the first place? That#s what I want to %now.6

Some of the %ids laughed. 51robably because e had along way to go until @alph Lauren came along,6 Tashasmiled.

'ig Leaves 'ashions,6 )ic% laughed. 5"#all want tohear another !dam and 7ve /o%e? (n the first day before


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$hristmas, what did !dam say to 7ve?...It#s $hristmas, 7ve


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4e were almost finished anyway,6 Madison said.2oshy scooped up the last handful of popcorn on his way tothe front door.

I#m sorry, guys. I didn#t %now she would react that way,6 Tasha sighed. 2amie patted her arm. 5 on#t sweat it,6she said.

4e#ll tal% tomorrow,6 $assius told her.


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chapter eight: a beauti"ul thing

$ome in,6 Tasha called as a %noc% sounded on thedoor of her bedroom. @u "i turned the handle and cameinside. 5 ere,6 she said, holding out Tasha#s pin% coveredible. 5"ou left this downstairs. I thin% you might want to%eep it with you from now on.6

Tasha too% her ible and set it in the top drawer of hercomputer des%. 5Than%s,6 she said.

7ric#s coming home on Tuesday,6 @u "i said.

I %now. e te9ted me.6 Tasha slid over on the yellow leather ottoman so her aunt could s*uee=e in beside her. ereyes didn#t leave the Macboo% 1ro screen she was wor%ingon. 54hat are you doing?6 @u "i as%ed.

I#m ma%ing an app for :(7givers. Should be donesoon.6 There was silence between them then Tasha as%ed,54hat did 8ramma tell you?6 !fter the last members of :(7givers had left, Shan :hen and @u "i had a long tal% together in the library. Tasha had not stayed downstairs tofind out what they were saying.

@u "i now ran a hand through her hair. 54ell,6 she saidslowly. 58ramma wants me to find out how deep you are in

this?6

Tasha s*uinted her eyes at the screen. 5In what?6

The $hristian-8od-thing and the ible and all that. I%now you stopped coming to the temple with 7ric and me


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chapter nine: evangelis

4hat was it with her?6 $assius as%ed. e pushed amedium-si=ed $inema Snac%s drin% cup under the sodafountain machine at the !M$ Theater and watched as itfilled with J-Cp. e was waiting with Tasha and 2amie in thelobby for their Saturday movie to start. Tasha had also

invited uddy 1eace to come to the movies with them, but hehad not yet arrived.

2amie shoo% up her bag of buttered popcorn. 5 ergrandmother is an atheist,6 she told $assius. 5!nd herparents are indu.6

uddhist,6 Tasha corrected her.

)o wonder she wanted us to leave,6 $assius said. 5"oushould have told us. 4e could have met some place else.6

I didn#t thin% it would be a problem,6 Tasha shrugged.

on#t they %now you#re a $hristian?6 $assius as%ed.

They do now. They didn#t before.6

"ou mean you#ve never told them?6 2amie loo%edincredulous. 5That#s something all $hristians have to do.6

8uys, you#re acting li%e I /ust bro%e one of the ten

commandments or something.6

4ell, telling others about 2esus is a command,6$assius said. 5"ou can#t %eep im to yourself.6

Tasha pointed a finger at him. 5"ou sound li%e


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Shannon now,6 she frowned.

Matthew B& F- H,6 2amie added. 5I can *uote it for you.6

Tasha switched her finger to 2amie. 5"ou sound li%eMila.6

4ho?6

'orget it. She#s a friend of mine in )ew "or%,6 Tasha

said. 5 ut /ust how easy do you thin% it is for me to wal% upto 8ramma and tell her I believe in Someone she doesn#t believe in and has no interest in believing in. She couldthrow me out of the house, you %now.6

Seriously, Tasha? I doubt she would do that,6 2amie

said. 5 on#t worry, though, I wasn#t always comfortabletal%ing to people about my faith. I was so worried I wouldlose friends or offend someone.6

I tal% to people all the time at my parent#s S%id @ow mission,6 $assius told them. 54hich gives me an idea. There

are probably a lot of :(7givers members /ust li%e you.6 eloo%ed at Tasha. 5 esides ible study, we can start doingevangelism.6

7vangelism?6 Tasha repeated. 5I#ve never heard that word in my life.6

It#s /ust a big word for telling others about 2esus,6$assius said.

4e can get 7nri*ue to help,6 2amie suggested. 5 ealready co-leads evangelism outreach at our church.6 They all loo%ed around the crowded lobby for 7nri*ue and


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Madison, who had been waiting with them a few minutesearlier. 54here did those two go?6 2amie as%ed.

$assius shoo% his head. 51robably went to see somedumb rom-com,6 he said.

Through the rotating glass doors of the movie theater,Tasha saw a blac% car pull up. 5There#s uddy,6 she said.5$#mon, our movie#s waiting.6


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I#ve never believed in Santa $laus,6 Tasha protestedloudly. She almost cho%ed on a spoonful of cereal and spatthe mil%y goop bac% into her bowl. 5 ut, 8od,6 she

continued. 5 e#s real.6

(f course, to you e is. 7ric believes aliens are real. 4hat is the difference?6

Tasha loo%ed down at her soggy cereal. 5I don#t %now e9actly what you#re trying to say.6

I /ust want you to ma%e sure you are one hundredpercent certain of your decision.6 Shan :hen reached overand too% her granddaughter#s free hand.

I#m one hundred and ten percent sure,6 Tashaanswered confidently. 5I don#t %now all there is to %now about $hristianity, yet; but I#m learning. 8od found me whenI wasn#t even loo%ing for im. I %now that e loves me, andfor now that#s enough for me.6

Shan :hen pulled her hand away. 5Stop. "ou#re free to believe what you want, Tasha, but I don#t want youpropagating it around here. "ou#re going some place I can#tfollow and have no need to follow. "ou#re going to have totravel this religious road you#ve decided to ta%e on yourown.6 Shan :hen#s fingers found her pen. 5$or-ri-gen-dum,6she said, circling the word in the pu==le.

