Adeline stood at her bedroom window looking down at her father and Uncle Xavier, the sun just beginning to set and turn the sky a vibrant red. She turned and paced, wringing her hands. Oh no, Oh no, oh no. Terrified panic couldn't even begin to describe what she was feeling. How would she get to the body now?

She pressed her hands to the sides of her face, attempting to heave a deep breath but instead what came out sounded more like hyperventilation. Oh no, Oh no, Ooooh no. They would find him. They're going to find him.

She may have been able to feed Father her potion and cause him to forget the blunder of Credence showing up at the door and using magic. But there was nothing she could do to stop Xavier from scouring the city like he had undoubtedly come to do.

Hot tears blurred her vision and streaked down her cheeks. She wanted nothing more than to speak to Credence right then and there. But what could she do? Tell him she probably almost certainly killed him out of her own self-indulgence masked as savior? That's what it must have been, hadn't it? The entirety of her inherent nature was blasphemous to God. Touch starved, it would come to mean something entirely different to her the older she got. Her breathing came rapidly and she could feel her arms and legs start to tingle with her panic.

She went back to the window in time to see Father leading Uncle Xavier and his dog back into the house. She trembled. She had no choice. She would have to leave tonight before they had a chance to scour the city. She would have to figure something out.

2 am.

But as she stood over the body now, staring at the boy's pale and veined face she felt no better How long had she been there for? She paced, feeling the same sickly panic in her chest. She bit her lip so hard she drew blood. 10 minutes? 20? 30? She couldn't very well drag the body out into the streets out towards the river. She attempted, but wasn't able to lift the manhole. Oh and then if the city found a body in the sewers, the complete and total field day she could only imagine the papers would have.

This was it. Would she be skinned alive? Or burned at the stake? Perhaps if she ran now, she could buy a few extra days of her life.

She crumbled to the wet ground helplessly, burying her face into her hands, not even attempting to hide the sobs that rose up out of her now. She almost prayed, but there was no God to save her now.

Then, very gently, comfortingly, a hand came to rest on her shoulder.

She shrieked, spinning around and throwing herself backwards away from the gesture, certain Xavier had found her. But he hadn't. Instead, the man who had been with Credence stood there. Hastily, she wiped her tears away, sniffling loudly.

"Adeline, please," He held his hand out to her, one arm positioned behind his back. She took his hand hesitantly and he pulled her to her feet.

Then, he put both hands on her shoulders, looking at her with an expression similar to what he'd given Credence. She was left dumbfounded, with furrowed brows, as he brushed a strand of hair from her face. Everything. All of it felt like a dream. She was almost certain none of this had been real at all. She looked away from him down at her arm, pausing for a moment, then gave herself a hard pinch and twist.

She shrieked, jerking her hand away.

"I assure you, you're not dreaming." Graves smiled warmly at her, guiding her around so that they both turned to look at the body. Numbly she watched as he waved a hand and the ground reached tiny tendrils up around the boy, absorbing him into itself.

She felt herself sway slightly, and when her knees gave out from under her, Graves was there to catch her. She could feel his breath against her ear as she stared in disbelief at the empty spot where her victim had been.

"Your nature is a treasure, Adeline. Don't be ashamed of it."