Grace was captivated by Andrew. Who wasn't? Even Grace, who had grown up knowing about supernatural creatures and had seen a few too, had never seen a minotaur before. It was almost absurd to see a person with the head of a bull talking in perfect English.

Cameras flashed with pictures; other cameras blinked red with video feeds. Reporters tried asking questions, but they all talked over each other, and Andrew had to yell at them to quiet down. "I'll answer your questions," he promised. "Let me start by answering the ones I already know you have."

Surprisingly, that actually worked. It seemed even reporters could be bullied into silence if they were shocked enough.

Andrew talked, telling everyone about the supernatural creatures and their small, hidden societies. Then Governor Warner arrived, and Andrew basically had to start all over once the governor had made his way to the barrier. The minotaur focused on the supernatural creatures' desire to avoid violence, and to live quietly in this forest that they couldn't leave. Grace and everyone else listened to him with rapt attention.

Then a reminder went off in Grace's brain. She looked up at her brother. "Charlie, there's something else."

"What?" he asked quietly.

Grace opened her mouth to answer, then closed it. Wait. Looked up? "Charlie," she said, temporarily distracted, "how tall are you?"

Gideon looked strangely embarrassed. "Um, six feet."

Her eyes widened. "What? That's not allowed!"

He gave her a sheepish grin. "Sorry?"

"I'm only five foot six," she said with a shake of her head. "How dare you."

Gideon gave her a hug. "It's okay," he said solemnly. "I still love you."

She pushed him away in mock anger, then laughed.

He smiled. "So what's the 'something else'?"

Her laughter stopped. "Right. You told the reporter that Father is at the Manor, right? Do you know his plans? Is he going to come out here?"

She could tell that Gideon immediately suspected what she was really asking. He shifted on his feet, stood a little taller. "Andrew convinced him to stay back until after all this," he said, waving vaguely in Andrew's direction. "He'll probably want to come out later. He, um, doesn't know you're here."

"Good," Grace said. All the better. If Gaston knew she was there, he might suspect arrest.

"Mother knows, though," Gideon said. "She'll be happy to see you."

Mother? Happy to see her? Grace doubted that. And there was a chance Mother might guess that Grace had reported her parents to the police — she might warn Father. Grace pursed her lips. "Come with me," she said to Gideon. "There's someone we need to see."

From the look on Gideon's face, he knew whom she meant. But he didn't say anything. He just followed her as she told Sam she was going to see Officer Sanders and then pushed her way through the crowd.

"Evi, I don't know," Gideon said quietly as they walked.

"It'll be okay," she said.

He didn't respond.

They found Officer Sanders on one side of the crowd, watching people's faces carefully, probably trying to anticipate any chaos that might break out. But people were thankfully too spellbound by Andrew to cause any problems.

"Officer Sanders," Grace said, approaching him, "this is my brother, Gideon."

The officer turned to them. "Oh, hello, Gideon. It's nice to meet you."

Gideon nodded in greeting.

"Do you know when your parents will come out here?" Officer Sanders asked. "Are they going to?"

Gideon didn't respond for a moment. Then he turned to his sister. "They?" he asked.

"Yes," Grace said, unsure what the problem was. "Officer Sanders needs to find both of them."

"No," said Gideon. "You can't arrest Mother." He sounded a little panicked.

"Charlie," said Grace, "she's — she's a part of all this. She hasn't done anything to help you."

"That's not true!" Gideon said. "She helped me rescue Mabel when she was in danger. And without Mabel, we wouldn't have been able to stop Bill. Mother is changing, Evi. She's sorry for what she's done. Or, hasn't done."

"Be that as it may," Officer Sanders said gently, "I have enough cause to take both of your parents into custody."

"If Mother really is changing, I'm sure the courts will take that into account," Grace said. "But this is all for you. For your safety."

"I know, and thank you, but. . ."

"You know," Officer Sanders said, "some other officers came today, to make sure everything went smoothly when the town returned. I could ask one of them to help with the arrest. We could put your parents in two different cars, if you think your mother might be in danger from your father."