Tasha sighed as the doorbell rang. She *uic%ly left thecounter and went into the hall to answer it. er mouthdropped when she opened the door and saw who wasstanding on the porch. The wild-loo%ing man who hadappeared outside of the cafeteria at acienda igh on


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Monday stared bac% at her. is s%inny legs were still covered with the hospital gown which flapped in the slight bree=e.

Mic%ey Mouse


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chapter ele e " the GO pr$%ect

The moonlight streaming through the open curtains of Tasha#s bedroom made shimmering patterns on her bedspread. She lay wide awa%e staring up at the dar% ceiling.

Fourteen moons; tiger born of man. Fourteen moons;tiger born of man. Fourteen moons; tiger born of man.

The words of the cra=ed man who had collapsed anddied on her front porch earlier that morning %ept runningthrough her head. 4hat in the world did it mean? !fter @u "i had called A , a s*uad of police cars and an ambulancehad arrived at their house. They identified him as @a/u $han,

one of the three inmates who had escaped from the TwinTowers. Tasha remembered the note 4alton Sa%oda said@a/u had left for her at Strontium Studios. She wondered if it was connected to the words he had been yelling.

Tasha folded bac% the sheets and climbed out of bed.

She rummaged through the dirty clothes bas%et until she feltthe slip of paper in the poc%et of the lime green cardigan shehad been wearing the other day. She pulled it out. The redin% $hinese characters showed faintly in the dim light. If only she could find out what they meant. !long with 7nglish, both 7ric and @u "i spo%e Mandarin $hinese. ergrandmother was the only one who still spo%e traditional$hinese. Tasha thought about as%ing her for help with thenote, but was reluctant to do so. 7ver since theirconversation that morning, Shan :hen had been giving her


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the cold shoulder.

Ta%ing the note with her, Tasha went downstairs. Themeditation music her grandmother played nightly to helpher fall asleep floated *uietly down the hall. She passedthrough the dar% parlor and pushed open the door to thehome library. 5I might be able to find something here,6Tasha said to herself, turning on a side table lamp. Theshelves of boo%s and dictionaries were instantly illuminated

by the light.Tasha pulled down several encyclopedias on $hinese

language and linguistics. The thic% boo%s were pac%ed withpages and pages of tiny te9t. @ows and rows of characters.@ows and rows of pronunciations. @ows and rows of

translations. @ows and rows of definitions. Tasha loo%ed atthe paper in her hand. She loo%ed bac% at the openencyclopedias. Mandarin. $antonese. a%%a. 8an. Min. 4u.Kiang. 4hich dialect was the right one? They all loo%ed thesame. Tasha shut the boo%s. 5 obby pin in a wig pile,6 shesighed.

! sharp pop made Tasha loo% up at the wall in front of her. ! long crac% had appeared in it. The picture hanging onthe wall was slanted on its nail. Tasha wal%ed closer. She bent down and peered through the slender crac% with oneeye. ! musty odor tic%led her nose. Tasha pushed her fingers

in the crac% and pressed both ways. The left side gave way and began to slide open. The crac% grew wider. Tasha caughtthe picture as it fell and leaned it against the wall. lin%ingseveral times, her eyes *uic%ly ad/usted to the blac%ness of the room before her.


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The air inside the room was muggy and smelled of mold and dust. There were shelves overflowing with boo%sthat spilled onto the floor. @eams of yellowing paper were

stac%ed in leaning towers on tables. ! slow-turning 7arthglobe hung from the ceiling over a cluttered des%. There werenumerous other ob/ects in the room. Tasha recogni=ed an(rion Solar telescope, a pool table with a E layout of theentire periodic table of elements, a labware set, and do=ens

of tubes and vials filled with ancient-loo%ing li*uids. ! silverframed picture on the des% of a smiling man, woman, andtwo girls let Tasha %now what room she was in 3 the office of her grandfather, !lfred !stor. Tasha remembered 7ric tellingher that Shan :hen had the office loc%ed up after !lfred wentcomatose.

Tasha opened one of the five filing cabinets that stoodagainst the wall nearest her. It was filled with color-codedfolders labeled with handwritten titles that read S&IRESe per()e t * +ppr$ e, * -$)plete, or IS.EIR *

+ppr$ e, * I c$)plete and so on. The second, third, and

fourth filing cabinets held the same type of folders withdifferent title labels. Tasha was ama=ed at all thee9periments and pro/ects her grandfather had been a part of.The last filing cabinet was nearly empty. It contained only one folder. The title read The GO &r$%ect * +ppr$ e, .The third slot was blan%.

Tasha flipped the cover open. If God seeks for man toknow Him , she read from the typed te9t on the secondpage, why does He go to su h great lengths to hide Himself! Should not a Creator be near His reation! "r has the


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supposed deity simply abandoned us! #oes God e$en e%ist at all! There were blac% and white photos of the ninescientists who had been wor%ing on the pro/ect. Tasha stared

at their confident faces. Since an accident had put !lfred !stor in a coma, she wondered what had happened to theother eight. ad they continued the pro/ect? 5They weresearching for 8od,6 Tasha whispered. She traced a fingerover the pictures before closing the folder and returning it to

the file. She bac%ed out of the dusty office, slid the wall bac% into place, and hung the picture up over it.

Turning the light off in the library, Tasha tiptoed up thestairs to her bedroom. She had someone to call.


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chapter t!elve: ila

The phone rang three times before it was pic%ed up.ello? a voice said groggily on the other end.

Mila< Tasha answered. It#s me, Tasha< !re youawa%e?

I wasn#t until a second ago. Mila said moaning. on#t you %now what time it is? 'ifteen-year-old Mila !le9andriaMichelle Munroe lived on the other side of the country in)ew "or% $ity. She and Tasha had met the year before at the2unior allet Talent Show $hampionship in )ew "or% $ity.They had been on the same team, and their performance

of &he Sleeping 'eauty had helped them win thechampionship and sent them on a world tour together.ecause of her love for the ible and ability to *uote tons of Scripture passages, Mila was often called iblegirl by herfriends.

