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“You're full of shit,” I lean in real close and whisper at him, my hands desperate to crush his brittle bones.
“Come on, Skid, we need to get ‘em outta here,” Jessie calls from behind me.
“Have you had her?” Abraham shows no fear now, he’s accepted that he will die and wants to make one last impact.
“My wife, have you fucked her?” he asks again, wetting his lips as if he’s tasting her on them. I grip his throat in my hand and squeeze.
“Tight little thing, isn’t she? Nothing like how she was on our wedding night though, she was really tight then. Scared too.” He smiles as I choke him.
“Skid,” Jessie warns me again.
“Take ‘em, he’s stayin’.” I punch the fucker in his gut so he folds over and drops to his knees. Grabbing the front of his limp, white hair, I drag him past Jessie and the cage full of Elders, and across his sacred little village.
A crowd has formed around the slightly raised platform in the center of it. Everyone is dressed like they are taking part in some kind of historic reenactment. The women look anxious, the men look angry, and yet none of them are doing jack shit about our invasion because they are all weak.
I watch their clueless faces drop in shock when they witness their leader being dragged across the dirt, and seeing the wooden post in the center of the podium reminds me of the story Addison told me about the boy who tried to save her. I drag Abraham’s frail body onto the platform and wait ‘til I have the attention of all his people. Then, lifting him up onto his feet by the front of his shirt, I press my hand into his forehead and pin him up against the wooden post.
“You better hope that God of yours exists,” I hiss through my teeth, watching his mouth open like he’s got something clever to say. He don’t get the chance, I silence him when I pull the blade from my belt and slice it across his throat.
Gasps of hysteria come from behind me, and my blood rushes through my ears as his pours over my fingers. I intended to make him suffer, to take my time and butcher him for what he put Addison through. But being here changed my mind. I figured it would be much more of a torture for him if his followers saw how weak and pathetic he really is.
I stare into his shocked, lifeless eyes, and feel no remorse as I let his body drop onto the wooden platform that he preaches off. Then I turn to face his followers.
“I’m looking for Everleigh,” I shout over the noise, silencing all their chatter. “She will come with us, but the rest of you have a choice. You have not been livin’ in a community, you have been livin’ under a dictatorship. This village has been rigged with explosives, not just to keep the outside world out, but to keep you in. A few minutes ago, this man who you put all your faith in, pressed the button that could have killed you all.” The shock escalates on the faces of the people in front of me and suddenly I feel the responsibility to give ‘em all a little hope.
“God does not speak to this man and this man alone. God speaks to all of us. He’s in our conscience and our hearts. He doesn’t choose what young girl should be taken from her home and family and forced into a marriage she doesn’t want. He doesn’t order men to breed women like dogs. These men you call leaders are abusers. We’re not here to hurt you, and I’m not standin’ up here to tell you what to do. I came here to protect someone I love very much, someone who these men were a threat to. Now, you are all free to make your own choices. Let your God, whoever he is, give you his messages himself.” I nod, before I hop down from the podium and listen to the chaos pick back up. Somewhere, among these people, is Addison’s sister and my next mission is to find her.
“My daughter is dead.” A tiny woman with long, brown hair plaited down her back and Addison's eyes moves to stand in front of me.
“What?”
“Everleigh is dead, she killed herself a few days after Addison left. I guess she always figured that if Addison got away, she’d take her with her.” She stares back at me vacantly.
“Shit.” My heart drops into my stomach, this is gonna crush Addison, she was relying on me to bring Everleigh back so she could live a normal life. She was telling me last night how she couldn’t wait for her to try ice cream and watch TV for the first time.
“Where is my husband?” the woman asks, still looking as if she’s in some kinda trance.
“You should pack some things, I can take you to Addison.”
“Where’s my husband?” she asks again, ignoring me completely.
“He’s with the other leaders,” I tell her.
“And will you kill him too?” Her question comes out robotically.
“Yes,” I answer her honestly. There's something about this woman that's holding my attention like a hostage. Maybe it’s because I’m trying to understand how a mother could allow these things to happen to her children. It only makes me more aware of how strong Addison is.
“Good.” The woman nods with acceptance before turning around and heading back toward one of the houses.
She’s only in there for a few seconds before I hear the loud bang and everyone around me automatically drops to their knees in defense. I see the blood that splatters at the window and rush towards her, but Jessie comes outta nowhere and blocks me.
“That’s Addison’s Mom!” I yell, pushing to get past.
“All the houses have been cleared, she was in there alone. I think we both know what just happened. I’ll check it out, you focus on findin’ the sister.”
“She’s dead, killed herself years ago.” I shake my head and close my eyes.
“Skid, what ya just did… It wasn’t how Prez wanted it to go down. There were a whole lot of witnesses to it, if any of these folk go to the police we’re screwed.” VP looks a lot more nervous than he does angry.