"I. . . I don't know. But I'd like that." Gideon had no idea if Geneva ever had been or would be in danger from Gaston, but he didn't want to find out.

"Then we'll do it. It'll be okay, son," Officer Sanders said.

"Don't call me that," Gideon said.

"Gideon," Grace hissed.

"Sir," Gideon said quickly, inclining his head respectfully to the officer.

Officer Sanders smiled at him, unoffended. Grace was grateful.

"It's okay, Gideon," Officer Sanders said. "I'm here to help you."

Grace watched Gideon's face. It was mostly unreadable. But she had the feeling that Gideon believed what the officer had said.

He's going to be safe, Grace thought. Her brother was finally going to be safe.

"There are some problems, though, Officer," Grace admitted out loud. "Like the barrier."

"Yes," said Officer Sanders. "Why don't we talk about what to do?"

~~~~~

Ford sat on one of the Northwest Manor's balconies, looking over the town and the forest. He found himself staring at one of the ridges of dirt and snow that stuck up over the rest of the forest floor — the remnant of one of the rifts.

"I have to go, Ford," Lee said. "We're home now. The Cipher Wheel is done. I need to give Greg his body back."

Ford refused to look at him. Of all the thoughts racing around in his head, he had no idea which ones to say out loud, so he didn't say anything.

"Ford, don't ignore me."

The sun felt so nice. It had been so long since Ford had felt the sun. Even weak, even cold, it still felt so nice.

"Ford."

Ford turned. "What am I supposed to say?"

"I don't know. Just don't ignore me. I'm not gone yet." Lee pulled up another chair from the other side of the balcony and sat beside his brother. "I'm here until Gideon and the twins get back. So let's — let's do something. Together."

"What makes you think Gideon is coming back?" Ford said. "He's with his sister. And she's not going to leave him."

"That's — that's not fair," Lee spluttered. "I'm not leaving you, I'm — I was taken from you. From my life. I get that it hurts, but it's not my fault. Not my choice."

"You didn't fight for yourself," Ford said, and his disgusted tone masked his pain. "You encouraged Fidds. And because of that—"

"Because of me, you're outside sitting under our sun, instead of dead in Bill's dimension!" Lee looked ready to slap him.

Ford didn't think he'd mind being slapped. It might help him feel something other than this bitter anger.

Instead of responding to what Lee said — he was right, after all — Ford sat in silence for a moment. Then, "I put everything I had into getting you back. I know I forgot about you for thirty years — and I know I was doing the wrong thing to get you back, since you weren't in the portal — but — the point is—"

"The point is, you did everything you could to see me again. Once you got your memory back." Lee's voice was gentle, now that Ford wasn't being hostile.

"Yes. And now. . ." Ford could feel his barriers crumbling. "Now you're going to be gone again. So what. . . what do I do?"

Lee was silent as he thought about that. Ford watched his face — he seemed to be seriously considering Ford's question. He was actually listening. Actually caring. How was Ford going to go on without him?

"You keep running the Mystery Museum," Lee said. "You turn it into a real museum about the real supernatural beings here, and you teach the world about them. About your research. I've read your first Journal, remember? You were so excited about sharing your findings with the world someday. This is your chance."

"Yes, but. . ." Ford trailed off. His mind continued with the things he didn't say: But it wouldn't be as satisfying without you. But I didn't realize back then that I needed my brother by my side. But you're the one who can really communicate with people; I'm just a scientist.

Lee put a hand on Ford's arm. "And," he said, "you do it with Fidds."

Ford jerked back. "What?"

