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"I would die for you again if you asked me to," he said so softly that I wasn’t even sure if I had actually heard him

From down the hall, I heard footsteps Surprised, I opened my eyes just as Dante vanished into the shadows of my room

There were three soft raps on the door Confused, my eyes darted about the darkness What had just happened?

"Renée?" Dustin’s voice wasMay I come in?"

I rubbedthe tears froy, the left side of his face red fro on his hand; but his eyes were sharp as they darted around the room

"Is someone here?" he said, his voice more stern than I had ever heard it before

"No," I said, steadying aze to oing to go downstairs and clean up a bit If you need anything, I’ll be in the kitchen"

"I’ll help you," I said, eager to take Dustin’s attention away fro off the light, I closed the door,for the briefest

Downstairs, I helped Dustin with the dishes in silence When ere done, I poured lass of ust of cold air enveloping me as I opened the door But once inside, I realized that it was just an openDante was gone It was just cold air now Pushing theclosed, I looked down to the lahere his footprints were already being filled in with snow

Chapter 12

RENÉE?" MY GRANDFATHER’S VOICE CALLED FROM outside my bedroom door "It’s tiry"

"You’ve barely eaten anything all week" He turned the knob, and when he realized it was locked, he rattled it "What are you doing in there?"

"Nothing," I said, dragging a chair into my closet, which was still filled with s froainst the wall, and when I thought one, I climbed on top of it and patted around the top shelf until I felt a long leather case Wedging it out, I pulled it onto the floor, where it landed with a thud

"What was that sound?"in an hour"

"Yes," I yelled, opening the clasps on the case "I’m fine Just leave me alone" Inside was a shovel, its wooden sheath dark with oil frorazed the ly heavy when I lifted it froazed across the roo to see myself for who I was A Monitor

I pulled down the back of my shirt and stared at the reflection of the ed from white to pink as I rolled my shoulders, the way its shape see from an oval to a skull to the silhouette of Dante’s face

"There’s nothing between us," I whispered, ed my mind, I tore a Band-Aid out of its wrapper and pressed it over the spot, covering hi him from my life

Montreal was three feet deep in snohen I arrived later that evening The wheels of my suitcase left tobbly trails in the street as I pulled it down the alley that led to St Cléates, I stopped My suitcase had gotten stuck in a ridge of ice Turning, I tugged on the handle, when I noticed that it wasn’t just a ridge It was a shape: a giant letter drawn into the sidewalk I stepped back, pushing my hood from my face as I realized there wasn’t just one letter, there were round beneath the streetlae written in Latin

FORGIVE ME, it read

I let go of s for any trace of Dante A door over a fire escape flapped in the wind Otherwise, all was still Pullingfro snoly fill in the letters Forgive hi honest withoff ht to Anya’s, where I knocked on the door and hovered by the broo with h the door that she would just be a minute

She answered the door in a silk robe "Renée, I didn’t know you were back"

"We have to go to Veraze "Come inside"

Her room was cluttered with clothes and shoes and lacy underwear She pushed them off her couch and sat down next to me "You had another vision"

In her upper ear was a new piercing, which she rotated as I told her about the farDante I wanted to tell her about hi down on o But for some reason, I couldn’t

That was the first tireat Monitor If I were, I would have turned Dante in I would have stopped hirandfather about hi, and helped them hunt him down So why hadn’t I?