“I’ll try to be as brave as you,” she whispered.
Brave. If she only knew the truth.
I sat on the sofa, my eyes trained on the door of the trailer home assigned to our family. I didn’t sleep; instead, I spent all night writing notes for Maddy to make sure she had all that she needed to survive, until she was old enough to make her own decisions. She would take over my place as the head of our family. “She’s only sixteen.” I balled my fist, slamming the leather cushion, channeling my anger. “I’m so sorry, Maddy.”
As the sun made its daily appearance, a truck engine roared to a stop in front of our house. Chains clattered; dogs barked. Heavy footsteps neared and, seconds later, the banging on the door rattled the framed pictures hanging on the wall.
Maddy came out of her room and rushed toward me. “Abel!” She clung desperately to my side. “No!”
The pounding on the door continued, louder this time. “Open up!” someone called.
“It’s okay.” I tucked Maddy’s hair behind her ears and stood to answer the door, stopping when Mom came out of her room, expressionless. “Goodbye, Mom,” I said, kissing her cheek.
She stood still, her unseeing eyes trained on the floor. I wondered if she knew what was about to happen to our family.
Someone kicked the door, busting it open. Three burly men wearing the cult’s guard uniform stormed inside. One of them scanned the place, then marched toward us when he spotted me. He yanked the collar of my shirt and tugged me behind him.
“Please, don’t take him,” Maddy pleaded, her voice cracking.
But they remained unmoved, their expressions stoic as they dragged me outside, their hands like ropes closing around my arms. I cast a helpless glance at my mother, but her face remained detached.
“Mama, do something!” Maddy cried, her voice rising in desperation as she turned to our mother for support.
But our mom remained rooted in place, her silence deafening.
“Abel!” Maddy sprinted to me and pulled my hands.
“It’s okay, Maddy. Let go,” I said, forcing a smile. I fought to maintain my composure, my eyes locking onto hers, silently urging her to be brave. “Remember what I told you?”
“I’ll be strong,” Maddy said between sobs.
“That’s right.”
The guards ripped us apart; Maddy’s hand slipped away from mine.
I allowed myself to be taken away, each step toward the waiting truck feeling like a nail in my coffin. And as the door slammed shut, the weight of my sister’s tears finally broke me, and I crumbled.
***
Dusk came in a hurry, and we spent most of the afternoon slacking on our beds because we rarely received a break. Once the guards finally left us alone, Seven rose to his feet and sat next to me. He clearly had something to say that he’d been holding in since we arrived here days ago. The rest of the guys followed suit and huddled around us. Four peeked into the hallways before closing the door on his way back. “We’re clear,” he said.
“What’s up?” The suspense was killing me, even though I had a hunch about his secret.
“I know about the plan. I’ve been meaning to tell you, but those fuckers won’t leave us alone,” Seven answered.
“What plan?” I knew what the plan was, but Seven could be talking about a different plan.
“Come on, Nine.”
“How long have you known?” I asked, assessing his knowledge.
“The guys told me the night before we were picked.”
I wasn’t aware of Seven being brought in. Not that I had a problem with it, but a little heads-up would have been nice. “Who else knows?” I asked, looking around at the guys.
“All of us here,” Four said.
I remained quiet, mulling over this new information. “We need to find a way to get one of us out of here to check with the others,” I said.