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But her inheritance, the thunderstone, the accidents and deaths and ghostly people, the way this store felt too in tune with the storm inside of her …

It wasn’t a hurricane It was Eureka

Ander stood quietly at the edge of her bed, giving her tiain She wanted to hold hie of the translation, which laid out the conditions of the prophecy "Is thisHe noticed and inhaled sharply, as if in pain "You can’t cry, Eureka Not now"

He moved toward her swiftly and lowered his lips to her eyes Her eyelids fluttered closed He kissed her right eyelid, then her left Then there was a quiet moment when Eureka could not ht interrupt the feeling that Ander was closer to her than anyone had ever been before

When he pressed his lips to hers, she was not surprised It happened the way the sun rose, the way a flower blossomed, the way rain fell fro Naturally Inevitably His lips were firhtly salty They made her body flush with heat

Their noses touched and Eureka opened her mouth to take inthe path his fingers follohen he was nervous He didn’t see to for a very long time, as if he’d been born to do it His hands caressed her back, pressed her against his chest His ue one This was the most insensitive moment to cash in on a crush Only it didn’t feel like a crush It felt life-altering and unstoppable

She was out of breath but didn’t want to interrupt the kiss Then she felt Ander’s breath inside her mouth Her eyes shot open She pulled away

First kisses were about discovery, transformation, wonder

Then why did his breath in her mouth feel familiar?

Somehow, Eureka remembered After Diana’s accident, after the car ept to the bottom of the Gulf and Eureka washed ashore, miraculous, alive--never before had she evoked this iven her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation

She closed her eyes and saw the halo of blond hair above her, blocking out the s, the arht it was a dreahed heavily, as if he knew exactly what she meant He took her hand "It happened"

"You pulled me out of the car You swam me ashore You saved me"

"Yes"

"But why? Hoould you even knoas there?"

"I was in the right place at the right tis Eureka kneere real She stu

"You saved me and let her die"

Ander closed his eyes as if in pain "If I could have saved you both, I would have I had to choose I chose you If you can’t forgivewhen he ran theh his hair "Eureka, I am so sorry"

He had said those same words, just like that, on the first day they y had surprised her then It had see so slight, but now Eureka understood She felt Ander’s grief about Diana Regret filled the space around hi resented the fact that she’d lived and Diana hadn’t Now here was the person responsible Ander had made that decision She could hate him for it She could blame him for her crazy sorrow and attempted suicide He see to see which direction she’d take She buried her face in her hands

"I miss her so much"

He fell to his knees before her, his elbows on her thighs "I know"

Eureka’s hand closed around her necklace She opened her fist to expose the thunderstone, the lapis lazuli locket

"You were right," she said "About the thunderstone and water It does et wet It’s the only reason the twins and I are alive It saved us, and I would never have kno to use it if you hadn’t told s to you, Eureka Always remember that You must protect it"

"I wish Brooks …," she started to say, but her chest felt like it was being crushed "I was so afraid I couldn’t think I should have saved him, too"

"That would have been impossible" Ander’s voice was cold

"Youboth me and Diana would have been impossible?" she asked

"No, I don’t mean that Whatever happened to Brooks--you wouldn’t have been able to find him in that storm"

"I don’t understand"

Ander looked away He didn’t elaborate

"You knohere Brooks is?" Eureka asked

"No," he said quickly "It’s co to tell you, he’s not who you think he is any bad about him" Eureka waved Ander off "We don’t even know if he’s alive"