Seduced by Lies Read Online Free PDF

down the hall.
    Mrs. Barley’s hand shook, and her smile didn’t reach her eyes when she looked at her husband. "You remember Curtis, dear?"
    Mr. Barley grunted. "I remember he went to that school.” He faced Curtis, his eyes hard and voice gruff. “They let you out whenever you feel like it, boy?"
    My new power opened up, and I could see into his heart, into the hearts of everyone in the room. His had darkness seeping out of it, anger and hate and pain boiling inside of him.
    Mrs. Barley, whose heart was kind, but weak, held out her hand. "George, please—"
    Curtis interrupted just as I was about to say something to put this old bastard in his place. "It's okay." He faced Mr. Barley. "The school is voluntary."
    The old man’s lips curled around his teeth in a sneer. "They should change that."
    Tension filled the room, and I released a strand of my power to calm everyone, despite my own anger and raised pulse.
    Mrs. Barley handed her husband a cup of tea. "George, he's here to talk about Jared." At the mention of his name, tears fell from her eyes and her breathing hitched on her sobs. I could see the grief pouring out of her, nearly suffocating Curtis.
    He put his cup down and looked at Jared’s grandparents. “Do you know anything beyond what they’re reporting in the news? What happened to him?”
    The tears continued to fall as Mrs. Barley spoke. “The police said it was an animal attack. A wolf, it looked like.”
    George laughed a humorless laugh. “That’s a crock of horse shit, Delores.” He pointed to Curtis. “We all know it was one of your kind. Don’t pretend it’s not.”
    Our kind? Who the hell did this guy think he was? I was about to argue with him, but Curtis put a hand on mine. We stared at each other, and even though I couldn’t read minds like Sam, I knew he wanted me to back off, to not start a confrontation. I took a breath and relaxed my body, channeling my power to calm myself this time. I was here for him, not my own agenda. I needed to let him set the tone of this meeting.
    Still, George pissed me off. It was because of people like him that we all had to live in fear and secrecy. He was the reason our kids were in danger from the world, and I hated it.
    Curtis, with more calm then I could have mustered, asked, "Why do you think it's a paranormal?"
    "I heard about him hanging out with some of your kind,” George said, spitting the words your kind at us like a vulgarity. "It's not his fault, though, I told people that. They tricked him somehow. Used some powers on him. And now…" His voice halted, sadness gripping him. "Now he's dead."
    "Do you know who he was hanging out with?" I asked.
    He shrugged. "Some kids, I don't know. I told him not to see them again. But they made him, somehow."
    The pieces fell together, forming a picture of what had really been going on with Jared before he died.
    Curtis leaned forward. "I know about Jared, about his… special gifts."
    George’s bushy eyebrow shot up as his face shut down. "What?” His voice escalated into a shout. “What are you implying? Are—"
    "George," Delores put a hand on George’s arm. "It's time to stop lying about him."
    "Lying?” He shrugged his wife’s hand off his arm. “I've told them the truth."
    And I didn’t have to be Lucy, the human lie detector, to know he was telling a fat one.
    Delores turned to face us. "There were times when water in the house would boil for no reason. In the bath, in the pots…"
    "I just left the stove on," George grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.
    "And your burn?" Delores asked.
    His eyes dropped to a faded scar on his arm. "My boy had nothing to do with that. The water heater was acting up, and I turned the bath water on too hot."
    "Your grandson was a paranormal,” Curtis said it as a statement, not a question. “Likely, that's why he started hanging out with others. I don't think they're responsible—"
    George stood, knocking his tea over as he bumped the table. "My boy