Page 99 of The Chosen
Roasted meat.
My stomach cramped painfully, my mouth watering with the promise of sustenance.
The last thing I’d eaten was pasta at Henry’s house a few hours before I was transported to the drop point. Even then, I didn’t eat much, too nervous about what might happen.
Now hunger clawed at me.
The other women filed into place around the table with eerie precision, each standing behind a chair.
Tabitha led me to a chair beside hers, and I mirrored her posture, hands clasped, head bowed. No one made a move to sit or reach for food. Hell, it didn’t even seem like anyone looked at it.
As if they’d been trained not to.
I wondered how long we’d have to remain like this. It wouldn’t surprise me if Josiah made us stand here for hours, staring at the mouthwatering food while our stomachs rumbled.
As we waited, I stole a few glances at the other women, looking for one woman in particular. Sarah. I’d only seen her photograph once — in Maine when I’d gone into the basement to get Henry’s duffel bag. I worried I wouldn’t recognize her. But as my gaze met with a brunette standing a few chairs down, I knew it was her. I’d recognize those eyes anywhere. They were the same green hue as Henry’s.
She gave me a small look of encouragement, obviously knowing who I was. I was the new girl after all.
A loud creak cut through, and I averted my gaze once more as a heavy door at the far side of the room opened. Every woman straightened instantly, readjusting their posture. I did the same, unsure what I was even doing or what was expected of me, so I simply followed their lead.
Josiah strode into the room, his steps measured and deliberate. Unlike last night, he wore white from head to toe. Beside him was another woman dressed in the same white dress the rest of us wore. Her hair was also smoothed back into the same low bun and she had a small bandage over her right eyebrow. But unlike the rest of us, she held her chin high. No lowered eyes. No submissive posture.
And the way several women looked at her with reverence bordering on envy told me she was important.
She smiled warmly at Josiah, then continued toward the table, standing behind the chair at the head. Only then did she bow her head, but only slightly, her analytical gaze sweeping over each of us, as if looking for inadequacies.
“Good evening, my little lambs.” Josiah smiled gently as he held his arms out.
“Good evening, Father,” everyone said in unison. Except for me.
Of course, he picked up on that, his dark eyes narrowing on me.
“Good evening, Father,” I replied softly.
“Good evening, Seraphine.” He gave me a look I couldn’t quite explain, then turned his attention to the rest of the group. “For those who haven’t heard, God has chosen another lost soul in need of redemption. This is Seraphine. She’s one of you now. Our ways may be new to her, so I trust you’ll help me show her the way.”
“Yes, Father,” all the women said in unison, many of them smiling at him with pure adoration.
Like he hung the moon himself.
It made my stomach churn.
“Good.” He held his hands out to the side once more, as if he were the second coming of Christ and we his mindless sheep.
I supposed that was what he wanted us to be.
“I know I promised you all a family dinner tonight, and we will have one. But first, a bit of unfortunate business has come up that requires my immediate attention and your assistance.”
I glanced around, trying to gauge the others’ reactions to this, unsure what it meant. But most of them seemed unaffected. In fact, some of them looked excited, Tabitha included.
“If you would all follow me to the chapel.”
He started toward the same doorway he’d come from, and we turned, following him through another maze of corridors.
The farther we walked, the colder the air became. The polished wood floors eventually gave way to dark stone, something ominous settling deep into my bones.
I tried to memorize everything.