"Fidds doesn't have another place to go. The Museum is his home, too. So you let him stay there, and you work with him again. He would be great with different projects — like updating the supernatural villages with better technology, if that's what they want."

Ford couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Are you forgetting that he — that he—"

"Killed me? No. But I'm also not forgetting that it wasn't his choice. This was Bill's fault, Ford. Not Fidds', not mine, not yours."

"He held the knife!"

"And I told you not to look. Gideon's magic wouldn't have stopped you from closing your eyes."

A new wave of anger washed over Ford: anger at Fidds, at Gideon, at Lee, at Bill, at everyone. "He's a murderer," Ford insisted, "and you and Gideon are accomplices. Gideon I can overlook — he's just a child; I'm sure you pressured him into it—"

"Actually, it was his idea."

"—but I am not going to — wait, what?"

"Maybe I shouldn't have told you. Don't be mad at Gideon. It was his idea to hold you back with his amulet, but he definitely didn't like doing it."

This information made Ford want to scream, to hit something — maybe hit Lee. But he managed to curtail that impulse with a deep breath through the nose. "Well, we're not talking about Gideon. We're talking about Fidds. And I am not giving him anything ever again, much less my house."

"He's your friend, Ford," Lee said softly.

"He is not my friend!" Ford shouted. "He threw that away when he erased your memory! Actually, earlier than that — when he joined the Order and kept secrets from me. He doesn't deserve friends, and he certainly doesn't deserve having the man he killed stick up for him!"

"Well, I am sticking up for him, because regardless of what he deserves, it's the right thing to do to help him."

"Easy for you to say! You're—"

Ford's breath cut off before he even knew what he was about to say. It seemed his vocals cords knew to stop.

Lee looked ready to snap and start screaming, but he didn't. "Trust me," he said thinly, "if my experience as a spirit has so far been accurate, it's not easy to be dead."

"Lee, I. . ."

"I don't want to leave you like this, Ford. There's nothing I can do about being dead, but if I could see you and Fidds start to reconcile, then at least that'd be something."

Ford wasn't going to reconcile with Fidds. There was no way that was going to happen. But. . . well, there was nothing Lee could do about being dead, but maybe he wouldn't have to be gone forever. "Will I be able to summon you as a ghost, or something?" Ford said. "There's magic that will let us still communicate."

"Yes, but that doesn't change what I said. I'll be gone, and Fidds won't be." Lee got to his feet. "Come on."

"Come on where?"

"To talk to Fidds."

Ford scoffed. "No."

"Yes." Lee stood in front of Ford, took his shoulders, and leaned down close. "Have you even seen Fidds since we finished with the Wheel? Or much at all since the day we defeated Bill? No, you haven't, because he's been careful to avoid you. Really, he's been avoiding everyone, and he's mostly been hiding in rooms around the Manor or just lying in bed, too depressed to do anything. Are you really okay with just leaving him alone like that?"

"Yes, I am," Ford said defiantly.

"Well, I'm the one who made him do what he did, so it's my responsibility not to leave him like that. And since I'm about to leave, I'm giving you the responsibility. So get up."

Ford stared at his brother with a challenge in his eyes. But Lee stared right back. And Ford got a sense that Lee would throw Ford over his shoulder and march right over to Fidds if Ford didn't get up right now.

With a sigh, Ford stood. "Fine. But I'm not taking responsibility for him."

Lee gave a sigh of his own. He went over to the balcony door and opened it. "Well maybe," he said, "if you focus on something other than your own misery, you'll do better once I'm gone."

He gestured for Ford to follow him. And Ford, too stunned to respond, followed.