It#s almost two in the morning, Tasha told Mila."ou#re three hours behind us. 7ven though it#s five

over here, it#s still too early, Mila said. aven#t you read in1roverbs J that if anyone loudly blesses their friend early inthe morning, it will be ta%en as a curse?

Tasha laughed. @eally? $an#t say I remember thatone.

4ell, it#s in there, Mila said. )ow what are youcalling for anyway?


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Two things. 'irst, isn#t there someone in the ible whotried to see 8od, but got %illed for it?

I don#t thin% %illed, Mila answered. Moses as%ed tosee 8od, but he was only allowed to see the bac% of im.Then there was the tower of abel. ! group of people were building a city with a tower that would reach eaven. 4hen8od saw what they were doing, e didn#t li%e it so econfused their language so they could no longer wor%

together. That was the end of that.So if someone tried to see 8od today, would they get

hurt?

ow would I %now? I have absolutely no idea, but Iguess something bad could happen. 4hat#s the second

thing?

Tasha *uic%ly told Mila about the sudden appearancesof @a/u $han and the note he had left before he died. I wantto find out what the characters mean. Tasha finished.

I %now you %now I don#t %now $hinese, Mila said. Shethought for a minute. There is a person on the first floor of our condo who might be able to figure the message out. isname is Gwong. e is very fluent in $hinese, owns a%nic%%nac% shop in $hinatown, and he#s teaching Mic%ey %arate. Mic%ey Munroe was the youngest of Mila#s four

brothers.Tasha too% a picture of the note with her smart phone

and sent it to Mila to give to Gwong. (%ay, than%s, Mila.There#s one more thing before we hang up, Tasha said. I#mthe only $hristian in my family. My parents are still


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supportive, but my gramma is not so much. I really need for you to pray for me for us.

"ou %now I will, Mila replied. )ow go bac% to bed.


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chapter thirteen: a%ing disciples

:(7givers *uic%ly grew to fifty members. Toaccommodate all the students, 'riday#s meeting time wasmoved to Saturday. $assius and 2amie decided to have it at8uppy ouse restaurant instead of someone#s house. !long with their study of 8enesis, 7nri*ue and 2amie began a

discussion on evangelism. 4henever a member here has aproblem, we#re going to try our best to help them resolve it,7nri*ue said. Tasha#s grandmother is atheist and herparents are uddhist. She wants to %now how to tal% withthem about her faith.

My< Shannon e9claimed. er hand flew to her chest.My< They definitely need 2esus.

)ot anymore than you did before you met im,1orschia told her.

!fter they accept $hrist, a lot of young $hristians don#t

tell others about 2esus because they don#t %now that they should, or they don#t %now how, 2amie said. (f course,evangelism would not be necessary if we had not been giventhe 8reat $ommission. oes anyone %now where that isfound in the ible?

)ic% raised his hand. In Matthew, he said. 2esus toldis disciples to go and ma%e more disciples of all nations,

bapti=ing them in the name of the 'ather and of the Son andof the oly Spirit.

@ight, 2amie nodded. It doesn#t seem li%e we have


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much of a choice. That verse doesn#t say if you feel li%ema%ing disciples or if you want to ma%e disciples, then youcan. It only says ma%e disciples. That ma%es it a command,

not a choice.

7nri*ue added, !long with evangelism not being achoice, it is also not /ust passing on information or based on your personality. "ou don#t have to be afraid of sharing yourfaith. 8od does not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and

love; so we don#t have to be ashamed of im. The mainreason we must evangeli=e is because 2esus told us to. !nother reason is because people are lost, and they need to be found. Many people are bro%en and discouraged. They need help. They need hope. 4e have seen the light of $hristand have heard the good news. )ow we must tell others.

olly scrolled through the ible app on her i1hone.ut didn#t this /ust go for the apostles? she as%ed. 4e#re

all /ust regular %ids. 8od can#t e9pect us to evangeli=e.

The 8reat $ommission is for all of 2esus# followers,

2amie answered. Gids, teens, adults, it doesn#t matter.That#s %ind of li%e as%ing if the Ten $ommandments

was only for the Israelites in the (ld Testament, $assiusspo%e up.

4ho are the Israelites? 2oshy as%ed. e was

munching his way through his second bag of cheese puffs.4e#ll get to them soon, 7nri*ue said. olly, the

disciples may have been the first evangelists, but 8odcertainly didn#t intend for them to be the last. 4e can#t really call ourselves followers of 2esus if we aren#t obeying im.


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The 8reat $ommission is not a suggestion, but a commandto be obeyed no matter what.

7ven if people get angry? Tasha as%ed. I don#t thin% my gramma wants to hear what I have to say about 2esus.

1robably not, 7nri*ue shrugged. ut the least youcan do is tell her. @espect her opinions and non-belief, butalso let her %now that there#s a better way.

Tal%ing to anyone about 2esus once made menervous, 2amie said. I thought no one would want to listento me. I worried I would offend someone who believeddifferently than me. (nly when I reali=ed that evangelism wasn#t something I had to do on my own but that 8od was with me and would give me the right things to say, did it

become easier.

I#m sure we all have some friends or family members who don#t %now 2esus. Maybe they#ll never %now until we tellthem, 7nri*ue said. Since we#re /ust starting, why don#t welist their names and as% 8od to help us share 2esus with

them. )e9t wee% when we meet, we#ll see how everyone did.

Tasha pulled out her yellow noteboo%. She wrote downthe names of her grandmother, uncle, aunt, and anotherfriend, $ollette. 4ho do you have? she as%ed Madison asthey left 8uppy ouse.

oth of my brothers and Sawyer 1iper. I live across thestreet from her, Madison answered.

$assius showed them his paper. 2oshy? Tasha read.e doesn#t seem to li%e you very much.


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That#s because I made him go to the principal#s officelast wee% when I told our teacher he had spi%ed her coffee,$assius said. e#s been trying to get bac% at me ever since.

