Helen? Lucas said, touching the side of her face and turning
her eyes to his. Im sorry to bring him up, but you know I had to.
I know, Lucas, its not that, she began and stopped, needed a
second to regroup. Do you think my lightning is dangerous?
Very, he said seriously. But only if you dont learn to use it.
I dont want to use it! I want to go back to forgetting about it!
Helen, you dont need to run away from yourself anymore, he
said, scowling down at the ground. Look, this is partly my fault. I
should have told you about your lightning sooner, but I could tell
you were avoiding it, maybe even repressing it, for some reason.
What I really wanted was for you to discover it yourself and want
to learn about it, like you did with flying.
Lucas, I . . . Helen broke off, shaking her head. I think I killed
someone with it, and even if he was trying to hurt me, it still terrifies
me.
You cant be afraid of your power anymore, Helen, Lucas said
gently. You are the strongest of us all, but all that strength is for
nothing until you own your powers.
But Ive spent my entire life scared to death of using any of
them, Helen said in a strangled voice, thinking about her cramps.
I know Im asking you to forget about years and years of conditioning,
and it probably wont happen overnight, but it still has to
happen, and you have to be the one to decide to make it happen.
You are the most amazingly talented Scion Ive ever seen. Lucas
raked a hand through his hair and shook his head, at a loss.
Really, Helen, you cant see yourself the way I do, but if you could,
youd be speechless. Its time for you to stop fearing what you can
do, and its definitely time for you to start using all your talents
when you train, especially your lightning.
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How am I supposed to do that without frying everyone? I dont
suppose you have a garage full of lightning rods? she tried to joke,
flustered that Lucas thought she was powerful, but more important,
that he seemed to love that about her.
I havent worked out the details yet, he said with a grin. But Ill
think of something.
When they went into the house it was dinnertime. Helen was
happy to see that Claire was still there, sitting at the table, waiting
to be fed like the rest of the family, chatting away with the twins
about a paper due the next morning for one of their brainiac
classes, and stopped only to wave excitedly at Helen when she and
Lucas came through the back door.
As usual, the kitchen was packed. Pallas and Castor were hovering
hungrily over the stove, burning themselves every time they
dipped a finger into a pot to taste what Noel was cooking, but not
caring enough to stop. Pandora and Hector were joking around
with each other by the sink, laughing identical laughs as they tried
to see who was better at spitting a grape into the air and then
catching it again in their mouths. Poor Noel couldnt turn one way
or the other without tripping over one of her offspring, a guest, a
husband, an in-law, a nephew, or a nieceand, yet again, no one
seemed to be lending her a hand.
You know I can cook, right? Should I offer to help your mom?
Helen asked Lucas sheepishly.
Are you kidding? My mom loves this. Sometimes I think shes
just waiting for all of us to get married and move out so she can
open her own restaurant. He saw Helens dubious look. Im serious!
She was telling my dad the other day she wants to have a dinner
party and invite half the island. Shes insane.
There you are, Helen, dear, Noel said when she looked up, as if
she had been truly anxious about Helens whereabouts. Then she
turned back to her stove top and started talking to herself. Shell
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need extras. So damned thin all of a sudden . . . Father still doesnt
know the first thing about her so he isnt feeding her properly and
Kate is so worried! Now where is Cassie?
Noel was mumbling to herself, but loud enough so Helen could
hear. She couldnt tell if Noel was out of her mind with stress, used
to being talked over in such a loud room, or if she was intentionally
letting Helen in on her thoughts. Noel took a lungful of air and
hollered Cassandras name.
voice yelling back, Start without me, Im busy!
Helen and Claire shared a wide-eyed stare, which melted into
identical warm smiles. They had both been only children, both
growing up not being allowed to raise their voices indoors. Together,
theyd dreamed of having big families and full houses with a
thousand things happening at once, and now they saw in the other
the remembrance of that girlish wish. The yelling jangled the
nerves a bit, but there was no denying that it made the Delos house
feel like a home. Hec-Jace-Castor-Lucas! Noel sputtered while
she stared at her sons face and repeatedly forgot what she had
named him. Go drag your little sister down here. We have guests
tonight.
Lucas did as his mother asked, returning with a very grouchy
Cassandra thrown over a shoulder.
But I see them every day! Cassandra whined as Lucas bent forward
and put her down on her own feet next to Helen.