~~~~~

Gideon trudged in the knee-deep snow through the trees. He wanted to use his amulet, but that wasn't a good idea right now.

Officer Sanders hadn't wanted Gideon to go back into town, but Gideon had insisted. If Officer Sanders needed the Northwests to come to him before he could arrest them, then Gideon knew that the fastest way to accomplish that was for Gideon to go back and encourage them to go out and talk to reporters. Officer Sanders (and Grace, who didn't want to let her brother out of her sight) eventually agreed. They'd gone into the trees with Gideon, away from the eyes of any reporters who might wonder what was happening, and seen him off.

Thus the walking in the snow. Gideon didn't want anyone to know about the amulet right now, especially not a police officer. If he flew through the forest and came back with his parents quickly, and with no snow on his pants, that would make Officer Sanders suspicious. Better to walk like a normal kid who didn't have a magical artifact in his pocket.

Gideon made his way to a road that wasn't visible from outside the town, then jogged along the back roads to get to the Manor. It took quite a while, and with each step he wished he could be flying with his amulet like he usually would. Still, eventually he made it to the larger road that led up to the Manor, and he could see the building looming over him in the lingering sunset.

He could see a light on the road, too. "Gideon? Is that you?" asked Geneva's voice.

Gideon blinked in surprise. Gaston and Geneva were walking together, with Geneva's arm in Gaston's, and an electric lantern in Gaston's free hand. Were they going to the edge of town on their own? Gideon couldn't help a twinge of disappointment — he'd wanted to go all the way to the Manor and tell Lee that Grace wanted to see him, before going to find his parents — but oh well. This way, he didn't have to convince his parents to go anywhere.

"Father. Mother," Gideon said with a nod.

"Come with us," Gaston said. "We're going to the press, and it'll be best if we're there as a whole family."

Gideon shoved down a sudden surge of anger. But we won't be a whole family, he thought. You sent Grace away, Father. You probably don't even think about her anymore. Aloud, he said, "Of course. Forgive my absence; were you waiting for me?"

He worried a bit that he was laying it on too thick — after all, he had blatantly disrespected Gaston just three days ago. And he hadn't really seen his father since, with how busy everything was.

But Gaston seemed to take Gideon's formality as an unspoken apology. "No, we decided to leave you to whatever adventures you were having in the forest," Gaston said with a note of disdain in his voice — meant to put Gideon back in his place. "But now that we've run into you, it's a good opportunity."

The three Northwests started walking, and Gideon shoved down another emotion — this one annoyance at having to walk so slowly, so normally, back the way he'd come.

"I'm so excited to see people again, Gideon," Geneva said. "Aren't you?"

Gideon glanced up at her, unsure. He'd wanted to go to her first, to warn her about the cops, to explain that he had to lead her out to get arrested — so she'd at least be emotionally prepared. But he certainly couldn't do that now, with Gaston here. But still, what did she know? Did Geneva realize that Grace being here meant she'd probably try to get Gaston arrested? And likely Geneva, too? Gideon didn't know, and he couldn't ask.

"It's been so long," Geneva continued when Gideon didn't answer her. "I'm so dirty, and I'm sure I smell awful, but I almost don't even care. It's strange, isn't it?"

"You still look lovely as always, darling," Gaston said, though the faint tightening around his eyes told Gideon that he too was worried about their appearance. All three Northwests had rumpled clothes; they hadn't had a proper shower in over two weeks; they did smell bad. Gideon hadn't even thought about that in his eagerness to go out and see Grace.

"Perhaps it's an advantage," Gideon said. "It'll show them just how hard it's been for all of us."

"Of course," Gaston said. "My thoughts exactly. I'm glad you're starting to think about these things."

The Northwests kept walking. Usually Geneva was the silent trophy wife, hanging on her husband's arm with a smile, but right now she was strangely talkative. Did that mean something? Did she suspect what was about to happen?

"It's been some time since I've talked to reporters," she said at one point. "I'm so nervous."

"Don't worry, I'll do most of the talking," Gaston said. He seemed a little annoyed with his wife's sudden chattiness.

Gideon wasn't paying attention to that, though. He was facing his mother. After saying she was nervous, Geneva looked right at Gideon and gave him a little nod.

She knew. She must know.

And she was going out there willingly. She had probably been the one to encourage Gaston to come out tonight, as opposed to tomorrow morning or some other time.

Gideon had to look away, to stare at the snowy road at his feet, to hide his face from his father. A sudden hand squeezed his heart. Geneva knew, possibly even knew that she too would be arrested, and she was still going.

Grace was wrong. Geneva was doing something to help Gideon.

"Chin up, son," Gaston said. "We're almost within view."

Gideon wiped the pained expression off his face and lifted his head.

They came to the main road; in the distance, floodlights illuminated the crowd outside of Gravity Rises. (The scientists must have had the lights with them when they were studying the crater.) Andrew, Moira, and Enoch were still by the barrier. "Hmm," said Gaston, "do you think it's a bad time? The minotaurs will have their attention for a quite a while." He didn't stop walking, though.

