I don’t even have to, though, as I already hear the wail of a siren competing with the shrill boatyard security alarm. I stand numbly in the dark alley, petting the twitchy black cat as scattered people begin jogging toward the dark, gaping hole in the building. And then it’s:

Evie, racing down from the apartment.

Police lights.

Lucky’s Superhawk.

His parents.

My mom.

An ambulance, which isn’t needed, but sticks around—just in case.

A city clean-up crew.

And crowds of gawking people, well past midnight.

Mom opens up the bookstore and makes coffee for the Karrases and the police. Kat is furious. The black cat is relieved to be allowed to retreat into one of the boat-repair bays, away from all the chaos. And for the first time, I learn that it has a name. Saint Boo. Boo for short. The cat with seven lives at this point.

“I was twelve,” Lucky explains when I question his name choice, the only chance I get to talk to him alone amongst the chaos for a few minutes. “And I swear to God, if Boo had been hurt by a flying piece of glass or ran out into traffic, I would’ve killed someone.”

I believe him, and we both know who that someone is.

But now that the shock of it all is fading away, there’s another emotion that’s settling in, especially for Lucky’s father: worry.

“Is it the money?” I ask. “To repair all this?”

He shakes his head. “I think it’s more about being in a fight with Levi Summers. It’s just a window, but a war with him could ruin our business.”

My stomach twists.

It should have been our window.

It should have been our war.

I don’t know what to do, but I’m a little scared, and I think maybe it’s time to reevaluate my part in all this. No way can I let my original mistake cause an entire war that ruins a family business. Everything was so easy when we stepped into town. I had the three-step Los Angeles plan. Graduate from high school before my grandmother comes back from Nepal. Save up money. Prove to my father that I’m worthy of being his apprentice.…

Now I’ve already dipped into my savings to start helping Lucky pay for the window. And I can’t even get up the nerve to email the stupid magazine about the internship because I’m a secret vandal and the nude photo of my mom, and, and—

Tick, tick, tick.

Breathe.

I’m going to figure this out. I will find a way to fix things somehow. But I know one thing. Whatever happens, I will not allow the Karrases to lose their business.

Los Angeles or not …