“I told you,” he smirked. “Welcome to Eden.”
I didn’t think they would be living so luxuriously, but nice cars were scattered in various driveways and the impeccable landscaping really spoke to the shared wealth of these people. Itwas almost enough of a fairytale to make me forget why I was questioning this being anything but a good future.
“How many people live here?”
“About a thousand,” he shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal. “There were more when I was growing up, but a large portion of the population has moved away for college or careers that couldn’t withstand the commute.”
“Wow.”
The car slowed to a stop in front of one of the houses and I noticed that there didn’t seem to be any additional cars parked in the driveway or on the road. It dawned on me as I exited the car that these people were probably all neighbors and could just walk for any social events. I shakily adjusted my clothing and smoothed out my hair before catching Theo staring at me.
“You look beautiful.”
I managed to make a shy smile. Theo held out his arm for me to take, and I slipped my hand through his elbow, feeling his muscles tense as my fingers curled around his forearm. Theo rang the doorbell, and my pulse pounded hard in my ears. A young woman swung the door open, and I quickly took in her long dress and bright smile that stood out against her brown skin and dark hair.
“Hello, Elder Theo!” I was taken aback. When they mentioned a conservative Christian group, I wrongly assumed it’d be a bunch of white people. “And you must be Miss Olivia. My name is Beth. Pleasure to meet you,” she stepped aside gesturing for us to enter and she offered to take Theodore’s jacket. He shrugged it off and she quickly placed it on a row of hooks by the door filled with other coats and purses.
Theodore guided me with a hand on the middle of my back down the hallway into a large living space where there were several people seated around a long table talking. I noticed it was only men at the table, and I glanced around trying tofind another woman. My stomach tightened into a knot as fear spiked.
“Hey, boys,” Theo said with a confident smile tilting his head to me when they all slowly turned their gaze in my direction. I shuddered and tried to play it off as I crossed my hands in front of me. “This is Miss Olivia. The woman I told you about.”
They greeted me with various polite versions of hello, and I nodded with a smile hoping to hell I wasn’t making a fool of myself.
“Come, Miss Olivia. I’ll introduce you to the other women.”
I glanced from Beth to Theo who gave me a smile and a nod, and I turned to Beth for direction. She led me behind a closed wooden door where voices filled the space of a large kitchen. The women all looked up expectantly and studied me.
“This is Miss Olivia,” Beth introduced, pulling me further into the room with a light tug on my arm.
I gave a small wave and most of them gave me smiles in return. One of them, a younger woman, who actually looked younger than me, stood with her hand on her now visible pregnant belly and offered her seat.
“I’ve got to go check on the kids in the other room,” she explained when I hesitated.
I could feel an awkward tension in the room as I tried to take in the surroundings. My jeans made me stand out, everyone else was in modest long skirts and dresses, nothing too fitted or revealing.
I was startled by a baby crying suddenly and turned around to see an infant bundled up and laying in a pack-n-play behind the kitchen table and chairs. From the island, I watched as one of the women quickly stood and picked up the baby, hushing and whispering in coos to it, trying to get it to settle. I broke my gaze when the girl returned with a child in tow who was sobbingloudly. The little boy ran to his mom, clutching onto her skirt speaking too muffled for me to make out.
“Says Cliff and John scared him. I’ll sort out the older boys. Lucas only wanted his mama.”
The woman nodded and scooped up her son in her arms. I looked away trying not to invade something so vulnerable to the child and caught the eye of Beth who was standing across the island from me.
“Is there anything I can do?”
Beth smiled softly and shook her head. “Everything is prepared, just waiting for the men to be ready.”
I nodded, swallowing to try and rid the dryness in my throat.
“We were just talking about Lucy and her upcoming wedding,” one of the women said, gesturing to the blonde sitting beside her.
“Congratulations,” I smiled.
She blushed and fidgeted in her seat. “Thanks, I’m really nervous.”
“Don’t worry. Michael will make a good husband. He’s a strong leader.”
Lucy nodded looking even more nervous, her eyes almost glassy with unshed tears. “I really want to start a family. What if I can’t get pregnant right away?”
“You will. Just follow the guide I gave you, take your temperature first thing and don’t skip any day to have sex.”
