She shook her head. “I have no idea about anything.” She wondered how she would work through everything. When she’d run she’d known it would be difficult, but this was much more complicated than she’d expected.
A bell rang, and she jumped. Q put his hand on her arm and warmth spread. She needed to watch her reaction to him. It wouldn’t do her any good getting her hopes up about this man. He was being nice right now, but there was no future for them.
10
“It’s okay, that’s the doorbell.” Q wasn’t expecting anyone, so he approached the door cautiously. When he glanced out the peephole and saw Kevlar and Remi, a small sigh slipped out. He opened the door, glad his friends had come over.
“Hey, Q, we were with Wolf earlier today, and he brought up your situation.”
“Oh, yeah. Come in.” He stepped back and saw Flora in the hallway with her arms crossed protectively over her torso. “This is Flora. Flora, this is Remi and Kevlar.”
Flora stepped out of the hall but didn’t come close. Remi closed the distance, a smile on her face.
“Oh my, aren’t you beautiful? I’m Remi, and I understand you need a safe place.”
She nodded, and her gaze flew to Q before she glanced back at Remi. Q felt for Flora. Today had been a lot, meeting all the men on his team and their women. Flora was handling everything okay but he needed to slow down so she didn’t get too scared.
“I live a few houses down the street. I’ll make sure you have the address and my phone number. If you need anything at all,don’t hesitate to call. I work from home, so I will most likely be there. We want to make sure you feel safe.”
“Thank you. I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t run into Q.”
“Well, I’m sure glad you did. Sometimes, fate puts us on the right path. I met Kevlar in Hawaii, and he was exactly who I needed to be with.”
Kevlar chuckled. “If I hadn’t been in that boat, you wouldn’t have been targeted.”
Remi waved her hand dismissively. “Whatever. We were meant to be. And I know you were meant to be found and brought here. We can help you get more comfortable.”
Flora wasn’t sure if she would ever get used to this place. She shook her head. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be comfortable.”
Remi smiled and took her hand. “We can help you. How are you dealing with everything right now?”
Flora bit her lower lip, unsure how to answer. “I appreciate everything, but I feel overwhelmed. Like maybe I made a mistake running, but I didn’t want to be a wife to an old man who I didn’t really know.”
Remi squeezed her hand. “Listen to me. When you get overwhelmed, you can take a break. You don’t have to do more than you feel capable.”
“It would be rude to go sit in my room.”
Remi shook her head. “No, I think all of us will understand. We’ll make sure not to overwhelm you.”
She swallowed over the weirdness that rose up inside. She’d been raised to never listen to her own desires. It was weird to think these people cared enough about her that they wanted to make sure she felt comfortable. Just the idea that they cared about her blew her mind.
Everything she’d experienced since leaving the community was awful and amazing at the same time. She needed some balance, and she hoped she could find it over the next few weeks.
Remi wrote down her address and number, making sure Flora knew which direction their house was. She liked Remi and hoped she could see her again.
After they left, she told Q she needed a moment to herself. Once in the bedroom, she dropped to the floor and sat with her back against the wall. She closed her eyes, fighting to keep the fear down. She had less to be afraid of here than she had at home in the community. Heck, she didn’t know much about this world, and she feared that she would mess everything up.
The men from her community would be looking for her. She could imagine how angry they were. Women had died, but no woman that she knew of had ever run. Running was impossible, and women knew it. Any child that ever tried to run away had been disciplined harshly. One boy had two of his fingers cut off when he’d been caught after an attempt to run away. The threats were there, and she’d ignored it all, knowing she could end up losing everything.
It had been worth it to run. Her life would have been hell if she’d stayed. She’d seen how worn-down women were in the community. They died young. That was why Jebediah needed a wife. His previous wife had died unexpectedly. Flora would be expected to raise his children. She didn’t want that. She didn’t want to be a mother, not yet. She wanted to be free, but freedom was frightening.
11
On Monday morning, Q left for work, leaving her alone. She stood in the kitchen, looking for anything to clean or take care of, but Q’s house was clean, and there wasn’t anything for her to do.
He’d showed her how to wash clothes, so there wasn’t even any washing to take care of. She turned around, searching for something to do, when there was a knock at the door. At first, she froze, but then she raced over and was about to pull open the door when she remembered to check the peephole. It was Ellis. She pulled the door open, happy to see the woman.
“Hello, Ellis.”
