by Unknown
you understand him a little better if you can flip it, and try to see
that your arrival in our lives is just as big a bombshell for us as it is
for you. Do you know about the way our looks are handed down?
Helen felt her face twitch in confusion at what seemed like a one
eighty in the conversation.
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Sort of, she said. Castor said something about archetypes, and
then Cassandra said that we all look like the people who fought in
the Trojan War, or something.
So weve all got these recycled faces, right? And we dont always
look like our parents, or even Scions from our own Houses, but
rather like the people from history that we are supposed to
reincarnate.
Yeah, I get that.
And since Scions usually tend to fall madly in love with one person
they are destined to be with, and then they go and have about
a billion kids really young, the older generation sometimes has the
dubious honor of seeing the faces of people they once knewand
heres the real bitchthe faces of people they once fought against,
in the younger generation. Sometimes, even in their own children
or in someone who their children love.
Oh. That doesnt sound good, Helen said, a strange dread growing
in her. Pallas hated me the first time he saw me. So who do I
look like?
Pandora sighed. The spangles on her wrist shook as she took
Helens hand.
This totally sucks, she said apologetically. But you look exactly
like Daphne Atreusthe woman who killed our brother Ajax
twenty-one years ago.
Helen noticed that Pandora stumbled over his name. For a moment,
Helen thought the usually happy Pandora would cry.
But I didnt do it! I didnt kill your brother, Helen said, shaken
to a whisper by the depth of emotion she was seeing. Hearing
Helens urgency, Pandora snapped out of her sad thoughts and
squeezed Helens hand.
I know that! she exclaimed kindly. Its insane to blame you,
and most of us dont. I certainly dont. We have no way of knowing
if youre even from her House.
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But Pallas does, Helen said, finally getting Pallass instant dislike
of her. Pandora nodded reluctantly.
When we lost Ajax its like we lost the best of us, Pandora said,
her eyes downcast and her lower lip momentarily catching between
her teeth. Ajax was . . . the best. You should have seen him. Actually,
you can see him.
Pandora shook her right wrist out from under the piles of
bangles. At the very bottom, clipped tightly to her skin, was a cuff.
Pandora opened the oval face to reveal that the cuff was actually a
wrist-locket, something Helen had never seen before. Inside was a
picture of what Helen first thought was Hector, tickling the daylights
out of a little girl with short dark hair.
My brother Ajax, Pandora said wistfully. He always had time
for me, which is a big deal when youre in a family as large as ours.
Its easy to get lost in the shuffle, especially when youre the littlest.
I used to follow him around everywhere he went, begging him to
give me jobs to do. He started calling me Squire and I loved it.
Helen looked at the joyful little girl squirming under the giant
hand of her big brother, and then up at Pandoras glistening eyes.
Even just looking at this picture I can tell he loved you very
much.
He did, and I loved him. I used to pretend he was a glorious
knight and I was his only trusted sidekick, and he played along. He
was so patient. He used to send me on dangerous quests to find his
car keys or summon the elevator. I was seven when he died. I
wasnt supposed to be following him that night, but I was. I was
there when he was murdered.
Helen was about to speak, to say something comforting if she
could, but Pandora changed abruptly, and continued. He was like
Apollo himself, she said with a bright, although slightly forced,
smile. Like Hector in a lot of ways . . . only sweet, and not a cranky
wiseass. Dont get me wrong, I love my nephew, but damn! He can
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be a such a grouch. They both broke into a much-needed laugh at
Hectors expense.
I wish Id met him. Your brother, I mean, Helen said, and was
surprised to realize that she meant it. Ajax must have been truly
special to inspire such enduring love in his younger sister.
In a lot of ways none of us have gotten over losing him, Pandora
said, shrugging as though she had run out of explanations for
Helen. But my brother Pallas is the only one who cant look at you
and accept that youre a different person, even though he knows
its got nothing to do with you.
I get it, Helen conceded. Its not fair, and I still think hes
mean, but I get why Pallas hates me.
Dont worry, eventually hell get over it. Deep down he knows
you didnt choose your face. The Fates did, she said. She gave
Helen a cheeky smile. And damn, girl! But you got a nice one!
So did you! Helen insisted, and she meant the compliment she
gave.
Whatever, Pandora said, rolling her eyes and shaking her tinkling
wrists. Im probably one in a hundred who gets some stupid
handmaidens face, or a vestal virgins from Troy, considering my
luck with men!
