“No, I don’t suppose I do.” He stopped in front of her and pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Instead, why don’t you tell me about your day? It had to have been better than mine.”

“I didn’t save anyone.”

“I disagree. You save a soul every day. And the proof of that is sleeping behind your wardrobe.”

Estelle smiled sadly.

“What did you two do today?”

“We worked on reading and writing today. I read her half of The Sword in the Stone.”

“Is that a book?”

“Yes. And an Arthurian legend.” She pursed her lips. “You haven’t read it?”

“My fancy tutors must have skipped that one.” He grinned. “Tell me about it. It sounds like a war story.”

“Not quite. It is the story of the son of a king who is hidden to keep him safe from the jealous nobles who would kill him to claim the throne. He is called Wart, and he believes himself to be an orphan boy aspiring to become a squire to his friend Kay. One day in the forest, Wart meets Merlyn, a powerful wizard. The wizard becomes his tutor and, throughout the story, turns Wart into a succession of creatures so that he might learn wisdom.”

“If the wizard was so powerful, couldn’t he just have turned his enemies into slugs?” Jerome interrupted. “Seems more expedient.”

Estelle huffed. “Do you want to hear the rest or not?”

“Yes.”

“The boys become young men, and on the day that Kay is to be knighted, he forgets his sword at the inn and sends Wart back to fetch it. Only the inn is locked so Wart needs to improvise. In a churchyard, he sees a sword stuck into an anvil. He figures that it’ll have to do so he pulls it free and races back to his friend with it. Except it is no ordinary sword. As it turns out, it is a magic sword, and only the person who will become the next king could pull it free. Merlyn tells Wart that his name is, in fact, Arthur, son of the late king. Arthur, of course, goes on to be a wise and fair king because of all he has learned, and everyone lives happily ever after.”

“So you’re like Merlyn.”

“What?”

“Keeping those you love safely hidden from terrible people who would wish them harm simply for who they are. So that one day, they can emerge and raise their swords and continue to be good and wise. So that one day, everyone will live happily ever after.”

Estelle stared up at him for a long moment. “I don’t think I’m anything like Merlyn. Because I would use my power to turn every single Nazi into a slug and stomp on them all.”

Jerome leaned his hip against the table. “I would help you with that.”

“I know you would.”