Chapter 31
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The sun still hadn’t risen when Blakely woke. She tried to get back to sleep, but it was no use. When she slid from bed, she thought Jump was going to wake, too, but she guessed the pain exhausted him.
She heated some water for tea and turned off the alarm to sit on the back patio and wait for the sun to rise. She liked Wave’s house. It was comfortable outside, not too cold.
Back when she was younger, her favorite time was morning when she could sit outside without interruption. If her father had known she liked spending time by herself before the day began, he would have punished her.
Idle hands were equated with sinning. Sitting outside waiting for the sun to start the day was seen as a waste of time.
She was supposed to always be busy with something.
Being on her own was so easy. Maybe it was selfish of her to not want children, but she’d learned when living alone how easy it was to take care of all her chores when there were fewer people dependent on her.
Laundry and food preparation was so much easier with fewer people. She could get through laundry so easy now. Even with Jump’s added clothes, it would take her only a few hours a week to finish the laundry.
Perhaps she was selfish. Maybe the cult’s mandate to fill the world with The Faithful was the correct way.
But the abuse, the pain she’d suffered couldn’t be propagated.
It had to end. There was no way how they’d lived, the loneliness she’d suffered along with the abuse had to be wrong.
She didn’t want to believe that some divine power would want most of the community to suffer.
She took a sip of her tea, wondering if she should write her thoughts down.
She wasn’t particularly religious because the women in The Faithful weren’t seen as active participants in their religious practices.
She was a second thought, nothing more than a worker to keep men’s lives as easy as possible.
Obtaining her freedom had come at a cost but also introduced an incredible amount of freedom to her life. The freedom had given her so much more than anything The Faithful had ever brought her.
Grayson couldn’t believe his luck. The bitch sat outside and she was alone. He could grab her and they could be outside the city before the sun came up. Once she understood how important it was they be together, she would probably come willingly with him.
Maybe someone who knew her father had brainwashed her into leaving. That had to be it. When they got back, he would find the person who had told her to run. There was no way a woman could have come up with a plan on her own.
The house next to the place where she was living sat empty. He’d been watching it since he’d showed up and had seen no movement. It was a sign. He had a place to watch from, which afforded him the view of her sitting on the patio sipping coffee, or was that tea?
He just needed to get into her yard. He could jump the fence. Or he could go around and open the gate.
It took him a moment to decide. He cursed himself on the way over to the gate because he’d wasted too much time. That dude she was in there with could wake up at any moment and his plans would be shot to hell.
He put his hand on the gate latch, hoping it didn’t squeak when he opened it. It was now or never.
Slowly, he lifted the latch, glad there was no noise. Excitement slid through him as he stepped to the corner of the house. She was almost back in his hands.
Before moving around the house, he drew in a slow breath, saying a quick prayer. He had God on his side. This would work.
He stepped out and moved quickly toward Blakely. If she got inside, this would get messy. He had to hope she didn’t recognize him and start moving before he got to her.