Page 71 of The Preachers' Promise
Ophelia sighs. “Normally, I think I can figure out how he’s going to react, but right now, I truly can’t. He’s not behaving like his usual self. I do know my mother, though. She’ll want me to be where I’m the happiest and safest, and that’s with you guys.”
I don’t tell her that in most families like ours, what the mother wants is almost irrelevant. It’s a patriarchal system—misogynistic, even. Her mother would need to stand up to her husband in order for her views to count, and I don’t know if she’ll do that.
She did help us find Ophelia, but that was behind her husband’s back.
The smell of coffee wafts over the room, and I sigh in relief at the idea of a cup. The coffee machine here takes an age to brew.
“First things first. Coffee, anyone?” I grin at them.
“Coffee first, then we plan,” Roman says.
“I’ll call my father back to thank him and make sure this offer is on the level,” Cain says as he stands and walks to the door.
It sucks that we trust our families so little, but that’s the world we were raised in. It makes me want to throttle Ophelia’s father for the way he’s behaved, because, out of us all, she should be trusting her parents the least right now. The fucker sent her to a dodgy institution where she was almost raped, and she still believes in him. It makes me realize how loyal Ophelia is, and how once she’s given her heart, she’s given it forever.
The impact of her telling me she loves me truly hits home then. I swear to myself I’ll always put her safety and happiness first. She’s the best thing in my life, and I won’t fuck this up like I do everything else.
34
OPHELIA
Cain is onlyout of the room long enough to allow Roman to make us all coffee. I’ve barely had a few sips when he reenters.
“It’s on,” he tells us, his huge form taking up space in the kitchen once more. “My father has agreed to send men to Verona Falls to act as security for us, and Nataniele is onboard as well. The only person we need to convince now is Ophelia’s father.”
My stomach twists in knots. I hate feeling so responsible for each of our futures. The guys should be able to return to Verona Falls, to continue their education and appease their families. I don’t want to be the one standing in the way of all that, but I know they won’t go if I’m not with them.
Cain passes me the phone. “Do you know the number to your house?”
I nod. I have memorized it. I used to try to sneak off during the odd times I left the compound, hoping to find a payphone so I could call home, but I never managed to get far enough to find one. There were no phones on the commune land, except for the Prophet’s. He and a couple of his henchmen had cell phones, but they never let them out of their sight.
“Just keep it simple,” Mal counsels. “Tell him you’re safe. That you’re sorry you haven’t been in touch, and you want to come see him.”
“Shall I tell him about what happened? With Carter? He needs to know.”
Mal shakes his head. “I’d save that for when you’re there. It’s not something he’d want to hear over the phone.”
“Agreed,” Cain says.
I worry about that. If he knew what happened to me there, it might soften how he is when we arrive. On the other hand, it might flip him out even more, and he could do something crazy. No, they’re right; I’ll wait until we see him. Something so serious shouldn’t be said over the phone.
With shaking hands, I dial my home number.
“Yes?” It’s my mother’s voice—sharp with worry—and my knees go weak with relief.
“Mom?” My voice catches.
She sobs into the phone. “Oh, Ophelia. My darling. Are you okay? Where are you? What happened? They said—oh, darling?—”
The next moment, my father’s deeper tones takeover. It’s clear he’s plucked the phone out of my mother’s hands.
“Ophelia. Where the hell are you?”
“I’m safe, Daddy.” The way he speaks to me reverts me to a little girl, reducing me to my childhood self.
“Whereare you?” His voice rises.
My mother speaks in the background, but I can’t tell what she’s saying.
