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"Christ, it’s bright in here" Carh the silent room, but no one was around to scold him

"First time in the library?" Dolish class," he said defensively "I even checked out a book once"

"Which book?"

"The Count of Monte Cristo I had to do a report last year"

"So you actually read it?"

"Yeah," he said "I read the first page before I rented theup files on the co to decipher what all the coding rades for you, bro"

His eyes widened "Really?"

"No, but I did look at theh school at the rate you’re going"

Car the school’s servers and going through people’s records like this shit isn’t illegal And they say I’onna turn out like Dad"

"I don’t intentionally hurt people, so you still have me there," Dominic said "Besides, have you seen your disciplinary record?"

"I think the better question is have you seen it, Do a true-crier than Uncle Corrado’s arrest record, and that’s saying a lot"

Their aunt Celia’s husband, Corrado Moretti, had been arrested more times in his life than he had had birthdays, but none of the charges ever stuck Whether it was a e, or a bribed juror, Corrado always found a way out of trouble

A reporter once dubbed him the Kevlar Killer No matter what he was hit with, he came out unscathed

"Uncle Corrado’s the Man of Steel," Do bullet"

"Did you seriously just couess I didn’t think that one through"

Glancing at his watch, Caret to history before Mrs Anderson sends a search party out for me"

"Yeah, you do that," Do the class"

"You’re really not gonna change rade for reat power coreat responsibility?"

Carmine smacked his brother on the back of the head as he walked past "That’s Spider-Man, duht in just enough time to see Haven bolt up the stairs He washed his hands and went into the dining roo his head to pray when he sat down "Signore, benedici questi peccatori che essi iano la loro cene"

Lord, bless these sinners as they eat their dinners

Car before they could say, "A the meal, and Dominic humored him, but Carmine reer went off, and he dis to head to work Carmine made his way upstairs and hesitated when he saw Haven in the library, gazing out the ith her pallass

He expected her to flee, but she insteadin the darkness "What are those things?"

Carmine turned to see if so to talk to his"

"Why do they glow?" she asked "Is it so they can see?"

He strolled over to her "I think it’s how they talk to each other"

"Wow"

"You’ve never seen them before?"

She shook her head "We didn’t have any in Blackburn"

"Ah, well, we have plenty here," he said "They’re like flying beetles with asses that light up"

She smiled at his description "They’re beautiful"

"They’re just bugs Nothing special"

"They’re alive," she said "That makes them special"

He had no coaze out the hile he watched her, seeing the childlike wonder in her expression She looked as if she were seeing the world for the first time, like she had been blind until now but suddenly could see He wondered if she felt that way, too, if everything in front of her was brand-new