"I think it's all right," Geneva said. "See? People have started going off into their own groups." Sure enough, as they got closer, Gideon saw that Governor Warner and some reporters were with Andrew, while other reporters were interviewing people, and others were talking directly to the camera, probably summarizing things to their viewers.

"Ah, good," Gaston said. "We'll be able to get someone's attention, then."

Yes, said Gideon's brain, but not the someone whose attention you want.

Their pace was leisurely, and Gideon tried not to search for Grace or Officer Sanders — they'd be purposefully out of sight, anyway. Gaston just had to go past the barrier, and Officer Sanders would be there to arrest him. But now that Gideon thought about it, would Gaston cross the barrier at all? He'd probably like the space on the other side of it. How to get him through. . . ?

There was also another question Gideon had: What had happened to Grace's memory? Gideon hadn't wiped her memory, and she hadn't been shot by the memory gun, so what had happened? Gaston was the most likely person to know, but Gideon couldn't ask him, because then he'd know that Grace was there, and he might guess she reported him to the authorities.

While Gideon was wondering what to do, the Northwests got ever closer to the edge of town. "Oh, look," Geneva said. "Look at all those people." Tears came to her eyes; Gideon couldn't tell how sincere they were. "We're really back, Gaston."

"Yes. Yes we are." Gaston gave her a kiss on the cheek, then smiled like he had been the one to get everyone home.

"I think we'll have to go into the crowd to find someone to talk to," Geneva said. "But honestly, that sounds nice right now."

"Mm," Gaston said. He didn't seem to be listening; he was scanning the crowd of reporters as they drew closer. He turned off his lamp and put it on the ground; he didn't need it in the floodlights.

They kept walking until they were beside the border. Gideon's stomach started doing an acrobatics routine in nervous anticipation. If Gideon was going to ask Gaston about Grace's memory, he'd have to do it now, since the amulet wouldn't work outside the town boundaries. "Father," he said, "I have a question for you before we go out there."

It wasn't really that big of a deal. Part of Gideon thought it was stupid to ask about this right when he was trying to lure his father into an arrest. But. . . but he had to know. He needed to be absolutely sure he hadn't done something to his sister all those years ago. Maybe he had wiped her memory, and then been shot with the memory gun to forget about it? That didn't make much sense, but it's all he could think of. He had to know the truth.

He stuck his hand in his pocket, where the amulet was, and hoped Gaston didn't notice a faint blue glow coming from within.

Gaston's thoughts appeared in blue smoke above his head.

Gideon didn't really read minds — that had been more Pacifica's thing — but he could do it when he needed to. And he did it now.

"Yes, Gideon?" said Gaston. "Quickly, please."

Gideon took a deep breath. "Why did Grace forget me? What magic was used to wipe her memory?"

Gaston's eyes widened. "Grace? She's. . . ?"

But Gideon wasn't listening. He was busy looking at the thoughts in Gaston's head. Words and images popped up that showed all Gideon to know. The question had involuntarily brought the answer right to the front of Gaston's thoughts.

Gideon took note, then deactivated his amulet.

"You just — how dare you!" Gaston said, realizing what had just happened. "You give me that amulet right—"

"Oh, honey, look!" said Geneva, tugging on Gaston's arm. "It's Trina from ABC! She must have come all the way up from California to find us."

"Not now, Geneva," said Gaston in annoyance.

"But we came out here to talk to the reporters, didn't we? Trina's right there! She's walking away!"

"I don't care about—"

But then Geneva was pulling him along. Gaston stumbled, losing his balance; he hadn't been expecting to be pulled away like this. Geneva, with unnatural strength, yanked Gaston into the crowd and ran off with him in tow. Gideon found an unexpected smile on his face; he ran after them.

"Excuse me. Pardon." Geneva wove through people, trying to get to Trina — who Gideon strongly suspected wasn't actually there. Geneva was simply taking Gaston deep into the crowd.

"Geneva! Stop! What has gotten into you?" Gaston pulled away from her. "Honestly, if I'd known you were going to act like this, I would've come out by myself! And you, Gideon! What do you know about Grace? Is she here?"