1lus, he won#t stop with that annoying nic%name. Li%e I#mgoing to be some preacher. $assius loo%ed incredulous.Me? I want to be a 2.

Madison waved goodbye to them as her dad drove up tota%e her home. 8odspeed, she said.


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chapter "ourteen: decoded

Mila called Tasha bac% as !l 8race drove her from8uppy ouse to her $asablanca 7states neighborhood.Gwong was able to figure it out, she told Tasha after shepic%ed up. e said the first character stands for fourteen years and the second character stands for tiger-son-cross-

man.That sounds an awful lot li%e what @a/u was yelling&

fourteen moons, tiger born of man, Tasha said.

The last part is supposed to mean a human couplegave birth to a tiger baby.

4hat? ow is that even possible? Tasha suddenly remembered the dream she had nearly two wee%s bac% of being chased by tigers through a forest.

I don#t %now, Mila was saying. Sounds weird, butthat#s what Gwong said. e nearly hit the roof when I toldhim about you.

So Gwong %nows me?

"ep. e said he was a close friend of your parents before they died as missionaries in the imalayas. I triedtelling him that you lived with your parents, but he wouldn#tlisten.

4ell, technically, he#s right, Tasha said. My grammatold me my parents disappeared in $hina right after I was born. I was sent to live with her. 4hen I was two, my aunt


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and uncle legally adopted me as their daughter. Since they are the only mom and dad I#ve %nown, I#ve always consideredthem my parents.

I guess Gwong %nows what he#s tal%ing about, Milaadmitted. !nyway, he#s flying out to Los !ngeles tomorrow.e can#t wait to meet you.


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My parents?6 Tasha as%ed.

(h, yes


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led the people to believe that the Ming rulers had lost theMandate of eaven.

!ll over the empire people began forming rebelgroups. The Ming army did nothing to stop these rebellions.In fact, many of the soldiers participated in a mutiny andopened the gates of the 8reat 4all. This allowed theManchus to come in and con*uer ei/ing in F . The lastMing emperor committed suicide by hanging himself on a

tree. In a few more years, the Ming ynasty had come to anend.6

ut it really hadn#t,6 !l 8race guessed. e was clearly interested.

@ight,6 Gwong nodded. 5! peasant sect from the

Mings survived. They went deep into the forests of theimalayas and all but disappeared. Tasha Lu, this is where

your parents come in. 'ang Gai-liang Lang, your father, andai @ong Lu Lang, your mother, met in college where they

were training to be missionaries. They were undecided about

where 8od wanted them to serve when they heard reportsabout a forgotten sect of the Ming ynasty. It seemed 8od was calling them to go to the imalayas. I went with them asa translator. !nother friend, @a/u $han-6

The man who left the note,6 Tasha interrupted.

Gwong continued. 5"es, @a/u was an e9-Ming who hadfallen out of favor with the sect leaders and had escaped. eagreed to be your parent#s guide. )ow your grandmother,Shan :hen Lu, was highly opposed to your parent#s mission. !t the time, she didn#t believe in 8od-6


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Still doesn#t,6 Tasha interrupted again.

!lright, she doesn#t believe in 8od,6 Gwong said. 5!naccident had /ust put her husband in a coma and you had /ust been born. She didn#t want her granddaughter to beta%en among an un%nown people in a foreign country. ut your parents went anyway and too% you with them. 4e were with the Mings for a little over one year. I can#t say we hadmuch success for they were slow in responding to the 8ospel.

7ventually, the Mings began to grow hostile toward us. "ourparents gave you to me to ta%e bac% to the mainland untilthey were sure it would be safe for you to return. "ou wereone year and three months old then. "our mother was ninemonths pregnant with your brother. I told her she shouldcome bac% with us, but she refused to leave your father.6

TashaDs eyes widened. She loo%ed at !l 8race. 5I had a brother,6 she said. 5I can#t believe it.6 She fell silent andstared down at the half-eaten pi==a slice on her plate.

I brought you bac% to $alifornia, and your

grandmother...she %idnapped you from me,6 Gwong paused. 4hat?6 Tasha gasped.

Gwong wiped at his eyes. 5I promised 'ang and ai@ong that I would ta%e care of you...and...I...I...failed them.6Gwong bowed his head. 'or a minute, he was silent. 'or

Tasha, the news that she had a brother was a shoc%. 7*ually shoc%ing was the news that her grandmother had %idnappedher from Gwong against the wishes of her parents.

Gwong raised his head again. e reached down andpulled out a faded newspaper clipping from one of the =ipped


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compartments in his suitcase. 5The $hina aily,6 he said,pushing it across the table. 5This report came out a few wee%s after I left.6

!l 8race and Tasha both leaned forward to get a betterloo%. The faded headline read& C. S. MISSI()!@I7S T(MI)8 S7$T MISSI)8; 7LI7+7 T( 7 7! .

Tasha could barely ma%e out her parents# features inthe bleached out picture on the clipping. 54hat about my brother?6 she as%ed.

"ou#re fourteen, right?6 Gwong as%ed.

Tasha nodded.

'ifteen in two wee%s,6 !l 8race added.

Gwong hesitated. e loo%ed at Tasha. e loo%ed at !l.e loo%ed bac% at Tasha. 54ell, if it is true,6 Gwong sighed.5There is a slight possibility he might be alive.6

4hat is it ?6 Tasha as%ed.

Gwong#s eyes darted around the busy restaurant. eleaned closer over the table. 5The tiger blood prophecy,6Gwong whispered.


