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He nodded "Do you know it?"

"No," I whispered "What--ere you doing there?"

Dante hesitated "I was in hiding," he said "Like I told you I was"

My lip began to quiver I bit it and turned away, hoping he hadn’t seen "What do you do when you’re in hiding?"

"I’ve been searching for an answer for us," he said, beginning to groorried "You know that"

I gripped the bedpost "Searching where? In nition passed over him "Mailboxes?"

"Eleanor’s mother is dead," I said

"What?" he said, confused "How do you know?"

"Don’t pretend like it’s a surprise," I said "You went to a farmhouse and took a piece of paper from the mailbox It had Cindy Bell’s nauilt etching itself into his face as he stepped toward id, he stopped

"What was it, then? Why did you go there? What did you do with that slip of paper?"

Dante gripped the edge of the dresser "Please," he said "Don’t ask ht to know"

"You don’t understand," he said "If I tell you, I’ll be putting you in danger"

"Why?" I closed"What kind of danger?"

Dante searched for an answer "I can’t--"

Suddenly I was crying "Did you kill her?" I said, so softly I wasn’t sure he heard me "Did you kill Eleanor’s"Of course I didn’t You know I couldn’t"

"You’re lying," I said, studying hiainst the wall "And Miss LaBarge? Did you chase her boat in Lake Erie? Did you take her shovel and then follow her to the island and kill her?"

Dante’s expression widened with bewilderh his voice cracked when he said it He didn’t deny the rest

"My visions," I whispered "They’ve been yours the entire ti for the secret of the Nine Sisters, and you never told me Why? Why didn’t you just tell me the truth? What’s so bad about what you did that you had to keep it from me?"

"I wanted to tell you I wanted to tell you ive me some explanation, but instead he seemed to shrink into the shadows

Downstairs, the clock chiht "I don’t understand," I said, my voice ith desperation "Tell me why you chased her Why you took Cindy Bell’s name from a mailbox Why you kept it a secret from me"

Dante raised his hand to"Please," he said, pleading "You have to trust me"

"Why?" I cried "Why should I trust you? I don’t even knoho you are"

Dante’s eyes darted to the door, worried that I would wake someone up "Of course you do," he said in disbelief, his shoulders sinking as if I had wounded hihtened "You’re a murderer I have the soul of a murderer" He sucked in his breath like I’d slapped hi his head

"What do you want from me?" I yelled "Why are you here?"

"Because I wanted to see you," he said "Because I love you"

Out ht turn on, casting a long yellow rectangle across the snow on the front lawn Dante froze when he saw it Dustin must have woken up

"I don’t believe you," I breathed

Dante blinked, his chest collapsing as if there were nothing left inside him And for a moment I could see hih the rain and pressedh the field of flowers behind the chapel and gave my soul back to me

And for reasons I can’t explain, I wasn’t scared when he caentle on ht as he studiedto die I closedto see hiainst ainst my skin…and then, delicately, he kissed my cheek