Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Henry
The sound of the gunshot cracked through the chapel like lightning splitting the sky.
For one horrible second, I couldn’t breathe.
Couldn’t move.
Couldn’t think.
My eyes locked on Ariana, waiting for blood. For her body to crumple.
But it never happened.
She remained kneeling, no blood pouring from her head as I had feared.
Relief crashed through me so hard it made me dizzy. But if Josiah’s gun didn’t have a bullet, whose did?
A sharp cry echoed in the space, several women screaming and dropping to the floor as I frantically searched the chapel for the source.
And standing beneath the arched doorway, like some sort of wrathful angel, was Blake.
I’d never been so damn happy to see another human being in my life.
He looked like hell, considering the injuries he was still healing from.
But he was here.
Just like he swore he would be if everything went to shit.
And everything had definitely gone to shit.
But I didn’t have time to reflect on that.
Not with the chapel erupting into chaos as Blake stormed down the aisle.
He only made it a few steps before Josiah yanked Ariana violently against his chest, one arm locking her in a bear hug while the other pulled a knife from his pocket and pressed it against her throat, the gun he’d held now several feet away.
“Take another step,” Josiah snarled, all traces of his calm preacher’s voice now gone, “and I’ll slit her fucking throat.”
Several women gasped. One even began crying harder.
This wasn’t the composed prophet they worshipped.
This was the real man beneath the mask.
Weak.
Terrified.
Unraveling.
Blake came to an abrupt stop, but kept his gun pointed directly at him.
“Now put the gun down,” Josiah demanded, dragging Ariana back a few steps, his face scrunching up.
I tore my gaze from Ariana, noticing a pool of blood at Josiah’s feet. I followed it, seeing blood trickling from his leg, soaking into the fabric near his knee. It seemed that Blake had managed to clip him. That must be how he’d lost control of his gun.
“You don’t have to do this,” Blake argued calmly. “She’s innocent.”
“Put. It Down,” Josiah barked, pressing the blade harder against Ariana’s throat, a thin line of blood appearing beneath the knife.
“Okay. Okay. I’m putting it down.” Blake lowered the gun to the floor.
“Kick it over,” Josiah demanded.
Blake did as he requested, kicking the gun out of his reach. When it came to a stop by the altar, Josiah smiled. But it wasn’t the peaceful smile from before.
This one was wild. Crazed. Frantic.
“Take it easy,” Blake said cautiously. “Nobody else needs to get hurt.”
“You trespassed on holy ground,” Josiah hissed, his eyes darting around the room like a cornered animal. “This sanctuary exists to protect these women from men like you.”
“Men like me?” Blake echoed, arching a single brow.
“She was broken before I found her,” he spat, tightening his grip around Ariana. “All of them were. Used. Defiled. Poisoned by sin. Tormented by men like you.”
My stomach twisted in disgust, but Blake remained calm.
After all, he’d heard all of this before.
He’d lived this before.
He knew exactly what to say to placate him. To buy me time to figure out how to get us out of this.
How to get Ariana and Sarah to safety.
I strained harder against the ties cutting into my wrists, the plastic biting deeper into my flesh with every movement. But I felt them beginning to give.
“Holding these women prisoner does not make you a savior,” Blake stated evenly, discreetly moving closer to the altar, inch by excruciating inch. “It makes you exactly like the men you claim you’re protecting them from.”
“You know nothing about salvation,” Josiah sneered, continuing to back up with Ariana, pressing the knife even harder against her.
“Maybe not. But I know fear. And you reek of it. Do you want to know what you’re terrified of?”
Josiah didn’t respond. Simply looked around the chapel nervously.
“You’re terrified all of these women will soon realize you’re just another man hurting them. That everything you’ve told them is a lie. A way to control and manipulate them.”
“They were given paradise!” he bellowed. “Safety! Purpose! Love!”
“I don’t know about you, but punishing someone for whatever failings you find on that particular day doesn’t sound like love to me. It sounds like control. Manipulation. Possession.”
