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Jonah Hamming waited until I sat down across the table from him. He looked different from the shrinks Emma had been to in the past.
“Doctor.” I nodded, suddenly out of my depth.
“Thanks for coming so quickly,” he said, his voice soothing. “Emma, I am afraid, is relapsing. She spoke of feeling hopeless in our last session. I know she is strong, but as her immediate and only family, you need to be aware of what could happen.”
Cold. Why did I feel so cold?
“What do I do, Doctor?”
He looked at me somberly, slowly removed his glasses, and set them down on the table between us. This made him seem vulnerable, somehow. And that struck a chord with me.
“You show her that you are present, Benjamin. She has been through too much, and all alone. Right now, she needs to know she will be supported, no matter what—even if she’s rambling about things that are completely irrational.”
I nodded. My throat was dry. “Okay. I’ll... I’ll talk to her.”
“How long has she been back at the NYC apartment? Six weeks now?”
I shook my head. “Seven and a half. I didn’t want to leave her alone at the mansion when classes began.”
“That was the right decision.” He smiled once more. “I suggest sitting down and giving her a bit more of your presence. You don’t necessarily need to speak. Sometimes, just being there is more than enough.”
I left Hamming’s office for East Harbor. I had to pick up some books from the library, and then I’d go home to my sister.
Show her I was there.
I wasn’t expecting to find Rory hiding in my classroom, looking like she’d come from the devil’s lair.
“Aurora?” I asked, my brows furrowed. She turned around from her seat in the first bench. There was panic in her eyes.
“Benjamin... I don’t know if I can stay here. I’m freaking out.”
I sat down beside her and sighed. I had a fair idea why.
“What’s going on?”
“It’s the...”
She paused. Her eyes were very red. She’d been crying.
“It’s okay.” I reached out and put my hand on the table. Just to show her she could put her fingers in mine, take some warmth.
She did. Tears fell on my knuckles as she clutched my palm like a frightened little child.
Oh, that bastard. He had to be behind this.
“I know you won’t believe me. But the head of admin affairs... he just said the most disgusting things to me, Benjamin. And now I’m thinking about the three of you too. Like if he finds out, it’s not just me. He’ll fire you, and he’s...”
“I don’t want you to think about what could happen to us.”
It was the most touching thing. This girl had just met the worst human being on the planet, and she was still thinking about others.
“Noah, Eli, and I knew what we were doing when we met you, Aurora,” I murmured. “You are bigger, more important to us than the rules that make this place what it is. A huge prison with secrets.”
She turned her bloodshot eyes to me.
“You... you believe me?”
I nodded. “I do. And I also know we’re going to help you solve this issue. For now, do you have any other classes today?”
