The girl hadn’t spoken since she’d been brought back. It wasn’t because she was sulking. It was because she needed the silence to figure out how to respond if they questioned her. She had been living under the roof of a woman who was secretly engaged in the artifact quest and was committed to thwarting the diviner’s plans. Even though Hannah didn’t know much, it would be better to pretend she knew nothing.
The girl jumped slightly at the sound of a knock on her door. What was the point of knocking, she wondered bitterly? A polite attempt not to intrude on her privacy? She’d been dragged from her place of refuge and carried off in the middle of the night. How much greater a violation of privacy could there be than that? Another knock came, and then the doorknob turned. Since the door was locked from the outside, she knew her prospective visitor already had the key.
“Hannah, my dear?” The diviner entered.
She cringed inwardly as his eyes devoured her. Obviously, his lust hadn’t diminished during the time she was gone. However, his appearance had altered dramatically. His skin was now shriveled, giving his face the appearance of a mummified skull. His entire physique had shrunken to the point that his body appeared to be nothing more than a huddled bundle of bones beneath his black suit.
Hannah flashed back to the nights she’d been forced to spend in his bed. It now seemed like being trapped in the embrace of a rotting corpse.
“How are we feeling today?” His speech sounded slurred. He gave a fleeting smile and advanced tentatively into the room.
The girl regarded him with a blank expression.
He sat down on the bed beside her though, thankfully, not too near. “I know, my little one. You have suffered a great shock. It will take time.” His voice was uncharacteristically soft. “It will take time to restore you to us.”
Apparently, he was attributing her unresponsiveness to the trauma of the kidnapping. She turned her face away. The sight of him was too unnerving.
He took no offense. “My son has shown me pictures of the place you were being held. There was an old woman and a boy.”
She felt her heart skip a beat. He already knew about Granny Faye and Zach? Fighting an urge to ask about their welfare, she commanded herself to keep still.
He continued. “The Fallen can be very beguiling when they want to corrupt a pure soul. They can seem friendly and kind in order to persuade one of the blessed to succumb to their godless ways. You are a mere child.” He reached out to stroke her hair then caught himself.
She stifled a grimace of disgust.
“It’s alright. I understand. You are an innocent in all this. You couldn’t have known. Someday you will tell me who they are but not now. This is not the time.” He stopped speaking abruptly as if he had lost his train of thought. Then he nodded, seemingly listening to a voice only he could hear. “Yes, yes. I will tell her.”
The old man rose heavily to his feet. He fixed his attention on the opposite wall. “I have had such visions, Hannah. The angel of the Lord has shown me wonders. A bright future lies in store for us both. As I foresaw long ago, you shall rise to the rank of my principal wife. The angel has prophesied you will bear me a dozen sons. More sons than any of my other wives have borne—even Mother Rachel. Male issue is a sure sign of God’s favor. You shall occupy a place of honor beside my throne when we ascend to my celestial kingdom together.” He clasped his hands, swept away by his rapturous vision. “Oh, how beautiful our life will be!”
As Hannah listened to his ramblings, she recalled that the diviner used to frighten her. Before her escape, she had been intimidated because he spoke to God. Everyone said he was the voice of God on earth. Now, he frightened her for an entirely different reason. She realized he was a madman.
Once more he halted unexpectedly in his monologue and turned around to peer at Hannah through bleary eyes. Transferring his attention from his dazzling revelation to the girl who was his captive audience, he said, “But I speak of things that are yet to come. In the present moment, you must think only of regaining your strength. Once you have rested for a time, you will remember who you are. Then we shall be reunited to live again as man and wife.” He lapsed into a vague silence and drifted toward the door without bidding her goodbye.
The minute he was gone, Hannah sprang up and followed him. She twisted the doorknob on the off chance that, in his addled state, he had forgotten to lock her in. Unfortunately, he hadn’t. What was she going to do? The diviner’s grand plan hinged on her becoming his sweet little wife again—innocent, timid, compliant. She was none of those things now. The real world had given her a dangerous taste of freedom. She meant to choose her own path in life no matter what Father Abraham wanted her future to be. She needed to escape. If only she could get word to Daniel. He had helped her once. He might be willing to try again.
The sound of the door opening once more made her jump. Whoever wanted access to her now wasn’t even pretending to be polite. She backed away toward the window. Her latest visitor was one of Daniel’s brothers. The one called Joshua. She hardly knew him at all, but there were rumors that he had an uncanny knack for ferreting out secrets. Hannah found him unnerving and not simply because of his formidable reputation. It was his eyes. They were cold and dead as a shark’s. In the real world, it was said that the eyes were the windows to the soul. She
