But I don’t care. And I don’t care to answer this guy either.
When no one answers, he continues. “You’re here because your parents, grandparents, or the one in charge of your upbringing or education didn’t think you were capable of being saved. You’ve messed up so badly that they looked at me and begged me to fix you.”
Of course. Of course, The Family thought I was broken. What a surprise.
“Fix me? But I’m not broken,” the middle girl murmurs, shaking her head. “I didn’t do anything.”
“Your grandparents sent you off, didn’t they? After a big fight when you destroyed their most prized … possessions,” Eli says. When the girl’s eyes widen, he smiles deviously in a way that makes all the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. “Yes, I know all about your misbehavior.”
How would he know? Unless someone she knew told him.
Does he know what I did too?
If so, this House of Sin and The Family are working together.
Yikes.
“So what is this place then?” the same girl asks.
Eli rubs his lips together. “Think of this place as a sort of moment of re-education.”
“Re-education?” I balk. I can’t stop myself. Not when this bullshit is coming from his mouth. “What kind of nonsense—”
“Silence!” one of his guards growls at me, and his anger immediately makes me shut my mouth again.
I know when to speak up and when to stay quiet when someone gives me that look. I’ve experienced enough pain already.
“You’re the one who came from The Family, didn’t you?”
My pupils dilate.
So he knows. That means they really did mean to send me here. And this man will not care the least bit that I was a captive in a cult.
His eyes narrow. “Thought so.”
“I had a life before that cult,” I say, trying to play on his emotions.
“I know you did,” he says, not looking the least bit surprised. “But your time there is over. What matters is the here and now, and you need to learn how to control yourself so you can live a fulfilling life.”
Of course. It’s all the same. It doesn’t matter if I’m here or at the Holy Land. They’re all cults in my eyes when they keep people as prisoners.
“What will happen to me after then? Will you ship me off too?” I spit.
He cocks his head. “I guess that depends on your behavior and what you manage to learn during your time here.”
My behavior?
A pfft leaves my mouth, and I look away with folded arms, sighing out loud.
He really has a god complex.
And he sure seems like the one in power too, which means I can’t push beyond a certain line if I don’t want to risk getting hurt. And I definitely don’t want any more of that. I had my fair share when I was still with The Family.
Still, I can’t help wanting to know more about my prison. “So what is this then? Are you a part of that Family cult too?”
“Not a part, no,” he replies, the look on his face suddenly softer. “More of an extension.”
“I don’t understand any of this,” the middle girl mutters, her body quaking even more when Eli approaches her.
He grabs her chin and forces her to look up at him. “You’ll understand soon enough.”
When he releases her, she goes right back into her shell.
He takes in a breath. “You will all be staying here for the time being.”
“Why?” I ask, wanting to know what the meaning of all of this is. “Why was I brought here? Am I going to be forced to marry here too?”
He smiles. He actually smiles. “You ended up here because there was no other choice. This is the last stop. For all of you.” He looks at all three of us, even the one who has remained silent all this time. “This is where your sins stop.”
“Sins?” the middle girl mutters, taking the word right out of my mouth.
I didn’t commit any sin.
Sure, I may have kept a man at the Holy Land at bay, but he was trying to hit on me, and I didn’t want any of that.
In fact, I never wanted any of it at all.
The only reason I was at that venue was to hear them talk about their love for God. Because I needed guidance. Because I thought what I needed was a new family.
But it was the worst mistake of my life.
Eli pauses, focusing all his attention on that one girl. He stands before her and leans in, making her cower. “No one is without sin.”
Present
Adrenaline rushes through my body as I sprint up the stairs, momentarily forgetting where I am. When I step out onto that grass, I almost want to go to my knees and touch it with my bare hands. Almost like I’m grateful to be alive.