Gideon didn't answer. He just hoped that Officer Sanders would get here soon.

"Mr. Northwest! Excuse me, Mr. Northwest!"

A reporter ran into view. It was the same woman Gideon had talked to earlier. She must've seen the Northwests and followed them through the crowd. "Mr. Northwest, I'm so happy to see you," she said. "I've been hoping you would make an appearance."

Gaston immediately straightened. "I'll deal with you later," he hissed to Gideon. Then he turned around and plastered a pleasant look onto his face. "Ah, hello," he said to the reporter. "I'm glad to be here."

"Can you tell us about your experience these past few weeks?"

"Yes, I can." Gaston seemed to get taller as he swelled with importance. "It was hard for all of us, but—"

"Gaston Northwest. You are under arrest."

Gaston whirled around. Geneva and Gideon turned as well, and deliberately stepped away.

There he was. Officer Sanders, with another police officer Gideon didn't recognize. Grace was beside them, her eyes alight with triumph. Gaston stared at his daughter in shock, almost as if he were seeing a ghost.

"Turn back around," Officer Sanders instructed. "Place your hands behind your back and don't move."

Gaston did as he was told, though Gideon could see that his chest was rising and falling rapidly with quick breaths. As Gideon watched, those breaths got slower and steadier, and Gaston's panicked face settled into one of neutral calm. Almost as if he'd practiced what to do if he were ever arrested.

"Sir," Gaston said as Officer Sanders closed handcuffs around his wrists, "may I ask the charges?"

"Physical abuse of a child," Officer Sanders replied. "You have the right to remain silent; anything you say can be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand your rights?"

"Yes, sir," Gaston said.

His tone was calm. But his eyes were not. His eyes had found Gideon and were staring at him with such a look of malice that Gideon wanted to wilt away on the spot.

"What is in your pockets?" Officer Sanders asked, continuing his arrest script.

Gaston didn't answer. Gideon wondered if he had the whistle with him.

"Is there anything in your pockets that could harm me?" Officer Sanders said, asking a more specific question this time.

"No, sir," Gaston said. Once again, his voice was calm, but his eyes were still murderous as they looked at Gideon.

But all of the sudden, Gideon didn't care. He realized: The hateful gaze didn't actually mean danger, because Gaston couldn't hurt him anymore. He couldn't blow the whistle, or cuff Gideon on the ear, or yell for the servants to take Gideon away and teach him a lesson.

That realization almost overwhelmed Gideon with relief.

The relief drained away, however, as Officer Sanders turned to Geneva. "Ma'am," he said, "you will also need to come with us. You are under arrest as well."

Geneva's eyes widened. In that moment, Gideon could see that she had suspected that she could be arrested, too. But it must still be a shock to realize that it was actually happening. She took a deep, shuddering breath, then put her hands up where Officer Sanders could see them. "Yes, sir," she said quietly.

The second officer approached Geneva, and she turned for him to cuff her hands. Gideon met his mother's eyes, trying to convey to her that he didn't want this, he didn't ask for this — and in return he got a small smile. It's okay, that smile said. I knew what I was doing.

Gideon gave her a sad smile back, then turned to Officer Sanders. "Sir, my mother played a key role in bringing my father to you. Please take that into consideration."

Officer Sanders nodded. Gideon knew that fact wouldn't stop Geneva from being arrested, but it could help her in the courts.

The police officers started walking away with Gideon's parents. Gideon looked at Grace, and she nodded.

"Gideon!" It was the reporter — the same one who had been talking to Gaston, who had seen the entire arrest, whose camerawoman had caught it all on film. "Gideon," the reporter said, "how do you feel about your parents being arrested? Did you know this would happen? When the officer explained the charges, was he referring to you as the—"

"Leave him alone," Grace snapped. "Come on, Charlie." The reporter kept talking, yelling after Gideon in hopes of getting a statement, but Grace took Gideon's hand and started jogging to catch up with the police officers.

Thankful for the escape route, Gideon went with his sister.

They reached the officers and slowed to a walk behind them. "Grace," Gideon said quietly, "I know what happened to your memory. I can tell you when this is over."