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I met Gwong today. e said my parents weremissionaries. Is that why you didn#t want me to be aroundthem?6

@eturning her glasses to her face, Shan :hen pointed toa chair. 5Sit down, Tasha,6 she said. Tasha did. She crossedher arms and waited for her grandmother to continue.54hatever it is that Gwong told you is probably true,6 Shan:hen sighed. 5 owever, I too% you from him for your own

good. !s your grandmother, I felt responsible for you. I didtry tal%ing 'ang and ai @ong out of becoming missionaries because they were acting with bad /udgment. I tried topersuade ai @ong to stay here where she would have moresecurity li%e her sister.6 Shan :hen nodded to @u "i. 5 utthey refused to listen. I %new there was only a small chancethat I would see them again. !lfred had /ust gone into hiscoma. I didn#t want to lose anyone else close to me. !fter your parents disappeared, Tasha, I couldn#t bear the thoughtof losing you too.6

Tasha felt 7ric#s hand on her shoulder. They allremained silent for some time then Shan :hen said, 5I alsodidn#t want you to be raised around your parentsD religion.7ven though now it seems you have found their 8od of yourown accord.6

It#s the other way around,6 Tasha said. 58od found

me.6

Shan :hen#s face muscles tightened. 5I loo% forward tothe day when you come to reali=e that 8od is no realer thanghosts are,6 she said.


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8od is not a myth, 8ramma,6 Tasha replied.

Is e not?6 Shan :hen as%ed. 5Then you tell me wheree was when 'ang and ai @ong were %illed in somedesolate forest? I %now my daughter and son-in-law musthave cried out for im to help them. 4hy didn#t 8od protectthose claiming to be serving im? !nd where was 8od whenmy mother was violated in Tiananmen S*uare? My brother was shot. id 8od care that I had to hold him and watch him

bleed to death? !lfred was searching for 8od when he became comatose. 4hy couldn#t he find im? 4hy?6

Shan :hen#s voice had risen slightly. er eyes glinted with anger and grief as painful memories from events she would rather forget flooded bac%.

Tasha could feel her own eyes tearing up. She stared atthe swirled patterns on the counter below her. She loo%ed bac% up at her grandmother and shoo% her head. 5I don#t%now why. I don#t have answers for all your *uestions. I wishI did, but I don#t,6 Tasha said. 5!ll I %now is that 8od is real,

and e loves you. 8ramma, e loves you.6Shan :hen#s smile was forced. 5If 8od loves me, why

has e done absolutely everything to hurt me?6

Tasha focused bac% on the counter. )ow would be agood time to ha$e Shannon around , she thought.

This is enough,6 @u "i spo%e up. 58ramma, Tasha,please.6

inner?6 7ric reminded wea%ly as Shan :hen left the%itchen.


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I#m no longer hungry,6 she answered.

I thin% I#ll eat later,6 @u "i said. She pressed herfingers to her forehead. 5I need to meditate.6


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chapter seventeen: an interesting Person

7ric fi9ed two plates of lu%ewarm white rice and shrimpstir-fry for himself and Tasha. They went into the parlor toeat. 5 on#t be hard on 8ramma,6 7ric said to Tasha afterswallowing a few for%fuls. 5!s wrong as it was to ta%e youfrom Gwong, I can assure you she had no evil intent. !nd I

can#t say I#m not glad she did because I would never have hada daughter of my own.6

Tasha smiled. 5I can#t say I#m glad my birth parentsdied the way they did, but I am glad we#re together 3 you,me, and @u "i.6 Tasha did not want them to thin% she was

ungrateful for all the years they had ta%en care of her. Shepic%ed up a shrimp and waved it at 7ric. 5"ou ma%e for onefabulous coo%.6

7ric laughed. 5I do my best,6 he said.

I#m beginning to thin% I shouldn#t have told 8ramma

that I became a $hristian. She isn#t li%e you or mom about it. 4e used to get along great. )ow every time we tal%, it endsin an argument. 4e don#t spend time together li%e we usedto.6

I did thin% I saw tension clouds starting to swirl

around your heads bac% in the %itchen,6 7ric grinned.Tasha frowned. 5It#s not very funny. I don#t want our

relationship to be li%e this.6

She#ll come around,6 7ric said. 5I#m sure she will.6


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ut you aren#t upset about it, are you? )ot even that Idon#t go to the temple anymore?6

7ric shoo% his head. 5)o. I didn#t even go with @u "ithis morning.6

4hy not?6 Tasha as%ed.

I#m beginning to have second thoughts about it,6 7ricanswered, setting his empty plate on the table beside him.

54hen I was a child my entire family was uddhist. 4ealways have been, ever since--6 e shrugged. 57ver since the beginning, probably. (ur house was even li%e a little temple. 4e chanted, meditated, burned incense. That was /ust the way things were. My parents trained me to thin% accordingto the 'our )oble Truths. I never *uestioned why we did

what we did or believed the way we believed, and I didn#thear about or consider any other religions until I left for C$Santa $ru= at eighteen.

! lot of the guys in my dorm were $hristians. I foundout they weren#t cra=y.6 7ric loo%ed at Tasha. 5)o offense,

but that#s how I had always seen them portrayed 3 narrow minded, always harping on sin and hell or whatever. utthese guys were different. They cared about things I caredabout and had been taught to pursue 3 wisdom, discipline,showing compassion to others, and having a purpose to livefor. Sometimes we tal%ed about our faiths. I even attendedsome of their gatherings. 2esus was an interesting 1erson tome, but I was too busy to thin% about im for too long. Last wee%, when I was at 7'$(), remember?6

Tasha nodded.


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(ne of my old dorm mates was there,6 7ric continued.5 e said he had been praying for me and gave me the 8ospelof 2ohn. I read the whole boo% on my flight bac%.6 7ric#s eyes

brightened. 5It was unli%e anything I#ve ever read before,6 hesaid. 52esus seemed to be tal%ing directly to me.6

Tasha could hardly believe what she was hearing.'inally, someone else in her family was interested in 2esusthe $hrist. 5That#s great,6 she smiled. 52ohn is my favorite

8ospel.67ven though I was raised with it, uddhism has never

been in my heart. I %now a lot of uddhist deities; yet, at thesame time, I don#t %now them,6 7ric said. 5I don#t have arelationship with any of them. I#m not sure any of them %now

me either. ut you...you are certain you %now your 8od?6 "es,6 Tasha answered. 5!nd e %nows me by name, as

well. I thin% our relationship is the most important one Idecided to have.6

4ell, I#m not saying I#m ready to place faith in 2esus

/ust yet,6 7ric said. 5I want to do some more research on my own, but I might need your help. (%ay?6

(%ay,6 Tasha agreed as the doorbell rang.


