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Could she spend the rest of her life with him?

Yes.

Of course, given the alternative of her chosen groom, she’d rather spend the rest of her life living in a stable, burrowing into a pile of hay to keep warm. Of the three options, however, Merrick came out top every time.

Maybe he thought he was protecting her by scaring her off with the idea of hard, rough sex, but he had no idea what went on between community men and their wives. The things she’d seen after a new bride’s first night with her husband were the stuff of nightmares, and there were often warnings whispered about one elder or another when the opportunity arose.

Tamsyn highly doubted Merrick could do anything to her that surpassed a husband’s level of cruelty.

Wasn’t it funny how a couple weeks of freedom gave her the confidence to dream about a future outside the community? Before, her thoughts were consumed with getting away, finding a way out, and then once Jedidiah made the announcement of her upcoming marriage, how to escape or kill herself in the least painful manner possible.

Throwing herself down the side of the mountain had been an option if all else failed.

For now, she was content to just be in Merrick’s presence, dreaming her foolish dreams, and taking solace in her newfound safety.

That all shattered at midnight.

When a scream yanked her rudely awake, her first thought was she’d fallen asleep watching a horror movie, but the sound coming through the speakers was canned laughter and witty banter.

Nerves jangling, she eased herself up in bed, searching the room. Everything was still and quiet, the fire was down to embers, and light from the lamp beside her spilled warmly through the room.

Okay, maybe she’d imagined it, or she’d had a nightmare.

Both were possible, she reminded herself. She had no control over her subconscious when she was asleep. There was no reason to be so scared—

A second scream, loud and shrill, from outside.

Jedidiah.

Fear embraced her in a cold, paralyzing hug, tightening frozen tendrils around her until she couldn’t breathe. If Jedidiah was here, there was nowhere for her to run, nowhere to hide. He and the elders would take her back to hell, letting her rot and suffer in a dead marriage until her husband got bored and put her out of her misery.

Merrick.

She groped for the phone on the table, fumbling it bad enough in her shaking hand that it skittered across the shiny wooden surface, hit the floor, and shot beneath the bed where she couldn’t reach.

Outside the window, she heard a man’s low, deep laugh before he said something in an ominous tone. Was he trying to find a way inside the cabin? The door was locked, but that meant nothing. Locks could be broken, windows smashed.

Flinging herself out of bed, she didn’t bother trying to find the shirt she usually slept in. After her bath, she’d been too warm once she got into bed and the fire’s warmth kept her toasty. Instead, she snatched up the robe and struggled to shove the cast through the arm.

Panic surging through her veins with every frantic beat of her heart, she finally managed to wrangle the bulky nuisance into place, and twisted until she got her right arm in as well. She was already shuffling as fast as she could go toward the door as she fastened the belt around her waist.

Another scream echoed, this one further away, and she wondered if the elders were raiding the entire place, rounding up fresh blood for the community.

She made it halfway down the hallway before she stopped and lost the contents of her stomach. Just when she thought she’d pass out and become easy prey for her father, a bolt of adrenaline kicked her up the butt.

She was trembling by the time she reached the front door, her fingers shaking badly enough it took her too long to unhook the key from the handle and slot it into the lock.

Going outside was probably the worst idea she’d ever had, but she couldn’t sit here like a dead duck. She needed to find Merrick because he’d know what to do. He might not be able to stop Jedidiah from taking her, but at least he wouldn’t think she’d run away without saying goodbye.

It was freezing when she opened the door. Her breath immediately streamed out in a white puff of steam and her bare skin recoiled from the cold. She took solace in the fact her feet were mostly healed from the blisters now, just the remnants of the pain left.

That didn’t stop her from crying out silently as she darted onto the porch and almost fell down the steps as her soles registered the biting cold.

Maybe she should go back in and—

A volley of screams this time, vibrating on the still air. They came from all directions, reflecting the terror she couldn’t vocalize.

So she ran, her muscles resisting every step, her body telling her she was pushing it far too soon for anything good to come from the overexertion. Survivingnowwas her priority—whatever price she needed to pay, she’d pay later.