Elara's POV
She was quiet through her bath. Quiet through the story, and through the second half of the story when she asked me to read it again.
I thought she'd finally fallen asleep when her voice came out of the dark.
"Is Samuel's arm going to be okay?"
"Yes," I said. "Samuel's very strong."
"Dad was mean," she said. "He hurt Samuel and Samuel didn't even do anything." A pause. "He always hurts people. That's why he doesn't have us anymore."
I didn't answer that.
I stayed until her breathing slowed and deepened, then sat in the dark beside her a while longer, because sometimes that was the only useful thing left to do.
Orion's POV
I drove until the city ended.
Eventually I was on the Ashford Connector, the long straight road between the last industrial district and the greenbe