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chapter eighteen: believe

ey


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headphones on. "ou can go up. Third door on the left.6

Tasha and $assius found 2oshy sitting on the floor infront of his bed. is bac% was turned to them, and silverheadphones covered his ears. The s%ittish figure of $aptain2ac% Sparrow was running across his television screen.2oshy#s bedroom walls were covered with posters of L! Gingsand L! La%ers players. Spotting the remote control, Tashapic%ed it up and clic%ed the screen off.

4ha-?6 2oshy /umped up in a spray of $he9 Mi9 bitsand pieces. e yan%ed off his headphones. 54hat are youdoing? This is my favorite part.6

I called,6 $assius reminded him. 54e#ve come to tell you about 2esus.6

That figures, preacher boy,6 2oshy smir%ed. estuffed the fistful of $he9 Mi9 he was still holding into hismouth. 5Ma%e it *uic%. I have a movie to finish.6

$assius pulled out his i1hone. e clic%ed on a boo%mar%ed ible passage. 5Loo%,6 he said, pointing at a verse. 5This is @omans E& E. 4hy don#t you read it?6

2oshy loo%ed down at the screen. 5P'or all have sinnedand fall short of the glory of 8odD,6 he read *uietly.

That means everyone in the entire world has sinned,6Tasha e9plained. 54e#ve all done bad things 3 me, you, and$assius, too. )one of us are perfect.6 She loo%ed over at$assius, who switched to a second screen.

This is @omans E& H and this is @omans E& ,6$assius said pointing at the verses. 54ould you read them


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for us?6

2oshy loo%ed down at the screen again and startedreading, 5P!s it is written& There is none righteous, no, notoneD; and the second one says& PTherefore, /ust as throughone man sin entered the world, and death through sin, andthus death spread to all men, because all sinned.D6

That#s right,6 $assius said. 5Since we all have sinned,no one is good in 8od#s sight. 4e#re constantly messingthings up. 7ven when we do our best, our best is still notenough. ecause of our sins, we have to die. Let#s see.6 eswitched to another verse, 5This is @omans F& E.6

! 'or the wages of sin is death, but the gift of 8od iseternal life in $hrist 2esus our LordD,6 2oshy read.

(ur sin has to be punished,6 Tasha said.

That punishment is death,6 $assius added. 5)ot /ustdeath in this life which is physical death, but eternal death.6

4hat#s that?6 2oshy as%ed.

Tasha and $assius both loo%ed at each other. 5That#shell,6 $assius said.

Li%e )ight on ald Mountain in Fantasia with theghosts and demons and hags?6 2oshy as%ed.

"eah,6 Tasha answered. 579cept it#s much, much

worse.6

2oshy sighed. e swallowed hard. 5 ut I don#t want togo with the bad guys when I die.6

$assius tapped the @omans F& E verse on his screen.


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5@ead the last part of this verse again, 2oshy.6

! ut the gift of 8od is eternal life in $hrist 2esus ourLordD,6 2oshy read.

That is what saves us from having to go to hell,6$assius said. 5The bad news is that we all have sinned, andour punishment is death. The good news is that 2esus the$hrist died for us and our sins.6 $assius swiped to @omansQ&B.

2oshy %new what to do. e read, 5P ut 8oddemonstrates is own love toward us, in that while we werestill sinners, $hrist died for usD.6

8od loves you,6 $assius said.

So much, 2oshy,6 Tasha added. 5That#s why e sent2esus to die for you. e didn#t want you to spend eternity with the bad guys. o you have another verse?6

$assius turned to @omans H&A and E. 2oshy#s face was serious as he read, 5PThat if you confess with your mouth

the Lord 2esus and believe in your heart that 8od has raisedim from the dead, you will be saved.D P'or whoever calls onthe name of the Lord shall be savedD.6

Since 2esus died for us, all we have to do is believe inim, and we will be saved,6 $assius said. 5)ow, let me as%

you a *uestion. o you believe that you are a sinner, 2oshy?6

2oshy nodded. 5"eah,6 he said *uietly. 5I#ve donesome pretty bad stuff. 7veryone %nows that.6

!nd do you believe 2esus died for your sins 3 the badstuff you#ve done?6 $assius as%ed.


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2oshy nodded again. 5"eah.6 Tasha silently prayed forhim to ma%e the right decision.

$assius had another *uestion. 5 o you want to as%2esus into your heart? 4ould you li%e to be saved rightnow?6

2oshy nodded. e loo%ed at $assius in his eyes. 5"es,6he said.

Tasha put an arm around 2oshy#s shoulders. 5!ll youhave to do is believe,6 she told him. 5"ou can let 8od %now you want to be saved by praying to im.6

That#s it? ut I#ve never prayed before.6

4e#ll help you,6 $assius said. 5I#ll say a part out loud.

If you agree with it and believe it, you can pray it out loud to8od. e#ll hear you.6

The three %ids %nelt down on the floor beside 2oshy#s bed. 5 ear 8od,6 $assius started.

ear 8od,6 2oshy repeated. is voice sounded sha%y.

Tasha opened her eyes and pee%ed over at him. Tears randown his chee%s. She patted his shoulder softly.

I reali=e that I am a sinner,6 $assius continued.

I reali=e that I am a sinner,6 2oshy repeated.

I believe that 2esus died for my sins,6 $assius said.

I believe 2esus died for my sins,6 2oshy prayed.

