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“I love that,” Gabi says from across the room. “My mother gave me something similar and it means so much to me.”

A grin is plastered to Anex’s mouth. “It’s a lovely gesture but—”

“Unfortunately,” Margaret interjects, accentuating. “Our time is limited. We must go.”

Camille’s eyebrow raises, her gaze affixed to Anex’s. An energy flickers in the room. Margaret may be his spiritual wife, but Camille… she’s something more.

“Please, Timothy,” Camille says quietly. “I’d be in your debt.”

This time he doesn’t bristle at the use of his given name and a spark appears in his eyes. The connection between these two is unmistakable. I’m not the only one that notices, and their gaze breaks contact, and he looks around the room at the watching crowd.

“I’m sure we can spare five minutes so a mother and daughter can reconnect.” His head tilts slightly toward Margaret. “Don’t you think, sweetheart?

There’s no other answer than “yes” and Margaret knows it. This woman thought she understood how to be with this man, and her time on the outside gave her the impression she could be his equal. There is no equal to Anex.

Except maybe the woman standing next to me.

“Thank you,” Camille says, doing her best to be gracious.

He gestures and one guard steps forward while the other opens the flaps. Fresh air breezes in and I realize how warm and stuffy it is in here. Anex pauses before leaving. “Levi, I’d like you to escort Camille to Imogene’s Preparation tent.”

Me, I almost ask, but I catch myself and see the command for what it is. A loyalty test.

“I would be honored.”

“Elon and Richard,” he points to one of the guards at the flap, “will escort the rest of you to the ceremony. There’s music, drinks, and delicious food; all grown and prepared right here in Serendee. Take time to enjoy everything our community has to offer and maybe a little more understanding of why your family has embraced our lifestyle.”

“And afterwards I’ll get to see my sister?” Gabi asks.

“She’ll be eager to see you,” Anex replies before dipping outside.

My gaze meets Elon’s. Separating isn’t part of the plan, but we knew there was no way to control the variables once we got here. Richard ushers the group out of the tent toward the main festivities. Elon hesitates at the entry and turns to me. “Get to her. No matter what.”

“No matter what,” I repeat.

Camille looks up at me. “What does that mean?”

“It means the task we came to accomplish—it’s started.” I lead her into the crowd, heart pounding as loud as the drums in the distance. “All we can do now is focus on getting Imogene safely out of Serendee.”

She asks no more questions, just sticks close to my side. To the untrained eye, it would seem like Anex let us loose in the community alone, but I know better. I take her hand and drag her around a group of children playing a game, moving quickly.

Stumbling at our pace, she looks down at our hands. “What are you doing?”

“Getting away from the guard.”

“Guard?” she asks, frowning.

“He’s armed.” I nod at a man searching for us. “So are half of these other men, and they’re watching us closely.”

“I shouldn’t be surprised, but I always am.”

Leading her toward the large Preparation tent, I take her to the backside of the structure. I stop before going further.

“Would you like me to go first?” I can tell by her expression that her anxiety has returned. “It should be okay, but me going through that door might be less of a surprise than your sudden appearance.”

Camille takes hold of my arm and gives it a soft squeeze. “Thank you, Levi.”

“I haven’t done anything yet.”