She hasn?t lied.?
Helen nodded, accepting Lucas?s interpretation. ?I?ve got too
much baggage to think rationally about my mother.?
?That?s the funny thing about being a Scion,? Lucas said, smiling
in the petal-colored air of the chilly dawn. ?Our fights tear the
whole world apart, but for us, they?re really just family feuds. And
no one ever acts rationally when it comes to their family.?
Helen smiled back at him, struck yet again by how perceptive he
was. Then she caught herself, and remembered how important it
was to keep her distance from him. She turned her face away and
forced herself to stand.
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?Are you going to be okay?? she asked him. He didn?t answer, but
just smiled up her and nodded before turning his face back to the
horizon.
?Good morning, Lucas,? she said, her voice soft and sad as she
walked away.
?Good morning, Helen,? he replied, not allowing himself to turn
and look at her as she left him.
Helen, beloved of the goddess of love, went downstairs to crawl
into her empty bed as Lucas, the son of the sun, leaned back on his
elbows and watched his father-god brighten the bare wooden
planks of her widow?s walk.
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UNCORRECTED E-PROOF?