I believe e was buried and rose again.6

I believe with all my heart that e was buried and


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in a dream. 5I can hardly believe it.6 The ne9t second he wasrunning down the sidewal% rivaling the birds in their noise.52oshy got saved


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chapter nineteen: !hite tiger prophecy 4ith one hand, Tasha yan%ed a brush through her

hair while pulling out of her shoe closet a pair of buc%ledcutout booties with the other. She mentally went over thetrigonometry problems she thought would be on the wee%lypop *ui= that her math teacher gave every Monday atacienda igh. The wee%end had been so une9pectedly busy

that she hadn#t had time to study properly, but Tasha wassure she would still do well. She dropped both the shoes and brush as her phone rang and went to answer it.

ello?6 Tasha said. ! cacophony of $hinese floodedher ear from the other end. She recogni=ed the voice.

5Gwong


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day rise again.

4hen the /ade ewer is filled with the blood of the white tiger and poured into the "ellow @iver all that the water touches will be made gold. 4hen the white tiger is%illed on a /ade altar, the Mings will be restored to glory. !ndthis white tiger is no ordinary one. It must be fourteenmoons. It must be born of man.6

Tasha thought of @a/u#s note. 5 ut what does it haveto do with my brother?6 she as%ed. 5!nd how in the worldcan a human give birth to an animal?6

Tasha Lu, don#t you understand?6 Gwong sighed.5"our brother is the tiger.6


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chapter t!enty: austin$ollette was waiting on the front steps of acienda

igh when !l 8race dropped Tasha off. 5That all sounds toofrea%y to be true,6 he had said after she told him what Gwonghad told her. 5 ut with all that he said on Sunday, I#minclined to believe him.6

4e#re going to be late for class if we don#t hurry,6

$ollette said, following Tasha into the main hall. 5"ou %nowhow rac is about late students. e#ll ma%e us clean theentire classroom instead of going to lunch.6

rac, short for racula, was the nic%name they hadgiven to their math teacher. (nce, he told the class he dran%

piranha#s blood while on a trip to the !ma=on and found ittasty. 'or good luc%, he %ept three drops of his dead mother#s blood in a tiny vial around his nec%. 5I %now,6 Tasha said.She fumbled with the combination on her loc%er beforeplacing her boo% bag inside and pulling out a red noteboo%.

!re you still a part of that new club?6 $ollette as%edas they started down the hall.

"eah, we meet on Tuesdays and Saturdays. It#s pretty cool,6 Tasha answered. 5 o you want to /oin?6

)ot yet,6 $ollette said. She bit down on her bottom

lip. 5 o you guys pray in there?6 "eah, sure,6 Tasha answered. 54hy?6

$an you pray for my brother? e ran away lastnight.6


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Tasha stopped wal%ing. She remembered $ollette#sfraternal twin brother, !ustin. e had stopped attendingschool with them in elementary when his $C behavior

reached erratic levels. 7ver since he was three, !ustin#speriodic rages had baffled his parents, sister, teachers, andpsychologists ali%e. 'rustrated doctors had labeled him ! , e9tremely depressed, ($ and several otherdisorders. ut none of them really %new for certain what

made !ustin fly into sudden fits of anger, punch holes in walls, lie screaming on the floor for hours, tear out his hair,and repeatedly open and slam doors until the %nobs bro%eoff. is parents had pulled him out of school and now %epthim home while see%ing the best treatment for him.

o you have any idea where he went?6 Tasha as%ed.

$ollette shoo% her head. 5 e was at home last night. 4hen we wo%e up, he was gone,6 she e9plained. 5I#m /ust so worried he#ll end up hurting himself. (r even worse,someone else. My dad did alert the police, however. I hopethey find him soon.6

Tasha reached out and gave her friend a tight hug.5They will,6 she said in her most hopeful voice. 5 old a sec.6Tasha turned and ran bac% the way they had /ust come to herloc%er. She un=ipped her boo% bag and pulled a E paper bracelet out. 5 ere,6 she offered /oining $ollette again. 5I

meant to give it to you earlier. I coded it myself.6

2esus loves you,6 $ollette read ta%ing the bracelet.She slipped it on her left wrist and smiled at Tasha. 5Than%s<That#s good to %now; I thin%.6


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rac greeted them with pure delight when theyentered the classroom. is mouth was curved into a widesmile, and his narrow nose twitched. 5"oung ladies, you#re

late


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chapter t!enty*one: lycanthropy

"ou#re shining so bright over there I almost thought you were an angel,6 7nri*ue called across !rt @oom numberE as members of :(7givers came in one by one. It was earlyTuesday morning. They were meeting for prayer beforeclasses started.

Madison ran a hand through her strawberry-blondehair waves and flashed her best smile. 5MaybeI#m your angel,6 she win%ed.

Shannon shot both of them a disapproving loo%.5Since everyone is here now, shall we pray?6 she as%ed.

The members of :(7givers gathered in a wide doublecircle and held hands. 5 oes anyone have any special thingsto pray about?6 $assius as%ed.

"es,6 Tasha spo%e up. 51lease pray for my friend,$ollette, and her parents. (n Sunday, her brother ran away.e#s mentally challenged, and they#re really concerned abouthim.6

(%ay,6 2amie said. 5Geep praying for my dad. Last wee% he was stationed at a new base in 2apan. 1ray for 8odto %eep him safe, along with all our troops.6

I would li%e everyone to pray for me to grow in$hrist,6 2oshy said ne9t. 5Than%s to $assius and Tasha I#mreally new to this 2esus thing, but I want to do what is right.So you guys pray for me.6


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Shannon prayed first, followed by 2amie, $assius, and1orschia, who ended her prayer with, 5In the name of 2-7-S-C-S we all pray. !men.6

!men


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I turn fifteen.6

(w didha bowtha cum ouch asa tiger?6 2oshy#s voiceas%ed. e had wal%ed up behind them and heard the lastpart of Tasha#s story.

$ollette turned. 54hat?6 she as%ed.

2oshy swallowed a bite of the pret=el filled with creamcheese he was eating. 5 ow did your brother come out as a

tiger?6 he repeated. 5"ou clearly aren#t a tigress.6I don#t %now,6 Tasha shrugged. 5Gwong#s not certain

how it happened either, but he#s pretty sure the prophecyisn#t tal%ing about anyone else.6

I heard of a woman who gave birth to rabbits,6 2oshy

said. 4as this in one of your pseudo-news sci-fi

maga=ines?6 $assius as%ed.

