Page 24

Story: Indulgent

“Yes, ma’am,” Levi says. “We’re not here to hurt you.”

“Maybe not intentionally,” she says, but gestures for us to follow her. We walk down the hallway toward the back of the house. We pass the kitchen and enter a sitting room.

She points to a couch, and Levi and I take a seat. She leans the gun against the fireplace, and it’s not until she’s sitting across from us, pushing her hair out of her eyes, that I have a striking memory of this woman in Serendee. She’d been on the stage with Anex during one of his talks, and her expression had been clear and pure. Enlightened.

What and how had everything gone so wrong between her and Anex?

“What happened?” she asks. “Rex told me that he was going to convince her to leave Serendee. I said I would take her. Happily.” She looks down at her hands. “To be honest, when she never showed, I assumed she changed her mind, or that Rex was probably sent here on a recon mission for his father. Are you telling me something else happened?”

“She didn’t choose Anex. He, unfortunately, has chosen her,” I admit. It’s hard to know where to begin. I’m not sure exactly what Rex and Silas told her—or what she assumes about Imogene’s life. It’s clear Camille is a smart woman, and it’s probably better not to withhold information. “Things escalated over the last few weeks—months really. Ever since Imogene and Rex were Ordered.”

“To marry,” she says, then clarifies with an eyeroll, “tomate.”

“Yes,” I reply. “She was instantly in over her head. Being Ordered to Rex wasn’t like being paired with an ordinary resident of Serendee.”

“He’s ‘Chosen’ and that put Imogene in the spotlight—again.” She uses finger quotes around the word chosen. “I’m well aware of Timothy’s bullshit hierarchy.”

A laugh bubbles from my chest. Levi frowns at me, but I don’t care. I raise an eyebrow at the woman. “You’re ballsy.”

“Yeah, well Timothy tried his hardest to break me down, and he almost did it.” She frowns. “He’s punishing Imogene for my betrayal, isn’t he?”

“Partially,” Levi admits. “He definitely is focused on her. He’s convinced that she’s got bad blood—Regressive.”

“God, these stupid terms.” She looks between us. “You know he made all of these up one night after too many tequila shots, right? Regressive. The Way. Enlightenment. He added to them as needed—when someone stepped out of his ever-changing line.”

“Fallen,” I add, the word making me feel dirty.

“Correction,” Levi whispers.

She studies him for a long moment, then says, “Exactly.”

I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees. “Rex has been disillusioned with Serendee and his father’s methods for a while. He’s suspicious of his mother’s death. Judgmental of the hypocrisy between the Chosen and the rest of the community. Falling for Imogene has only amplified that.”

Camille straightens. “What do you mean ‘falling’ for her?”

Levi and I share a look, we’re not about to admit to the unconventional relationship we have, not when we’ve just gotten our foot in the door. But she can know the truth about Rex.

“Rex loves her,” Levi says. “He wants to protect her—at any cost.”

“Then why isn’t she here? Why didn’t he get her out?”

It’s Levi that answers. “The truth is that Imogene wasn’t ready to leave on her own. She was committed to Serendee, to following The Way and finding Enlightenment. She’d been chosen for a special group and was very excited about it.”

“What kind of group?” Camille asks, warily.

“A women’s group, run by Anex’s spiritual wife—”

“You’re fucking with me.”

“No,” I say. “Anex has additional wives now. One in particular, Margaret, has the most sway. She invited Imogene to an exclusive group that involved offering damaging collateral.”

Her eyebrow rises. “You mean leverage. Blackmail.”

Levi nods. “Yes.”

“The final part was a ritual.” Bile rises in my throat. “A branding.”

Camille’s face pales. “He branded my daughter?”