Page 113 of Protected By the Sinner

I stand in front of the mirror, admiring my dress. Lilly is a designer and insisted on making it herself. It’s beautiful, and I feel like I’m living a dream.

Our sister-in-law stepped out for a few minutes, maybe sensing that Elodie and I needed a moment alone.

In the past, I never could’ve imagined something like this. Even though Beau and I have been living together since practically the day we met, today is the real celebration of our union. A love sealed by the baby we made and, God willing, the beginning of a big family.

I want to have more children. Fill the house with kids and grandkids on special occasions. I want to create so manymemories that everything we lived through on that farm eventually fades into something small and insignificant.

“Do you think Mom will know, from wherever she is, that we’re throwing this celebration for her?” I ask.

“I’m sure she does. She must be so happy for us.”

I look at my beloved sister and wish I could see real joy on her face, but I know her heart is still broken over that Italian guy, even if she never talks about it.

Elodie hardly ever comes home. She took a course and now works as a flight attendant.

She had to plan ahead just to take time off and come to my wedding, but she says she loves waking up in a new place every day.

I hope she forgets the man who hurt her and finds her soulmate, like I found mine.

“I think we should get going. Beau’s getting anxious.”

Beau. The man who, I know now, was always my destiny.

Celebrated by the media as a playboy, feared by his enemies, and adored by me and our daughter.

He never stops surprising me. He even investigated our mother’s death just to confirm it was natural, not at the hands of that monster, Tobias.

He also arranged for her remains to be moved to Louisiana. Neither I nor Elodie wanted her to stay buried on the farm, the place that brought so much pain. The land where all her dreams of a happy life were shattered and her joy stolen.

News of the cult stayed in the spotlight for a while, especially after five of the elders went missing—one of whom was our father—and the trial of Mr. Josiah Wiley, who, although Beau never said so directly, I believe is the only surviving “elder.”

The charges against him currently include child abuse and unlawful imprisonment, but the prosecution is collectingevidence related to all the missing boys. We’re hopeful he’ll get the death penalty.

The girls who were rescued eventually got their documents and were taken to the institution my brother supports:Trust Again.

There, they receive psychological support, attend school, and slowly begin to learn about the world they never knew.

I went to visit them. Some were still toddlers when we escaped the farm, while others seem to carry some resentment for having stayed in that hell while we got out.

I pray every night that someday they’ll reconnect with themselves, just like Elodie and I did.

A knock at the door draws our attention.

“Ready?” my brother asks, looking handsome in his suit.

“Yes. A little anxious too.”

He steps inside and offers me his hand. “You’re getting married, but you’ll never be alone. Neither of you. No matter what happens, I’ll always be here.”

I hug him, trying not to cry.

Amos is as emotionally reserved as Beau, and I know those words carry more weight than they seem to.

“I wouldn’t let you go far anyway,” I warn.

“Me neither,” Elodie chimes in. “You’ll never get rid of this duo again, brother.”

I’m trembling as I walk down the aisle with my brother to meet Beau. Elodie is on my other side.