“But there’s only like five million people in the world. How could there be a bigger city?”
Q didn’t want to make fun of Flora, but sometimes she said the wildest things. “I think there are a lot of things you didn’t learn correctly.”
She turned to him as he glanced over before turning his focus back to the road. “There are more than five million people in the world? They didn’t all die off in the great purge that happened years ago?”
He shook his head, trying not to act shocked by her words. “No. There are a little over eight billion people on the planet.”
“No, they all died. The illness took over, and they were all purged by the great one.”
He glanced over, seeing if she was pulling his leg. She looked very serious. “No, even with wars and diseases that hit, the population is still growing.”
She looked out the window, staring at the cars and people, feeling lost in the huge wide world. The founders had told them everyone else was dead, and those who’d lived had sold their souls to demons. “So the people out here, they aren’t ruled by a demon?”
Q chuckled. “Well, some of them may have bad motivations, but no, there isn’t a demon in charge of them. There are good and bad people in every group. You have to be careful. No running around without clothes on. That would not be great.”
She pressed her lips together and stared out at the cars passing. “I had no choice before. I was in the ground. After they dug me up, I would have been shown to all the men in the community. That’s when my husband would have possessed me.”
“We don’t do that here. And you shouldn’t have been made to do that there.”
She let go a heavy sigh. There’d been so much that felt wrong in the community. Her father hadn’t been able to keep as tight of a hold on her as her mother could have if she’d lived. She’d had cooking and cleaning, but it hadn’t been enough to keep her mind from wandering. “It’s why I ran. Well, one of the reasons.”
“I’m glad you did. We’ll find someplace for you here.”
“So I won’t be with you?”
“A shelter can help you get on your feet and build a life.”
Worry hit hard. “Will I see you again?”
Q didn’t answer immediately. “I’m sure we could figure something out. There’s a place I looked up that accepts women who need help. You’ll need to get a job, but they will help you set up a life.”
She wasn’t sure she liked the sound of it. This world was much more complicated than she’d thought. How could she survive with so many people racing around in cars so fast? She wasn’t used to this, and now she would be on her own setting up a life. “Okay.”
“We’ll drive by now. You can get a look. I’m sure it will be great.”
She nodded, not sure what to say. She didn’t want to leave Q, but she wasn’t his. She didn’t know him, and he wasn’t family. She could do things for him, like take care of his house and cook for him. She didn’t know what life here was like, but she could learn. The idea of him leaving her somewhere brought fear.
6
Qknew seeing Flora again would only set him up for disappointment later. She was too beautiful. Alluring and mesmerizing were words that could be used to describe her. She was very innocent. Someone at the shelter could help her with that. Surely, they would have someone who could help her get on track to a good life.
The place he’d looked up wasn’t too far away. He turned off the freeway, and his first impression of the area left a lot to be desired. Surely, it would get better as they approached the shelter. But it didn’t get better. It got a whole lot worse. The neighborhood was awful. He slowed as he saw some man stumbling close to the edge of the sidewalk, almost falling. That guy was either drugged up or drunk. This wasn’t a location Flora could walk around on her own. She was way too naïve. Someone would take advantage of her the moment she stepped outside.
“What is wrong with that man?” Flora asked.
“He probably had too much to drink.”
Someone ran out of a shop and was being chased by what looked to be one of the workers. A car drove by with really loud music and almost hit a pedestrian. Chaos seemed to rule in this area.
He stopped the truck outside the shelter and cut the engine. No question, this was a rough area. Even streetwise women would be at risk here.
He opened his door and stepped out, not liking the needles near the trashcan or the bottles piled up next to them. He went around the truck and opened the door for Flora, helping her out.
She looked around, biting her lip. Her eyebrows were pinched tight. “This is the place?”
Someone burst out the door of the shelter and screamed some curse words. The door popped open again, and an older lady screamed back, telling the woman to never come back.
Flora grabbed his hands and squeezed them tight. “Please don’t make me stay there.”
