Her father is tall. He has big hands that grip her shoulders a little too tight and he smells like fabric softener and cologne and hair oil. When Gemma looks at him, she remembers the wave of regret that Kerberos set on her and she hears him calling her a broken baby. Her stomach twists in an entirely unpleasant way. Her father looks down at her. “You okay?” he asks.

“I don’t feel so good,” she says.

“I must have been the train ride,” he says. “We’ll get some food in you and you’ll feel better.” He buys her a cinnabon, and Gemma thinks she does feel a little better. She follows her father out to his car and it’s new since last Christmas and it is the nicest car she has ever been in. He explains that it is all-electric, and instead of having to get gas you just plug it into the wall. Gemma tucks her knees up close to her chest and tries not to touch anything.

She still doesn’t know why he’d want to see her.

“Is Beatrice still mad at me?” she asks, in a very small voice.

“Well, you didn’t actually take anything,” he says, “So no harm done.”

“Oh,” says Gemma, feeling shame hot in her stomach. She stares at the charm bracelet on her wrist, and then, feeling conspicuous, tucks it up under the cuff of her sweater. It is stolen, taken from a classmate ages ago. The other girl looked everywhere for it, but to the victor went the spoils.

“How’s your mother?” asks Christopher, changing the subject. “Have you seen her lately?” Gemma shakes her head.

“Not since Easter.”

“Did she go back into the hospital?”

“Yes.”

He nods like this is very interesting information. Gemma wonders what he will do with it. Worries, even. She puts her hands down by her ankles and watches the scenery. The car runs very quietly. She misses Avalon and Kerberos and wonders if she should have told Natron she was going out of town. He’ll be cross with her when she gets back, she expects, and shivers.

The brownstone looks much the same as Gemma remembers it, minus a coating of snow. She carries her own suitcase upstairs to the guest bedroom and puts it down on the bed and the scamper of little feet draws her attention to the door. Gabriella and Ethan stand there, watching her curiously. Gemma offers them a smile, but they seem scared of her now: they giggle and run off down the hall.

Beatrice appears in their place, her glossy dark hair pulled into a high, tight bun that accentuates the sharpness of her cheekbones. She reminds Gemma of an evil queen. If she has ever needed any proof that she is a fairytale princess, her wicked stepmother is enough. “It’s good to see you, Gemma,” says Beatrice.

“Hi,” says Gemma, her voice vanishing. She worries what this visit is about.

“I’d like to talk to you a bit later, once you’re settled,” says Beatrice. “About your schooling.”

Gemma nods. She can guess what Beatrice means. It will be another boarding school, just maybe one closer to Boston. They want to take her away from her mother. From Destiny City- Panic rises in her throat. If she leaves Destiny City, how will Avalon ever find her again?

Instead, Gemma says, “Okay,” and breathes a sigh of relief when Beatrice leaves the room.