Mom said, Lucas replied with an apologetic shrug. Apparently,
there was no arguing with that because Cassandra rolled her eyes
and sat down at the table without another word.
Hi, Cassandra said in a slightly miffed way to Helen. Do you
eat a lot of garlic?
No. Why? Does my breath stink? Helen replied uncertainly,
already working up a blush at the thought of having gassed Lucas
all day with dragon breath.
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Not at all. Just trying to figure out why youre impervious to
weapons, she said. She held up a book she had clutched in her
hand and waved it at Noels uncaring back. Im trying to solve a
problem here, she said loudly, obviously intending for her mother
to hear, but Noel kept right on cooking.
Ive been looking stuff up, too, Hector added, hands behind his
head, exactly like someone who hadnt.
You just worry about teaching her to defend herself, and Ill take
care of the research, Cassandra said in a frazzled way as she
opened her book and started leafing through it. Hector smiled, obviously
glad he was off the hook.
Castor, Pallas, and Cassandra, asked Helen about different
habitsfoods she ate, daily routines, even prayers her mother
might have taught her to say before bed. Nothing yielded an answer,
and they gave up when dinner was served.
It was good. Really, really good. Helen ate like she hadnt been
fed in weeks. She drank glass after glass of water. She was so dehydrated
she could feel the cool water fanning out in her system
and thickening her tissues like a dry rag fatten
ing up as it absorbs a
puddle. She felt guilty at one point for hogging all the food and
forced herself to put her knife and fork down, but Noel looked at
her sharply and asked her if she didnt like the meal. Helen murmured
an apology and gladly resumed chowing down.
After dinner, Lucas drove her back to her house, which by now
was a waste of both time and fuel, but something they had to do to
keep Jerry from getting suspicious about how Helen was traveling
around the island.
I dont like leaving you alone, Lucas said, glancing nervously at
every shadow in the yard.
Ill be okay, Helen lied. Actually, now that it was dark out she
didnt want Lucas to get farther than a few inches away from her,
but with her dad home there was no option but for them to
separate.
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Ill be back in an hour or so, Lucas told her as she got out of the
car. Helen shut the door but kept a hold of it, looking at him uncertainly
through the open window. What is it? he asked.
I feel horrible, Lucas! Its autumn, and you and your cousins are
sleeping outside at night. That just isnt acceptable.
We dont have much of a choice. We cant leave you by yourself
until you can fight.
I wont allow it anymore, she said, tucking her hair behind her
ear and crossing her arms stubbornly. Youre just going to have to
stay in my room.
barely shut my eyes last night. Trust me, Ill get more sleep on your
roof.
No, she said, sticking to her guns, even though she was getting
warm and jittery at the thought of him in her room again. You
either come inside or you dont spend the night here at all.
Lucas looked up at her. Well figure something out when I get
back. Okay?
Helen reluctantly agreed and went into the house to see her dad.
Through a wide yawn, he tried to ask her how her weekend had
gone but after working double shifts for two days straight he could
barely keep his eyes open. Helen sent him to bed, promising to fix
breakfast in the morning. Jerry was snoring away before shed
even brushed her teeth. She finished up in the bathroom and put
on a pair of boxer shorts and a baggy V-neck tee, thinking that Lucas
would appreciate her attempt to cover up, and then went to the
linen closet to find an air mattress she was pretty sure her dad had
gotten for his birthday a few years ago.
At the bottom of the closet she found the unused kit herding dust
bunnies around its corners and brought it back into her bedroom.
She sat down on the floor, opened the box, and took out the different
components. As she tried to find any part of the instructions
that was written in English, she heard a tap. She smiled
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involuntarily, and waved for Lucas to come through her unlatched
window, marveling at how lovely he looked as he soared in her
window, quite certain that she looked nothing like that when she
flew.
Is that spine cracker for me? he whispered with a smile as he
pointed at the air mattress.
Hey, if you dont like it, Im all for you sleeping in my bed,
Helen whispered back, making a show of closing up the kit.
No, its perfect, he said, stopping her by grabbing her hands
and pulling her into his arms. He held on to her like he hadnt seen
her in forty days, instead of forty minutes, and then he grinned and
rubbed his face against her cheek.
You need a shave! she said, squirming away from his scratchy
chin. He chuckled sadistically and turned his attention to the air
mattress.
I was going to sleep on the couch downstairs, he said uncertainly,
still deciding if that would be better.
My dad . . .
Wouldnt be able to get down the stairs fast enough to catch
me.
