Say Goodbye (Romantic Suspense #25) by Karen Rose

            They no longer lived in the same hut, so it made sense that they’d come from different directions. Thank you, little brother, she thought. For having your shit together better than me.

            She looked both ways when she left the healer’s hut, relieved that everyone was in the square already, looking away from her and toward where Pastor stood on a raised platform. He was an average-looking man, maybe five-eight. On the surface, he seemed unremarkable in every way. His brown hair was graying, his face almost always smiling benignly. He wore round glasses that gave him a professorial air. He shouldn’t have been a leader of anything, but there was something about him that drew the people of Eden like moths to a flame. They trusted him implicitly.

            He was, however, holding Hayley captive against her will, and so she would never trust him. She slipped out and made it to the back of the group in the square, then gasped again when bony fingers grabbed her arm, in the same place Graham had.

            “Where were you?” Rebecca asked, her tone low and ominous. The woman was older, though her age was hard to tell. Hayley thought she might be younger than her own mother, but years of living in this hellhole had made her haggard, her skin wrinkled. More important at the moment was her size and strength. She was much taller and stronger than Hayley. She wouldn’t stand a chance if the woman tried to seriously hurt her. “You weren’t in your bed, where I left you.” She squeezed harder, giving Hayley a shake that rattled her teeth. “Do not lie to me, girl.”

            She spoke quietly enough that no one around them heard, or at least didn’t appear to. All eyes were closed as Pastor led them in prayer.

            Hayley’s mouth opened, then closed. “I was here,” she stammered. “On my way here.”

            Rebecca’s eyes narrowed. “You’re lying. You can’t even lie well.”

            “She was with me,” a soft voice said from behind them.

            Both Hayley and Rebecca twisted around to see Sister Tamar, who was smiling sweetly. “I went to wake her up, Sister Rebecca. I knew she’d stayed behind to sleep. It’s taxing, being pregnant.” Her smile grew brittle. “But I guess you wouldn’t know that, would you?”

            Rebecca’s jaw grew tight; the muscles in her neck corded as she controlled the rage that flashed in her eyes. She shoved Hayley away with a glare. “Stay out of my way. Both of you.”

            Hayley turned to Tamar with wide eyes and a hammering heart. Why? she wanted to ask. Why did you cover for me?

            The woman was young, maybe twenty, and was one of the weavers. That was all Hayley knew about her. She wasn’t one of Joshua’s wives and she and Hayley had never spoken one-on-one. Hayley wasn’t even sure who the woman was married to, although she had a husband.

            That was a given in Eden. All females over twelve were married.

            Tamar shook her head, the movement so slight that Hayley would have missed it had she not been staring. Then, shoulders sagging, Tamar folded her hands and lowered her head as Pastor prayed that the good Lord would bless them in their upcoming move, that he would protect them in these “treacherous times” when the government was trying to “steal their religious freedoms.” He prayed that everyone would make the trip to the new site safely and that Brother DJ would heal from his “grievous wounds” inflicted by the FBI just hours before. He asked God to “shield them” from the evil men who’d killed so many at Waco.

            The FBI’s failed takeover attempt of the Branch Davidians was mentioned often by the Eden authorities. It was a fear tactic that worked, several of the men murmuring, “Amen.”

            After Pastor’s final amen, everyone looked up as one. Hayley still hadn’t gotten used to the synchronized movement. It was as if the crowd were a well-choreographed chorus line.

            “We leave at dawn,” Pastor announced. “Pack what you can easily carry. Do not be tardy. This is not a drill. Anyone who isn’t ready at dawn will be cast out.”

            The group gasped, again as one.

            Cast out. That was bad, Hayley knew that much. She glanced at Tamar, who whispered, “Left in the woods for the wolves.”

            Hayley shuddered. This was a nightmare. Worse than a nightmare. Worse than hell could ever be. God, please get me out of here. Help me save my baby.

            “Our new home won’t be as nice as this one,” Pastor continued. “There will be some adjustments, but I promise you’ll be happy there. We’ll be together, and with God’s help and protection, we will prevail. Now go and prepare. We have only a few hours before dawn.”