What I needed… I didn’t even know what I needed.

“There’s one other thing I want to talk to you about.” He took a deep breath. “I know you’ve been working with my son. We had a very long talk last night.”

“Oh,” I whispered.

“I always knew he wouldn’t listen to me when it came to you. I’m just surprised by how far he disobeyed my wishes.”

“He… he just wanted to help me.”

Cromwell raised one brow, and the bland expression on his face slipped a degree. “It appears Hayden had his own motives.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Ember, I know you and Hayden are… involved with one another. I’m going to be honest with you; I’m not thrilled. Among other concerns, you both live under my roof, but I suppose it’s a good thing he didn’t listen to me.”

“It is?”

“Kurt told me you grabbed him in the cellar, and that your touch didn’t hurt him. It seems I should’ve supported Hayden when he first asked to work with you.”

“I can’t touch… for a long period of time. Maybe a minute.”

“But that is miraculous, considering where you were before.”

That same word from Olivia’s file popped in my head, but I decided to let it go. “I guess so.”

Cromwell leaned forward and held out one hand. “I need to see if it’s true.”

“Are you serious?” The look that he gave me said he was. I sighed, too tired to argue. “If it doesn’t work, well, I guess you’ll know.” Then I touched my hand to his. His fingers felt smooth to me, like the man never used his hands for anything other than pushing a pen. A couple of seconds passed, maybe about thirty, when he seemed satisfied.

“Miraculous,” he murmured again. He stood. “We’ll talk more later. Get some rest.”

“Cromwell?”

He stepped at the door, twisting back. “Yes?”

“Is… is Theo dead?”

“Yes.”

I let out an unsteady breath. “I don’t know how to feel about that.”

Cromwell came back to the bed, studying me a moment. “Do not think for one second that Theo wasn’t going to kill you. He saw you as having the future his sister should’ve had. And you defended yourself, but you did more than that.” He sat down on the edge of the bed and smiled.

I think it was the first time he ever truly smiled at me like he meant it.

“Hayden may not be my biological son, but he means the world to me. If you hadn’t stopped Theo, he would’ve shot my son. You saved Hayden’s life.”

Something awful shifted in my stomach. “But I killed someone. Again.”