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"Philippe?" Desmond felt the same chill wash over him. "What did he have to say?"
Rebecca spoke without looking at him. "When I first came here, you refused to let me leave. Because of your daughter, and the help you thought I could provide. Please, tell me the truth. Is she the reason you married me?"
"No!"
"So you didn't want me to donate any further bone marrow transplants?"
"If she needed any, and there's no guarantee she will, I'd naturally assumed you'd want to help her. But— "
"And Doctor Chen never told you a child of ours would make a better donor?"
Damn Philippe. He could kill him for this. "Yes, he told me that. But I never seriously considered it. I only mentioned it to Philippe as an example of how divorced from reality a researcher could become."
It was bad enough that Desmond had to tell her he was cursed. He didn't want her thinking he was a monster even while she still believed he was a normal human. He spun her around to face him. The shimmer of tears silvering her eyes nearly undid him.
"Please, Rebecca. You must believe me. I never intended to hurt you or use you in any way."
"You married me because you loved me?" she asked, an unsteady quiver shaking her voice.
"I did," he agreed, trying to put the weight of his emotions into his words.
She closed her eyes and swallowed, then whispered, "And I ruined that."
"No!" He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her eyes open. "No, you must never think that. You have been all to me that I could ask for. More than I had any right to dream of. No fault lies with you."
"Then why are you speaking in the past tense?"
It was his turn to swallow and look away.
"Desmond, I know what happened last night upset you. It upset me, too. But I've been thinking it over, and I've figured out why it happened."
A bitter laugh escaped him. "You have no idea."
"No, I— "
"Do you remember the tour you took when you first came to the Institute?" He spun to face her.
His apparently arbitrary change of subject creased her forehead with confusion, and she took a moment to collect her thoughts before answering, "Yes."
"Do you remember our discussion at the end of the tour? When I asked you to stay, and you refused?"
"Yes. But I don't see what— "
"Think carefully. You originally refused. Why did you change your mind and agree?"
She frowned with the effort of remembering. "You had a very persuasive argument."
"I never said a word." He sighed, seeing that she still wasn't following him. "Later, when I escorted you to the guest suite, I convinced you to stay put even though you wanted to leave. Do you remember how?"
A shadow of doubt crossed her face. "No. But I was very suspicious, after you'd gone. I thought you'd hypnotized me."
"Close. Very close." He forced himself to go on, even though he could see the first stirrings of fear in her eyes. It would get far worse before he was done. "I can both read others' thoughts, and implant my own thoughts in their minds. That's how I was able to convince you."
"Don't be silly." Her tentative grin faded at his expression. "You're serious."
"Yes."
"Prove it. What am I thinking now?"