Even while she laughed, Helen couldnt quite shake a strange
doubt. Finally, she gave into it and asked, So who from Troy do I
look like?
Hell, no! Pandora said, standing up. I promisedwe all did.
You need to talk to Lucas about that one, Helen. Sorry, but Ive
already given you enough to think about for one night.
And with a considerable amount of jangling and sparkling, Pandora
announced that she needed a glass of wine and disappeared
in the mix of her family. Helen grimaced after her. She knew that
Pandora had really opened up and entrusted her with an emotionally
dense bit of information, but Helen still felt dissatisfied. She
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wanted to know what role the Fates intended for her to play. She
was going to ask Lucas the second she got him alone.
She looked over at him. All night she had felt him watching her,
and the weight of his eyes had been like an encouraging hand on
the small of her back. She didnt have to slouch or pretend to be
weak or less of a geek than she was. She simply fit in. She realized
that this new ease with herself was partly due to the fact that for
the first time in her life she was around people who were just as
odd as she was . . . but it was mostly because of Lucas. He never
stood next to her, but she could feel they were still tied to each other
by the trust they had built during their flight. His gaze had such
a positive impact on her that she felt unbalanced as soon as his
eyes abandoned her. She looked around to see what had caught his
attention and spotted him talking p
rivately with Pallas.
Helen did not approve of using Scion hearing to violate another
persons privacyshe and Hector had already had an argument
about just that when she accused him of eavesdropping on her and
Jerry from the widows walk, but now she couldnt seem to stop
herself. When she heard Pallas say her name, she had to know
what they were saying about her.
Im not going to lie to you. Helen caught my eye, Lucas was saying
in a low voice. But nothings going on.
So everyone keeps telling me, Pallas replied. Helen saw him rub
his lower lip in thought before continuing. Im not so worried
about that right now, but what I am worried about is a month or
two down the road when the two of you are flying off every direction
together. Alone. It cant happen, Luke.
It wont, Lucas replied coldly. Im teaching her to fly and Im
making sure she doesnt get killed, but theres no way Id ever
touch her. Give me some credit.
They continued talking, but Helen had stopped listening. She felt
sick. Stumbling in her borrowed shoes, she went over to her dad.
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She stood right next to him as he talked to Pandora, and stared at
his profile until he took the hint and looked at her.
Whats the matter with you? he asked sarcastically at first, until
he took a good look at her and became concerned. You okay,
Len?
Can we go? I have so much stuff to do. Homework and chores.
And Im so tired, she said, making up random excuses until he responded.
She was causing a bit of a scene, which she hated, but she
simply couldnt stand there and suck it up for one second longer.
Jerry glanced down at his watch. Sure, yeah. I guess its getting
kind of late. Was that supposed to be my line? he asked with a
guilty grimace.
No, youre good. Its still early. Im just . . . Ive got stuff, Helen
said before she launched immediately into the thank you, goodbye,
and see-you-tomorrow crap that she wished she could just
skip.
Ariadne shot Helen a worried look, but Helen didnt care about
anything anymore, not anyones feelings or whether or not they all
thought she was rude or crazy or both. None of it mattered. She
just needed to get out of that house before she saw Lucas again or
she was going to lose her mind. It was rude and awkward, but
Helen managed to drag her dad out the front door before Lucas
and Pallas had even looked up from their conversation in the
corner.
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UNCORRECTED E-PROOFNOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
.....................................................................
Chapter Eleven
Helen rode her bike to school the next morning, giving
her dad instructions to tell Lucas that she had a few
things to do before homeroom. Jerry was a little put
out that Helen refused to call Lucas to explain it herself,
but she honestly couldnt make herself listen to his
voice.
Did something happen at dinner last night? Jerry asked. She
ran out the door and pedaled off before he could get a straight answer
out of her.
The cool autumn wind felt good on her face, which was puffy
from staying awake half the night with her eyes leaking. She hadnt
really cried, and never got that explosive release that comes from a
good old fashioned weep-a-thon. Lying there, shed been too
shocked to sob. She felt like an idiot. She knew there had to be
worse things in the world than being dissed by the boy of your
dreams, but at that moment, she couldnt think of any of them.
