Uncontrollable (The Nature of Grace, Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

her cry. Not even at the funeral.
    She swallows and speaks softly. “Mary, honey, maybe you two have been trying to forget him. To make it easier. Not me. I need to remember him. It’s the only way I can get through each day. The more I forget, the harder it is.”
    I glance back and forth between them, tears clouding my vision. Mom and I talked about Dad a little in the beginning, but at some point after the memorial service and after Birdee left, he fell out of the conversation. I guess it was easier that way, but now I realize Birdee is right. We can’t forget Dad just because it hurts to remember.
    I half-laugh and half-cry. “Boy, Dad would love us arguing over him right now.”
    Birdee cups Mom’s hand. “Yes, he did love being the center of a conversation, even though he always pretended like he didn’t need to be.”
    Mom nods. “That is so true.”
    Birdee pats my head. “Chicken, it’s okay to be sad. All of us.” She reassures Mom. “It just means we’re feeling something, girls. Better to feel pain then nothing at all. When we feel nothing, that means we’re dead, too.”
    Mom laughs while crying. “Yes. Joe always used to say that. You’re right, Birdee, we’ll do better. Won’t we, honey?”
    Birdee squeezes Mom’s hand again. Mom reaches over and clutches onto mine. For a short second, we all three sit in a semi-circle holding hands around the table in silence. The bond of that moment somehow heals a small sliver of the scar running through my heart.
    A few seconds later, Birdee snatches her hand back. “Well, that’s enough Days of Our Lives for one day. Chicken, tell me, how’s school going? And don’t just say ‘fine,’ because I want deets.”
    “Good.” I smile and rip off a piece of bread. Popping the warm dough into my mouth, I try to act natural as I dive into the wolf project. “Today I got chosen for a special project. The USFWS is doing a new study on the red wolves, and they need some students to help gather data in the field.”
    Birdee claps. “Well, good for you! Your daddy would be so proud.”
    Mom jerks her head in my direction. “What kind of data?”
    I pause for a second, trying to think of a way to make this project sound as low-risk as possible. “You know, when they eat, when they sleep – just everyday behavior stuff.”
    Before Birdee can say anything, Mom pipes in again. “When you say field , do you mean you’re going out into the woods? Or is this at an animal reserve of some sort?”
    “There is a reserve.” I keep my head down and nod as if the question doesn’t matter. I tell a small white lie to ease her anxiety. “So probably both.”
    Mom doesn’t bite. Instead, she pushes back her chair and stands, collecting dishes. As she walks into the kitchen, she simply says one word, “No.”
    It takes me a second to process and react. “No? Wait! Mom, please. I have to do this. Ms. Cox is giving extra credit, and I need to make up for all the days I missed this quarter because of the trial.”
    I jump up and follow her into the kitchen with another dirty plate. “Besides, I already said yes. I can’t back out now. They already assigned teams.”
    Mom shakes her head and starts scrubbing so hard, I swear she’s trying to scrape the flowery design off the plate. Her voice is flat. “I said no. It’s too dangerous being out in the woods again. Alone. Never mind it’s going to be a nasty winter.” She shakes her head. “No way. Not a chance in Hades, Grace.”
    I try to keep my voice flat. “I’ll be careful, I promise. I won’t be by myself. I have a whole team, and Agent Sweeney is in charge.”
    She crosses her arms. “Sweeney? Has he found—”? She stops.
    I know what she’s going to say, so I hit the concern head- on, hoping to make her feel better about the project. Show her I’m not scared so she doesn’t have to be. “Al? No, I don’t think so.”
    She jerks back, surprised. “You don’t think so? Uh, that’s not good