Eli shut his eyes. The frown deepened and his lips tightened to a tortured, thin line. “Phoebe has always looked up to Noah,” he finally said. “She’s not sharp or quick-witted. She’s a baby, a victim. You know that, too. I can see it in your expression. Phoebe may be an adult, but sometimes adults are children.”
In the counseling sessions she’d attended, she learned they were all victims of Noah’s insanity.
And victims needed help.
But they’d all hurt her. By allowing Noah such horrible free rein, especially with her, they’d moved from victims to perpetrators. Her stomach clenched.
Eli opened his eyes and met her stare. Fighting the unwelcomed guilt still rising in her, she returned to her sweeping, not before dashing away an errant tear. “Go away, Eli. Neither of us can help them.”
She could feel him step closer to her. Too close. “We can help them. Phoebe needs you.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “She’s a victim just like you were.”
Phoebe was too trusting. And too easily beguiled and willing to do anything for Noah, even if it meant hiding to prepare for the end of the world.
Kaylee struggled to fight the sympathy leaking in. And she struggled to fight the way Eli’s words drew out the righteousness in her.
“Kaylee?”
She blinked back tears to focus on him. All she could see was gentle sympathy.
“I know how you feel. And I wish that what I was asking of you was easy.”
He didn’t know how she felt. “What are you asking, exactly? That I just talk Phoebe out of that cult? You sound like you think she’ll listen to me. Considering what I’ve said and done and what Noah did to Trisha, I’d be the last person they’d open their door to, even if I did agree to go.”
“But you know the compound. You know the house and grounds and everyone in there. You’d know how to get into it.”
“So you need someone to tell you the layout of the house and then you’ll just ask Phoebe to come outside?” She shook her head. “You’d have to be as smart as Noah to convince her to give it all up. Or as sly and shrewd.”
Again, that hint of strife within him flitted across his face. Only for the briefest of seconds, she noticed. Then it was gone. “I’ve been trying to talk to her for years. You’re my best shot right now. I don’t know what else to do. I’ve prayed about it constantly.”
“Yes, well, prayer may be okay for finding a bit of temporary peace, but you have to be proactive or nothing works.”
He frowned. “Why do you say that?”
“You better come up with a plan. Even if we get into the compound and then into the house, you still need to deal with those people. God only helps those who help themselves.”
Eli frowned. “Is that what Noah taught you? God isn’t some passive overseer. He’s powerful, strong, willing to do anything to bring back His lost sheep.”
“His lost sheep? He abandoned Trisha and let her be murdered!” she lashed out. “A drug overdose in a motel, the coroner reported. And everyone in that cult, Phoebe included, told the police Trisha was depressed because I left. They lied and said I was disillusioned because Noah had spurned me. I couldn’t convince the police otherwise.”
Her next breath caught in her throat and her head suddenly pounded. It was all so fresh, so hard to bear. “But it wasn’t going to bring back Trisha and I wasn’t strong enough to fight it all. I had to let it go, but believe me, it was the hardest thing I ever had to do.”
When he didn’t answer, when his lips tightened and she saw his throat bob, she glared at him. “Do you really think Phoebe’s going to follow either of us out? You have to come up with something more drastic than that, I’m afraid.”
He looked as if he wanted to say something, but held it back. His face had become so easy to read. “You don’t have a plan, do you?”
It was an accusation. She was angry.
He shook his head, barely. Allowing the surge of shock and anger to overtake her discretion, she burst out, “You’re expecting God to step in with some divine intervention? That’s admirable, but frankly, it’s insane!”
“This is important to me, Kaylee. I can’t explain it any more than that.”
On her heel, she spun away from him to grab the dustpan. There was nothing left to say.
“Kaylee, I need to save my sister.”
She pursed her lips to fight the compassion. She’d tried to save Trisha, even going to the police after she escaped, secretly hoping that their investigation would somehow free her sister. But they didn’t take her claims seriously. “I tried to do the same.” Her whisper rose as she continued speaking. “But the police believed everyone except me. Because I’d willingly stayed in that cult for two years, they didn’t think I was held captive. And there was no evidence to back up my claim. All that I did to save my sister’s life ended up condemning her to death!”
He didn’t react to her outburst. “Do you go to the church in town? Is that where you were yesterday?”
Caught off guard by his question, she nodded. “I went because Lois, my neighbor, asked me to. She’s been inviting me to go since I came. I didn’t want to, believe me.”
“Why?”
She gaped with shock at him. “Because, in case you hadn’t noticed, I’ve had more than my share of religion lately.”
“No. You’ve had your share of a dangerous and evil man and his warped views.” He wet his lips and with a look of concern, he tilted his head. She could see the faint scar he’d shown her on Saturday.
“Kaylee, you have to replace a negative behavior with positive behavior, right away. You have to be proactive when changing those thought patterns that lead only to the wrong attitudes and crippling fear.”
“Like getting back on the horse when it throws you? No, thank you.”
“No, not like that. It’s important to replace negative thought patterns with positive thought patterns immediately, or else you risk being overwhelmed by your own fear and hatred. You can’t ignore that part of you that hates everything that reminds you of Noah’s cult. It’s unhealthy.”
When she said nothing, he asked, “What does your pastor say about suffering?”
“He’s not my pastor. I just went to the church to please Lois.” She bit her lip. “She said that we’ve all sinned. Yeah, except I didn’t deserve what I got and I know Trisha didn’t, either.”
“If you disagree with the church, then why did you go?”
She shrugged. “Lois kept asking me to go and caught me at a weak moment. And she’s been good to me since I came here to Riverline. But I think I should take a break from church for a while. Give myself time to heal.”
“That’s an odd thing to say,” he answered with a soft smile. “Churches are famous for their healing.”
She bristled at his little quip.
“Don’t give up on church, Kaylee,” he said softly. “That’s like saying that Noah was right to form his cult, his own religion to suit himself. Don’t let him win.”
Kaylee bit her lip. She wanted nothing to do with Noah, ever again. She didn’t want to think of him again, let alone face him. A shudder ran through her.
Eli leaned forward slightly. “What did your parents do when you stayed in that cult?”
“My parents are dead. My father worked on the oil rigs out in the Atlantic. One of them a few years back had an accident during a storm and he was swept overboard.”
“I’m