Kate, Claire, even her dad had asked her repeatedly what was going
on between her and Lucas, like it was expected that the two of
them would get together eventually, but no one had ever asked Lucas
what he thought about being paired off with Helen. Now Helen
knew for a fact that he would never touch her. Those words kept
coming back to her, not just the words, but how passionately he
had said them. The way he had spoken about her made it seem as if
the very thought of kissing her was disgusting to him, and Helen
was just as confused by this as she was hurt. How could he want to
hold her hand all the time if he thought she was repulsive?
Helen got to school, locked up her bike, and took an alternate
route to her locker. It was longer, but she knew it would be Delosfree,
and therefore worth all the extra steps. She had left her house
so early that even with the longer walk she beat everyone to
homeroom.
When Claire arrived, she noticed immediately how awful Helen
looked. Like the good friend she was, she forgot all about the argument
they were supposed to be having, asking Helen a dozen questions
about her red face and ratty hair before she had even put
down her book bag. Helen lied as best she could, but so halfheartedly
she never would have gotten away with it if Matt didnt
back her up by explaining how sick Helen had been the day before.
It didnt help that Zach kept making scoffing noises as Helen tried
to put Claire off. Helen ignored him, as she usually did, but she
could still feel him watching her with a sneer plastered on his face.
Helen kept her head down all day and did her work. She found
now that she simply didnt care anymore if she did well in class,
drew attention to herself, and potentially got the cramps. As she
walked to lunch she considered faking the stomach pain if it could
get her farther away from Lucas. She didnt want to go into the
cafeteria and face everyone, but she still had to go somewhere, and
the auditorium door was right next to her. It had been left ajar, so
Helen pushed it open and went in. Helen knew whe wasnt allowed
in there. Any room that was unsupervised by a teacher was off-limits
to students, but that didnt stop her. She really didnt care if she
got caughtshe just needed a moment alone.
There was only a dim light onstage, and it was very quiet, exactly
what Helen was looking for. She sat down on the apron of the stage
and unpacked her lunch box. Chewing, Helen glanced around, taking
note of all the new sets that were just beginning to be built. The
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drama club put on two shows a yeara winter play and a spring
musical.
She wondered what play the drama club was going to put on, and
saw a spare script lying in the wings. A Midsummers Nights
Dream. Helen opened to the first page and read, SCENE 1. ATHENS. THE
PALACE OF THESEUS. She rolled her eyes and dropped the script, feeling
set up. Maybe the Fates really did pull all the strings.
Helen zombied her way through the last three periods, but her
luck couldnt hold out all day. When the bell signaling the end of
school rang, she rushed to her locker to get to track as quickly as
she could, but Lucas was anticipating her.
Hey! he shouted from halfway down the hall. He looked big and
dangerous
as he walked toward her, every step sending underclassmen
scurrying to get out of his way. Where have you been all
day?
Busy. I cant be late for track again, she replied tersely, not
looking at him as she dug her stuff out of her locker.
Ill walk you, he said. He tried to get a look at her face.
She kept her head down and her face covered with her hair and
didnt reply. They walked down the hall next to each other at the
same pace, but today Helen felt even more lonely with Lucas beside
her than she had when she was by herself.
Why didnt you call me this morning? I could have picked you
up earlier if you needed to stop somewhere, he said when the silence
became intolerable.
Look, Lucas. The whole ride to school thing is sweet, but I think
its easier for me to just take my bike. So maybe we should just forget
it.
You dont want me to pick you up anymore? he asked in a cold
voice.
No, I dont, she said. They neared the end of the hallway that
led down to the locker rooms. She finally turned to look at him,
which she shouldnt have. He looked hurt.
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Okay, he said, barely above a whisper. Are you going to tell me
what I did wrong or am I supposed to guess?
You didnt do anything wrong, Helen answered listlessly. He
looked at her, waiting to feel the lie, but there wasnt one. The light
scattered momentarily around his face, hiding his expression.
Youll be able to get yourself to my house after track? he asked
as he glanced around, so confused he didnt know where to look or
what to say.
About that, Helen started, trying to think up a believable
excuse.
Youre coming. We still havent found those two women and
now Creon is out there. Learning to defend yourself is more important
than what I did or didnt do to piss you off, he said, suddenly
angry.
She nodded, knowing it was stupid of her to even suggest giving
up her training. She could barely see him through the confusing
images he was creating as he bent the light around him. It was as if
there were three of him for a moment, whirling around like she
was looking at him through a kaleidoscope. She kept her head
down and her eyes behind her hair until his image stilled and she
could look at him without getting dizzy.