2oshy shoo% his head. 5)o, this one was real,6 he said.5It happened in London, long time ago.6

I don#t %now about that,6 7nri*ue said. e scratchedhis head and loo%ed at Tasha. 5Maybe your brother /ust has aserious form of lycanthropy.6

4hich means?6 Tasha as%ed.

Lycanthropy is an ailment that causes one to havedelusions in which the affected person believes they are ananimal. Most times the animal is a wolf, but I guess in your brother#s case, he would believe himself to be a tiger,67nri*ue e9plained. 5It is a real thing. @emember in aniel in


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the ible, Ging )ebuchadne==ar started acting li%e a beast.e ate grass li%e a cow, grew hair li%e eagles# feathers, andhis nails became as long as birds# claws.6

4hoa< That#s in the ible?6 2oshy#s eyes were wide.5That sounds better than 4olverine. I#ll have to read that.6

"eah, it#s pretty interesting,6 $assius said. 5Ging )eb wasn#t an animal, but he thought he was one and startedacting li%e one.6

7nri*ue continued, 5There was this professor whofinally identified )ebuchadne==ar#s behavior as clinicallycanthropy.6

$an it be cured?6 $ollette as%ed.

Ging )eb was cured,6 $assius said. 7nri*ue nodded.That sounds li%e the best e9planation for a tiger

being born of man,6 Tasha said. 5I#ll have to tell Gwong afterschool. @ight now, we have to get bac% inside.6 alf of thetrac% was already empty as students made their way bac%

inside. Tasha, 7nri*ue, 2oshy, $assius, Madison, and $ollettefollowed the laughing stragglers to the side double doors.

ey, Tasha,6 $assius said before they separated to goto different classes. 5If you go loo%ing for your brother, tellme. I want to come.6


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chapter t/e ty.t/$" stars0 the)$$ 0 th$usa ,s $1 gala (es

I#m leaving this 'riday to try to find your brother,6Gwong told Tasha over the phone as !l 8race drove herhome from school. 5I feel obligated to do so. !fter losing youthe way I did, it#s the least I can do for 'ang and ai @ong.6

I#m coming with you,6 Tasha said. 5!nd I have afriend who wants to come.6

Gwong hesitated. 5(nly if your fol%s agree. I don#t want to get into any trouble with them.6

Tasha had not thought about that. She was positiveher grandmother would not let her go to the imalayas withGwong. @u "i would probably be undecided about it. She hadthe best possibility of getting approval from 7ric. Tashadecided to as% him.

So you#re going to try to find this brother of yours?6 !l 8race as%ed after Tasha got off the phone with Gwong.

"eah, if I#m allowed to go,6 Tasha answered. 5I thin%7ric will say yes. Gwong only needs to find a private pilot willing to ta%e him. e doesn#t want to fly commercial.$assius said he would as% his older brother about ta%ing us, but I doubt he#ll agree since he only /ust got his license.6

!l 8race straightened his shades. 54ell, if it doesn#tma%e any difference,6 he said. 5I flew fighter /ets in +ietnam.idn#t get to see much action, but I thin% I still %now how tosteer a plane--6


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Tasha cut him off. 5"ou#re perfect


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I don#t thin% you#ve been paying attention to your7nglish teacher,6 7ric said. e gave her a stern loo%. 5"ou#re being declarative, not interrogative.6

$ould I please go with Gwong to the imalayas?6Tasha tried again.

)ow that is a sentence that demands an answer,67ric said. e leaned bac% in his chair. 5I have a feeling you%now what your mother and 8ramma would say about this.6

)o?6 Tasha suggested.

That#s right,6 7ric agreed. 5 owever, I %now thismatters a lot to you. If our positions were switched and I hada chance to find out about my real family members, I thin% I would do so. "ou have my permission to go, especially since !l will be with you. on#t worry about 8ramma and @u "i.I#ll let them %now about everything after you#ve left. ut if you aren#t bac% in a wee%, I#m coming after you.6

"es


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chapter t!enty*three: spea%ing o" Tasha@u "i smoothed the emerald-green gown she was

holding one last time before handing it to Shan :hen. 52ustperfect,6 Shan :hen complimented. 5I don#t thin% I couldhave done better. Tasha will love it.6

Spea%ing of Tasha, she ought to come and try it on toma%e sure it fits right,6 @u "i said. 5 ave you seen her?6

aven#t seen her all day,6 Shan :hen answered. erforehead creased as she thought. 5In fact, I haven#t seen hersince yesterday morning.6

7ric was in the living room playing a Saturdayafternoon round of bowling on the 4ii. 5 ave you seenTasha?6 @u "i as%ed him. 7ric#s arm stopped mid-swing. efrowned as the ball on the screen rolled into the gutter.5Ch...no,6 he answered. 54hy?6

The premiere for Code-Girl is ne9t wee%. I need forher to try on the dress I made.6

(h, about Tasha...I meant to tell you she went on alittle trip,6 7ric said.

'or school? (n Saturday?6 @u "i as%ed.

She left yesterday,6 7ric said. e loo%ed past @u "i to

Shan :hen standing in the hallway. 5!nd it isn#t e9actlyschool related. She shouldn#t be gone long.6

@u "i had more *uestions. 54here did she go? 4hydidn#t she tell us first?6


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7ric, this had better not be what I thin% it is,6 Shan:hen said sharply.

If you#re thin%ing she went to the imalayas. In$hina. 4ith Gwong. !nd !l. !nd $assius. To find her brother.6 7ric nodded. 5Then your thin%ing is correct. I gaveher permission to go.6

Shan :hen gasped. @u "i dropped the pair of heels she was holding. 57@I$

8/9/2019 Tasha (Gi

Tasha (Girls of Virtue Series, #4)

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Transcript of Tasha (Girls of Virtue Series, #4)