Page 2 of Before the Storm
But it was the next wife her father took that made Aura sick to her stomach. She’d only been sixteen and, to date, had given her father three children.
Young wives now seemed to be a thing, and the mothers were going along with it. Encouraging it, even.
It wasn’t right and Aura didn’t need the outside world to tell her that.
“What was the topic of discussion?” Brother Jim asked as he dug into his food.
Aura swallowed. She did not want to have this discussion. It made her want to vomit. “Obedience,” she managed to choke out.
“Your sister wives have informed me that you didn’t finish your chores and that you allowed some children a treat when they weren’t supposed to have one.” He arched a brow. “I’m not sure you’ve learned your lesson yet.”
If that meant he would stay with one of his other wives, then she was never going to learn. “My father told me to continue to pray for God’s wisdom and forgiveness.”
“Your father is a wise man,” Brother Jim said. “It’s why he’s the leader of our church. Perhaps you should retire to your room.” He took her plate before she could even take a nibble.
“Yes, Brother Jim.” She stood, resting her napkin on the table.
“We will discuss all that has transpired in the morning.”
She nodded before scurrying off through the family room, down the long corridor, and into the sanctuary of her room. It was the only personal space she was allowed, except Brother Jim could invade it at any time.
Quickly, she found the cell phone that Anne Marie had given her and with shaky hands, she sent the message.
Aura:If I’m going to leave, it has to be now.
Anne Marie:We’ll be outside the compound in fifteen minutes.
Aura couldn’t believe she was going to go through with it. When they met months ago, Anne Marie told her she’d help whenever Aura was ready. Now, all Aura had to do was get out unnoticed.
She peeked her head out the door. The family continued with dinner. They would all be obedient, no one daring to move without permission from the head of the family. This would give her a few minutes to climb out her window and race down the streets.
Hopefully unseen.
The one thing she could count on in her community was that everyone did the same things at the same time. No one would be around. Or at least, no one should be out and about.
As quietly as she could, she lifted the windowpane and hiked up her long dress. The drop down was farther than she anticipated and she twisted her ankle. She hobbled down the road, ignoring the pain.
The front gates were kept locked. She was told that was for their safety, but she knew better. It was to keep them prisoners. However, she’d stolen a set of keys from her father. Her heart pounded as she searched for the one that would unlock the gates from hell.
A vehicle rolled to a stop and Anne Marie rolled down the window and waved. “Hurry. There’re cameras. It will only be minutes before someone knows you’re gone.”
“How do you know that?” She pulled at the heavy metal and ran as fast as she could to the open car door.
And her freedom.
“Not our first rodeo.” Anne Marie glanced out the window before rolling it back up.
Aura had known about other sister wives who had left. They were sinners. They had a first-class ticket to hell and weren’t welcome back. They had lost their spot in heaven. They had lost their place with God. With their husbands. And they never got to see their children again.
Those who did return were never treated the same way again.
Well, she was never going to show her face in this compound, much less the state of Arizona again.
“Go,” Anne Marie said to the driver, a man Aura had never seen.
“What now?” The gravity of what she’d done began to sink in like a brick plummeting to the bottom of the ocean. She had no real education outside of what the church’s doctrine had taught.She had no clue as to what the outside world was really like except that according to her father, it was evil and filled with Satan’s work.
“We’ll take you to a safe house in New Mexico. You’ll get a new identity. Learn some life skills. From there, you’ll be on your own,” the man said, glancing over his shoulder. “Whatever you do, don’t go back. It will be tempting because life outside of what you know is going to be hard. But I promise it will be better than the life you could ever have inside those walls.”
