EMBER'S POV
Knox doesn't try to stop them. He just holds me tighter, presses his lips to my hair, and lets me fall apart in his arms.
"You're safe," he murmurs against my temple. "You're free. He can never touch you again."
The words break something open inside me. Something that's been locked away for so long I forgot it existed.
Hope.
I'm actually allowed to hope now.
"Ember."
A quiet voice interrupts my breakdown. I pull back from Knox's chest, wiping my face with shaking hands, and find Elder Catherine standing a few feet away.
Her expression is gentle but serious, and she's holding herself with the particular patience of someone who has important information to share but doesn't want to intrude on a private moment.
"I'm sorry to interrupt," she says. "But there are things you
