Page 29 of Keeping Lilith
“I’ve got a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. It was a foreclosure, which is how I could afford it.”
“Could I come see it this weekend?”
“You can come anytime you want,” he responded, while mentally high-fiving himself as if he were in high school and the pretty cheerleader had agreed to go out with him. Not that he’d ever experienced going to a normal high school. All of his education had come via the school teachers Ralph had lured to the compound. Of course, only the boys were allowed an education. Educated women were dangerous—Ralph’s words and thoughts. He believed the more knowledge women had the less they were able to be controlled and Ralph was all about control. Ones Julian hadn’t agreed with when he’d been a teenager. He’d believed everything else but that. He’d let his sister, Rose, sit with him when he studied or did his homework, and taught her what he remembered the teacher said. They’d hidden it from their parents, but one day, their father had walked in, and that had ended that. A couple of weeks later, Rose had been groomed to become a bride. Something he should’ve stopped but hadn’t because his father had threatened that he would hurt Rose and he would never see her again if Julian tried to stop the wedding. The man chosen for Rose was the Ralph’s second-in-command, and it was considered a big honor for Rose.
As much as he didn’t want to, he believed his father would follow through on the threat. Part of him didn’t want to test his father. Ralph had also praised him for being a good follower, promising he had a special job lined up for Julian once he finished school. Saying Julian had so much potential to be a great leader. The words of praise, not to mention his father’s threat, had been all it had taken for Julian to forget about stopping his sister’s upcoming marriage. Looking back, Julianhated his younger self for falling for the manipulation, but it was in the past, and that was where it was going to stay.
In the end, everything had turned out for the best. Rose was happy, and he was . . . well, he was getting there. The more time he spent with Lilith, the happier he was becoming.
“Are you still there, Julian?”
Lilith’s voice reminded of where he was. That he wasn’t back in the past. He was in the present, and it was promising—if only he was brave enough to grasp it.
“I’m here.” He gripped the phone, wishing Lilith were in front of him so he could touch her. Ground himself in the here and now.
“Are you having second thoughts about offering me your spare room?”
“No!” He practically shouted the word. “Not at all. When you want to come over, let me know, and I’ll come get you.”
“Tomorrow at eleven?”
Elation thrummed through Julian. “Perfect. I’ll see you then.”
“I’d like that. Good night, Julian.”
“Night, Lil, sleep well.”
The call ended, but Julian kept the phone up to his ear like a lovesick teenager. Lilith was offering him a second chance. One he didn’t think he deserved and would not waste.
Micah Livingstone tooka deep breath as he stepped out of the facility he’d been holed up in for over a week.
Howdarethose people believe they were superior to him? But he’d shown them. He’d played them for the fools that they were. He’d given them enough of what they needed. He’d played his part perfectly. Acted submissive and frightened. It had taken everything he had to keep himself from exploding with rage and indignation at the way they were treating him, the questions they were asking.
Micah had planned to escape so he could get his freedom and finally put his plans in place. Staunton Rello had misjudged him all the times he’d dismissed Micah. There was so much he could’ve given to Staunton. Ways to increase their numbers. Increase their wealth. Staunton was so short-sighted, and he was now paying the price. He wouldn’t see the light of day for a long time, while Micah walked into the night, his freedom a cloak he would never shed.
As he approached the gate, a car pulled to a stop, and Micah smiled when he saw who the driver was. He opened the door and got in, ignoring the seat belt as the car pulled away. “Is the plan in motion?”
“Yes, I did all you asked. Everything we planned to do at Hopeful Sunshine.”
“Excellent, Richard. You’ll make a wonderful deputy to me.” Micah was pleased Richard had followed the plans they’d discussed, not only at the compound, but on the bus to the facility they’d been held in.
“I’m excited to get started. Stella hasn’t been able to communicate with me, but I heard the fools who held us talking and took note of where the women were taken.”
Micah was even more impressed with Richard and his skills, but no way would he let the other man believe for even one second he was in charge of this new project. It was Micah’s plan, and Micah’s alone. He was the one who’d been able to take money away from Staunton without him even knowing.Or realize that he was being played. “I’m sure Stella will be a wonderful wife for you. Shall we go get her?”
“Yes, she knows what to do if I turn up. How to act. As if I am her husband that she had before she joined us at Hopeful Sunshine. Everything will go as plan.”
“Yes, it will,” Micah murmured, his mind full of the woman he planned to own as his wife. As his servant. As the one who would bow down to him every night and give him everything he wanted.
Lilith Bennington was the going to be his perfect possession. The day she’d arrived at the compound, she’d tried to buck the rules, but she’d turned docile pretty quickly. Always keeping in the background. He liked that about her. The message he’d received in a dream had told him she was his and when the time was right, he would know, and would stake his claim on her. He’d had his hands on her the day the Feds arrived and tore the place apart. He’d known his time had come when Stella had called him over—she didn’t even realize what she’d set in motion by that one action. He’d been planning to stake his claim and tell Staunton that he could keep her in line, but Staunton hadn’t given him a chance to speak.
That had been a mistake, but in the end, it all worked out for the best because now Micah could do what he want. And he couldn’t wait to make it all happen.
Chapter Fifteen
“Areyou sure this is what you want? You know we don’t mind you staying at our place,” Cass said as she pulled into Julian’s driveway.
“I’m sure.” There weren’t many things Lilith had been sure about in her life, but staying at Julian’s was one she believed to be correct.