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However, there’s one man in the crowd who constantly interrupts the Prayers with his sniffling, and it’s becoming hard to ignore him.
When the President is done speaking, I stand and say, “Wait one minute with the blessings.” The President gives me a deathly glare, but I ignore him. “You … come here.”
I point at the guy who’s sniffling, and he steps forward after questioning to himself it I was really speaking to him. He goes to his knees in front of the stage. “Yes, patriarch.”
“What is your problem?” I ask. “I know you’re not sick.”
“It’s my wife, patriarch.” He looks up at me. “She’s gone.”
The people around us gasp in shock.
His wife must be the girl who fled alongside Natalie.
“She disappeared the same day the fire happened,” he says, lowering his eyes. “I don’t know what to do.”
I have to take the lead now or this whole thing will fall to shambles. “Calm down. Approach the stage, please.”
“What are you doing?” my father hisses in my ear. “No one’s ever come up here unless they’re a patriarch.”
“I have to nip this in the bud,” I hiss back, and I redirect my attention to the man again.
Lowering my voice, I tell him, “We’re working on it.”
“So you know where she is?” he asks.
I rub my lips together. “No, but we are tracking them down.”
“Them?” When I frown and narrow my eyes at him, he adds, “Of course, patriarch, I apologize for being nosy.”
“It’s okay. But know that we will do our best to get your wife back into your arms.”
“Thank you,” he says, gazing up at me with teary eyes. “Thank you so much. Please, find her for me. Please.”
I nod and he bows a few times before stepping back into the crowd.
“You cannot give them hope if you don’t know what you’re doing,” my father whispers into my ear.
“Yeah, well give me some tips then because you sound like you’ve dealt with this before,” I reply sarcastically because I know nothing of the sort has ever happened in this community.
No one has ever escaped, which makes this case all the more unusual … and dangerous.
No one can know that this happened under my nose because anarchy would ensue. We must keep this contained and within these walls.
After the prayers are over, all the patriarchs leave the room, but my father pulls me aside.
“What are you going to do about that escapee wife of yours?” he asks. “The guards came back with nothing, and the President is getting impatient. Especially with that stunt you just pulled.”
“I’m working on it,” I say through gritted teeth.
“How? As far as I see, you’re sitting on your ass and doing nothing,” he growls. “Meanwhile, you pledged yourself to a woman who isn’t here, making you unavailable for marriage, and I’m left without an heir.”
“So this is about you.” I snort. “Typical.”
“The people won’t tolerate disobedience, Noah, and I won’t either.” He taps my chest. “You’d do well to remember your place in this community.”
“I am as much a patriarch as you are.” I grab his finger and push it away. “Do not threaten me.”
“You know as well as I do that when push comes to shove, the patriarchs will choose to calm the people down … and when it happens, it’s gonna be your head that rolls.”
My throat feels clamped shut, and I swallow hard. “It won’t come to that.”
“It better not. You’re my only son, Noah. I care about you, but you need to control this. Now.”
What a lie. He doesn’t care about me, not even in the slightest. It’s his reputation he’s so worried about.
I look around to see if anyone’s listening before speaking up. “You want this controlled? There’s only one way to bring her back, and it isn’t by using guards. You know that.”
“Do what you need to do,” he says.
“I can’t get off this property without help,” I whisper.
“I’ll tell other patriarchs you’re going on a recruitment mission.”
I shake my head. “They’ll never believe that.”
“I’ll make sure they will. I’ll talk to them myself.”
Well, if he isn’t invested.
“Bring that whiny boy from the crowd along. Get him out of here before he tells everyone she’s gone. I’ll get an elder to muster up a few extra Helpers to make it look like you’re really going there to recruit more.”
I sigh and close my eyes. “Fine. That guy’s wife’s gone anyway. Maybe he can be of some use in recapturing both of them.”
“Exactly.” My father licks his lips and starts walking. “Consider it done.”
Natalie
We spend the entire day in the city, buying produce for the kitchen so we can eat, chasing birds in the park, and shopping for clothes with whatever I have left. I take the time to stop at a few shops to ask if they’re looking for extra help, to try to get a job, but no luck so far.