And what if you didnt hear him and didnt get out in time? Id
never be able to explain it, Helen countered.
Better that than the alternative, he said, gathering up the mattress.
Look, Im fine on the roof, Helen. Im really not comfortable
sleeping in here with you. I think it would be a mistake.
No matter how guilty it made her feel to make Lucas sleep on the
roof, she could tell that she wasnt going to win this one. They
dragged the air mattress up to the widows walk and eventually
figured out how it was supposed to inflate, but Lucas had to read
the instructions in Spanish because the English ones were nearly
incomprehensible. Hilariously so.
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Insert mouth to the purpose inflation, Helen whispered, quoting
one of the stranger lines of the English instructions as she fixed
up the newly filled mattress with sheets.
Expel lung into inflator tube, Lucas whispered back. He stuffed
a pillow into a fresh case. That sounds like it would hurt.
Trying to silence their giggle fit only made it harder to stop. They
both crumpled up on top of the mattress, stifling their laughs.
Every now and again they would get control over themselvesonly
to snort and stuff their hands back over their faces as soon as they
made eye contact. It went on way past the time when their throats
started stinging with the tension of holding in the sound. Finally,
they got it all out and just lay there on their backs, breathing heavily
with the exhaustion of a damn good laugh. Helen felt Lucas take
her hand and shake his head at the night sky.
What am I doing? he whispered to himself, digging his other
hand into his hair.
What? Were not allowed to laugh together now? she
whispered, the ghost of a smile still haunting her lips.
Its not that, he said, turning his face to her tenderly. But its
not exactly healthy for me to enjoy your company so much that
something as stupid as blowing up a mattress is this much fun. As
soon as I think Im in control, you make me laugh or you say
something so smart, and I feel like I lose a little bit of myself. I
thought I was prepared, but this is much harder than I imagined.
And what exactly is this, Lucas? Why are you sleeping on my
roof and not in my bed? Helen asked. She rolled over onto her
side to face him and reached out to run her fingers over the Ushaped
hollow under his Adams apple.
Go downstairs, he ordered desperately, brushing her hand
away before she made contact. Please, Helen. Go to your own
bed.
There was a part of Helen that knew exactly how to seduce Lucas
whether he wanted to be seduced or not, and that freaked her out
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enough to make her get up and walk on shaky legs to her own bed.
It rattled her that she could be so aggressive, so unconcerned with
what he wanted that she would consider forcing herself on him.
As she settled down under the covers she heard Lucas tossing
and turning above her. She heard him stan
d up with a sharp exhale
and go to the door on the widows walk.
Her heart started joyfully hammering away when she heard him
put his hand on the knob and turn it. Helen sat up, listening to him
listening to her.
Both of them could hear the others breath, the others blood
rushing around under the skin, and, for just a second, Helen could
have sworn that she was so aware of him that she could feel his
body heat from so far away. Finally, he seemed to win some kind of
fight, and forced himself to go lie back down on his air mattress.
Helen lay back as well. After getting control over her thumping
heart, she fell into the dreamless sleep that she was usually blessed
with when Lucas was watching over her.
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HarperCollins Publishers
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Chapter Fourteen
Just before dawn, Lucas touched her face to wake her up.
When she opened her eyes, he kissed her forehead and told
her hed be back in a bit to take her to school. Then he
jumped out her window and flew away. Helen decided
there was no way she was going to be able to fall back
asleep, so she got up and made a big elaborate breakfast for her
dad.
You okay? Jerry asked between mouthfuls of pancake, syrup,
and bacon.
Considering? Im great, she answered honestly as she sipped
her coffee.
How are things with you and Lucas? he asked cautiously.
Weirdern hell, she replied with a smile. Then she shrugged and
laughed. But what can you do?
What can you do? her father repeated. His chewing slowed
down as an all-consuming thought hijacked his motor skills.
Helen knew he must be thinking about Kate, but an instinct told
her to let him be. He still needed more time, and when he was
ready he would come to her to talk about it.
Lucas picked her up as planned; they sparked and blushed at the
sight of each other. Just sitting in the same car with him put Helen
in such a good mood that when one of her favorite songs came on
the radio she danced in her seat and somehow convinced Lucas to
sing along with her as they drove to school. He would deny it later,
but he got really into it, and Helen stopped to listen to him with
her mouth hanging open.
What? he said, stunned when he noticed he was belting out the