Grace glanced at him in surprise. "You found out?"

"I read Father's mind."

"Good idea," she said with a smile.

The cop car wasn't far, and before Gideon really knew what was happening, the second police officer opened the car door for Geneva. "Wait!" said Gideon.

"Don't get in the way, Char," Grace said.

Gideon didn't listen to her. He went over to his mother, though the officer gave him a stern look not to come any closer when he was about a foot away. Gideon took a deep breath. What could he say if he didn't know when he would see Geneva again?

"Mother," he said, "I love you."

Geneva's entire face lit up in a smile. "I love you, too," she whispered. All the fear of her arrest seemed to be temporarily lifted by that one phrase. Gideon realized he had no idea the last time he'd said it to her.

The police officer guided Geneva into the car, and she smiled at Gideon through the window.

Then Gideon turned. Gaston wasn't in Officer Sanders's cop car yet. He was still staring at Gideon in anger, like it was a bad thing for Gideon to love his own mother.

Gideon smiled at him. Not the sad smile Gideon had given to Geneva earlier, but a happy — hopeful — smile. "Father," he said, nodding his head. "Goodbye."

Gaston's eyes flared, and his face went red, then tinged purple. It was a look that often preceded shouting.

But the shouts didn't come. Officer Sanders opened the car door and pushed Gaston inside. The door shut firmly.

Gideon let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"My colleagues Officer Walker and Officer Harris are still here if you need them for anything," Officer Sanders said. "Officer Clark and I will head down to the station."

"Thank you, Officer Sanders," Grace said. "Thank you."

He nodded and smiled. Then he turned to Gideon. "I have an important question for you, Gideon."

"Yes, sir?" Gideon asked.

"Would you like to stay with your sister?"

The words brought a hundred thoughts tumbling through Gideon's head. "What do you mean?" he asked after a few seconds.

"While your parents are in police custody, would you like to go live with your sister in California?"

The idea was a firecracker in Gideon's brain. Beautiful, colorful ideas lit up in his mind. He hadn't even thought — he'd been so focused on everything else—

"What do you say?" Grace asked, her voice hopeful.

"I — that sounds—" Gideon stopped as his mind caught up with him. He realized he hadn't wondered about Grace's life or what it was like these days. But now that he was thinking about it, some questions immediately came to mind. "Do you like it there?" he asked. "Are you safe with — with—"

"Edward?" Grace supplied. She smiled. "Yes, Gideon. I'm happy with him. Our home is a safe place. Edward and I both want to have you stay with us."

Gideon didn't know how Grace could be happy with a man she'd been forced to marry, but he decided he could ask more about that later. "Then yes," he said. "Of course I — yes, I want to come with you."

Grace grinned and hugged him.

"Good," Officer Sanders said. "Then you can go with her. Do know, Gideon, that there will be a custody battle over you. Grace has told me she's going to fight for custody, and I don't know what your parents will do or what will happen in the courts. It may be long and tedious."

"But can I stay with Grace through all of that?"

"Since that is your wish, yes, I believe you will be able to."

"That's—" Gideon found tears in his eyes. "Thank you, sir."

Officer Sanders smiled. "Thank your sister."

Gideon hugged Grace hard. "Thank you," he whispered.

"I love you," she whispered back.

"I won't be able to leave right away," he said. "I still have things I'm responsible for here."

"That's okay."

"All right, I'm off," said Officer Sanders. "You two stay warm."

Gideon had almost forgotten it was cold out. He felt warm enough inside that it might as well be summer. "Thank you, Officer," he said.

With a nod, Officer Sanders got into his car and turned it on. The other officer followed suit.

Gideon searched out Geneva once more in the second cop car. She smiled at him once more; he wondered how much she'd heard. Gideon hadn't exactly been quiet in his excitement. He had the feeling Geneva approved of him going with Grace. Even if there was a sadness in Geneva's smile.

Grace put an arm around Gideon. Together they stood and watched the cars.

The officers drove away.

Gaston was gone.

And Gideon felt safe and happy with his sister.