She red at him. Was it just her, or


    did Barnaby sound like he was


    totally exasperated with her? Like


    she was some kind of dead weight.


    Which to be fair, she technically


    was but still, it wasn''t like it was her


    fault.


    Back when she''d first met Ste in


    Portis City, she''d never understood


    why Ste had those crazy


    self-defense skills, or what they were


    even for. But once she learned the


    truth about Ste''s family, it all


    made sense. Someone with that


    kind of background needed to be


    able to look out for herself, no


    matter how big her safety was.


    And now, it was Susanna''s turn. Her


    mom was living life on a knife''s


    edge, fighting enemies every day.


    There was no way she could always


    protect Susanna. If Susanna wanted


    to survive, she''d need to be tougher,


    meaner, stronger than Star ever


    was.