“That’s because your brain has been poisoned,” Josiah spat.
“You’re right. My brain was poisoned,” Blake replied, to which Josiah did a double take. “But not by anyone in the outside world. My brain was poisoned within these walls.” He pulled down the collar of his shirt, revealing his brand. “Just like yours was.”
Josiah gaped, his hold on Ariana loosening. It was only a little, but it was enough.
She knew it, too.
Just like I trained her, she widened her stance and bent her knees slightly, then slammed her elbow directly into Josiah’s abdomen.
He bellowed out, loosening his hold on her even more. Ariana used his momentary vulnerability to her advantage and twisted hard, driving her knee into his groin.
He howled, releasing her from his grip, the knife clattering to the floor. Ariana dove for it, wrapping her fingers around the handle. Then she spun back toward him and, without hesitation, buried it straight into his chest.
The anguished cry that tore from him barely sounded human. Blood spread rapidly across his white shirt as he collapsed onto the altar steps. Women screamed. Some ran. Others froze. But Ariana was already moving toward me.
Her hands shook violently as she cut through the restraints binding my wrists and ankles.
The second my limbs were free, I yanked the gag from my mouth and surged to my feet, kissing her hard enough to taste the salt and relief between us. For one blissful second, nothing else existed. Just her and this love I never thought I’d find. Didn’t think I deserved.
Until she made me believe I did.
She tore her lips away, briefly touching her forehead to mine.
“Sorry I’m late,” I exhaled, savoring in her warmth.
“I knew you’d come.”
“Always.” I touched my hand to her cheek. “I’ll always come for you.”
She fluttered her eyes closed, basking in my assurance before pulling back. As she did, my eyes landed on another familiar face.
Sarah.
Emotion lodged in my throat, making it hard to breathe. God, she looked so much like Amber. Except for her eyes. She had my eyes. I had no idea if she knew who I was. But based on the way she looked at me, she knew something.
“I’m not sure what you know,” I began, my voice hoarse.
But before I could finish the thought, she wrapped her arms around me, squeezing tight.
I swallowed down the emotion welling in my chest, blinking back my tears as I touched a hand to her back and pulled her close.
Pulled my daughter close.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“No. Thank you,” I replied through the ache in my throat as I held my daughter for the second time in my life.
But then a pained scream tore through the space, and I quickly dropped my hold on Sarah.
“Henry! Look out!” Blake called as I whirled around.
And when I did, I came face to face with Abigail, the same girl who’d played me earlier. Who made me think she was a victim.
And she was.
Just not in the sense I thought.
Her face was streaked with tears, her eyes full of conviction as she tightened her grip on the gun Blake had kicked to the altar.
Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as she stepped toward me, the gun aimed it directly at me.
I moved without thinking, shoving Ariana and Sarah behind me. Blake rushed toward Abigail, tackling her to the floor as a shot echoed through the chapel.
For a moment, everything was silent. Still.
Then a blinding pain detonated through my body, and I stumbled backwards, the chapel seeming to spin around me as I hit the floor.
Somewhere in the distance, I heard another series of gunshots, but everything sounded muffled. Like I was hearing it from underwater.
Warmth spread beneath me, my vision becoming hazy as I struggled to breathe.
Ariana hovered over me, her hands trembling as she pressed them against my stomach, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“No. No, no, no, no. You can’t,” she said, her voice sounding far away. “You can’t die on me. Not now. I need you to stay with me.”
I wanted to tell her I was trying. Wanted to tell her I wasn’t going anywhere.
But my body felt impossibly heavy.
Sarah dropped down beside her, and seeing her alive and safe brought an unexpected sense of peace. Because if this was it, if this was where my story ended, at least I’d found her.
At least she was finally free.
“I love you,” I managed to say, peering deep into Ariana’s blue eyes. Then I shifted my attention to Sarah. “Both of you. Forgive me.”
The last thing I saw was Ariana reaching for my face.
The last thing I felt was Sarah’s hand wrapping around mine.
Then everything disappeared.