Listen ...Unbreakable Hostage

UNBREAKABLE HOSTAGE by L.E. Harvey
Available in Print and All Ebook Formats

Chapter 1

Lareina meticulously brushed and blow dried her thick black hair. She watched herself carefully in the mirror as she did so. Lareina always tended to the smallest of details with everything in her life. She also enjoyed looking and dressing well. Tonight was no exception. Tonight, she was going back to school again. She still couldn’t believe it was actually happening.

She had been teaching math at a local high school for several years now. She already had her master’s degree. She loved math – especially algebra - and she loved the idea of reaching her students, but she didn't feel that she was actually touching their lives as much as she had hoped. Her students hated math. Math meant nothing to them. Lareina couldn't even try to count the number of times her students talked back and told her what a waste of time it was. It seemed that no matter what she did; no matter what new approaches, methods or techniques she used, they still abhorred the boring but necessary subject.

Lareina fought to keep her students interested, but nothing ever worked. Day after day, Lareina felt her spirit was being crushed by the students' severe lack of interest. Lareina wanted more, though; she wanted so much more than this mediocre teaching job was giving her. She wanted to teach students who shared her passion. So, she decided to make a change. She was going to UCLA to get her Ph. D. in order to teach university level students. The positive environment, and working with students who also loved algebra would be a good change for Lareina. This was absolutely the right decision, she told herself.

Lareina Oliveira was a short Hispanic woman. She and her family had moved to America - to Los Angeles - when she was ten years old; and yet to this day, she still had a noticeable accent. She stood at only five feet tall. Her skin was a glowing olive color. Her hair was as black as a moonless night sky. She had mesmerizing hazel eyes.

Like many Hispanic women, she was quite buxom, but she also had a tiny waist, and great curvy hips. She was nearly perfectly proportionate. With a figure of 34-26-36, she had the ideal hour-glass body. Throughout her life, Lareina had been approached by numerous men for everything from a fun, friendly night out to one night stands. She even had limitless offers for modeling work, but she turned them all down. Her passion was in mathematics and algebra.

Her parents had sacrificed so much for her to have a good life and education here in the United States. She wanted to thank them by pursuing a good education and career. Although she was flattered that so many found her to be beautiful; math was her world, and always would be. She made sure that no one or nothing would ever change that. She finished brushing her thick, shiny, jet black hair. This was her first day towards her goal of acquiring a Ph. D. Today was her day in working towards a new, rewarding life. Excitedly, she grabbed her purse and ran down stairs.

She left a quick note for her roommate, Sandy, on the kitchen table. The University of California started classes before the local high schools, so Sandy was enjoying the remainder of her summer vacation while she could. Lareina and Sandy were an interesting, if not comical, pair. They had met through work: they both taught at the same high school. Working together and living together for several years, the girls had a tight bond. They supported each other; encouraged each other; were always open and honest with each other, and they also liked to tease each other. Lareina was the Hispanic woman who taught math; Sandy was the white woman who taught Spanish. They often joked about the irony of their teaching jobs. Even after several years, they still had a great friendship and were perfect roommates for each other.

Lareina left a short, quick note reminding Sandy that she would be in class, but that she would be home for dinner. She looked at her license plate as she walked to her truck which was quietly parked in the garage. Her license plate read, “X is 2.”

It was the closest she could get to having it say, “X equals two.” Her license plate was proof that Lareina absolutely adored algebra. Lareina chuckled to herself as she got into her black Chevrolet S-10 king cab truck and drove through the streets of Los Angeles to reach the University in time.