“I’ll think about what you said.” After my angry outburst, I had to be careful not to arouse his suspicions by appearing overeager. “Thank you, sir.”
He positively beamed. “Now that you’re feeling better, I’d like to show you around the camp and introduce you to my congregation.”
“I’d like that,” I said. In order to help Hannah, I had to get the lay of the land. “But before we get started, may I take a bath and put on some clean clothes? It’s been almost a week since I last bathed, and I feel dirty.”
“Excellent idea,” he agreed, preening at the prospect of granting me a favor. “Wash away the dirt and grime of your old life, and start your new life fresh and clean.” Behind him, Hannah made a face and stuck out her tongue. “I’ll have Nicole fill a tub and bring you appropriate clothing.” He turned around. “Nicole, go prepare a bath for Mackenzie.”
“Yes, sir,” she murmured. She hastened across the room, pausing at the doorway to look back at me. She widened her eyes again and jerked her head sideways.
Weird. What was up with Nicole?
Pastor Bill smiled at Hannah, whose expression had morphed into a deferential mask. “In fifteen minutes, escort Mackenzie to the women’s bathing cabin.”
“Yes, sir,” she murmured.
He reached out and squeezed my hand again. “I’ll take my leave for now, but I look forward to introducing you to the wonders of my new Eden.”
As soon as Pastor Bill strode from the room, Hannah giggled and sat on the edge of my bed. “Oh, yeah. It’s a wonderful place.”
“So, I’ll be getting the grand tour,” I said. “That’s good. I need to know the layout of the camp. I want to see exactly what we’re up against.”
“What we’re up against?”
“Yeah. I’m joining in on your little mind fuck.”
THIRTEEN
Kenzie
The door to the small cabin swung open and an unfamiliar young woman watched Hannah and me approach. All of the women in the camp wore blouses and old-timey long skirts, but her outfit was less hideous than most, a pretty cornflower blue that complimented her blond hair. Her lips curved up in an insincere smile that didn’t reach her blue eyes.
“Rebecca, the queen bitch,” Hannah said under her breath.
“You can be on your way, Hannah,” the young woman said. “I’ll help Nicole with Mackenzie’s bath.” Hannah hesitated, clearly reluctant to leave me with her. Rebecca waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. “Shoo.”
Shoo? I bristled. Talking to Hannah as if she were an unwelcome fly buzzing around a picnic. What would happen if Hannah didn’t shoo? Would Rebecca squash her like a pesky bug? I hugged the girl. “I’m fine,” I whispered in her ear. “I’ll see you later,” I added out loud.
Rebecca stepped aside so I could come inside. An antique copper tub—filled halfway to the top with water—occupied the center of the cabin. Nicole bustled around the room, pulling curtains closed across the windows.
“Bill asked me to welcome you to the community,” Rebecca said with another phony smile. Bill? Whoever Rebecca was, she was making a point, letting me know that she was on a first-name basis with the top dog. Staking some sort of claim? “I saw Nicole hauling water for your bath and decided to help.”
“How nice,” I said with a smile as fake as her own.
“You’re still weak.” Nicole took my arm and led me to a wooden stool. “Let me help you get out of your clothes and into the bath.” She unzipped my boots. I quickly slipped them from my feet and tucked them underneath the stool. I stripped, deposited my filthy clothes on the floor, then climbed into the tub.
Rebecca took my place on the stool, examining her fingernails and picking imaginary bits of lint off her long skirt.
Nicole handed me a bar of soap and a washcloth. I scrubbed my skin and washed my hair until it squeaked. Nicole poured a pitcher of warm water over my hair and offered me a hand while I clambered out of the tub. Once again, she widened her eyes and lifted her brows, clearly attempting to communicate something.
With a long-suffering sigh, Rebecca stood and crossed to a dresser.
“What’s with the Little House on the Prairie getup?” I demanded, frowning at the hideous skirt and blouse Rebecca pulled from a drawer.
I shivered, standing wrapped in a towel next to the tub. My bath had been warm, rather than hot, and I was eager to get dressed, but not in that.
My best friend Ali had managed to look adorably stylish in a maxi dress, boho sandals, and beads, but I’d always refused her offer to let me borrow one of her long gowns. As far as I was concerned, a skirt swishing around my ankles presented a tripping hazard, and bare legs meant my thighs would chafe. No thanks. If I could resist wearing one of Ali’s pretty maxi dresses, there was no way I’d say yes to the lavender gingham monstrosity with an elastic waistband that Rebecca clutched in one hand. She held a matching, long-sleeved blouse with a high, round neckline in the other hand. I squinted at the garb. Yellow daisies filled the white squares, alternating with the lavender blocks of color. Gad-fucking-zooks.
“Where are my yoga pants?” I asked, scanning the women’s bathing cabin for my backpack.
“Bill says that form-fitting clothes are immodest,” Rebecca said primly. “A woman must cover her curves, lest she lead a godly man into temptation.”
My eyebrows shot up. It wasn’t my job to keep a man’s libido in check. I bit back my protests. My mind fuck extended to Rebecca and every member of Pastor Bill’s cult.
“Of course.” I cleared my throat and put on my game face. “This is all new to me, but I’ll do my best.”
She nodded and handed me a pair of white granny panties.
“Where is my backpack?” I asked, slipping into the panties, my own bra—thank God—and the shapeless skirt and blouse.
“We’re a communal society,” Rebecca said. “We’ll make good use of everything in your pack.”
They had helped themselves to my stuff? I bit down on my jaw so hard that it ached. Wait a minute. What about my leather pouch, the one holding my phone and my photographs of Ripper and Miles. Where was it? Frantically, I scanned my memory and blew out a relieved breath when I recalled taking it out of my backpack and tucking it into a compartment in the back of the jeep, next to the solar-powered moon lantern that Ripper had given me. At least the congregation hadn’t got their grubby hands on my most precious belongings.
Or had they? Rebecca called the church a communal society. After the explosion, maybe Pastor Bill had assigned Ripper’s jeep to a member of his congregation. Maybe I’d see a stranger driving by in it. Maybe Pastor Bill had my phone and photographs tucked away in a drawer. I sat down heavily on the stool and hid my face from Rebecca’s scrutiny while I put on my boots.
If I allow myself to think about Ripper, I’ll lose it.
“Perhaps Mackenzie should stop at the dining hall for something to eat before she meets Pastor Bill,” Nicole suggested.
Rebecca rolled her eyes. “Are you hungry?”
My stomach had shriveled to the size of a peanut, and I had absolutely no appetite, but the prospect of facing Pastor Bill again held even less appeal than food. I had to do it, but it wouldn’t hurt to put it off for a little while. “Sure,” I said. “I’d like to get something to eat.”