Helen smacked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and
stumbled toward the water bottle that Lucas automatically held out
for her. She finished an entire liter in five gulps.
?Maybe that was a bit much,? she said as she leaned against
Lucas.
?You could have fried about fifty people,? Ariadne murmured distractedly,
looking from Helen to the irregular sheet of glass.
?I don?t want to fry fifty people. Fifty French fries, sure. Who
wouldn?t want fifty French fries? Delicious,? Helen said. She felt
herself give a goofy grin.
?The electricity makes her a little confused,? Lucas explained to
his siblings in an embarrassed tone. ?I hope it isn?t bad for her.?
?It?s not the voltage, Lucas. It?s severe dehydration!? Cassandra
chastised. ?Her body is built to handle electricity. It?s the drain of
the fluids out of her tissues that makes her seem like an airhead.
And that isn?t permanent or damaging, so stop worrying.?
In the kitchen, Helen put her lips under the faucet. Everyone
waited patiently for Helen to drink her fill while they stared at one
another behind her back. She could feel their fear. It was exactly
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why she had suppressed her power to begin with. That power was
so intense, so destructive, it was impossible for anyone to trust it.
Helen shut off the tap and turned to face them. ?Did I just freak
everyone out?? she asked.
?Yeah,? Lucas said, his face a mask. Helen?s throat closed and her
whole body went still. She kept her eyes on Lucas, but she was
waiting for any one of them to condemn her for going too far. Lucas
looked up at Helen and smiled at her. He smiled like he was
proud of her.
?But that?s our problem, not yours,? he said firmly. ?There?s nothing