The Chosen by Patricia Bell

Author:Patricia Bell [Bell, Patricia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Patricia Bell
Published: 2019-12-14T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21 - Luna

It was laundry day. As the boys dragged out the tub for the girls and took turns filling it with scalding hot water from the wood-burning stove, Tabitha and Luna separated the clothes. At first, Luna had thought laundry day was fun. To her, the entire place was like stepping into a show of Little House on the Prairie, but she soon tired of it.

Her mind wandered back to that day once again.

“You have no place to go?” Naaman asked, taking a bite of his burger.

Luna shook her head. “No.”

“You are not safe on the streets,” he said, as if after almost being attacked and raped by three guys, she didn’t know that.

Maybe I should just go home, she thought and quickly dismissed it. She’d run away from home so many times before. And each time, she came back, begging her mother to forgive her. That time, she refused to ever return.

“You can come with me.” He raised a brow. “I have a family. We shall take care of you.”

“I couldn’t do that. Thank you for offering, though. And for the food,” she answered.

But he persisted. “You cannot stay on the streets alone. You will be harmed. Or killed.” He stared at her with what seemed a genuine concern.

At that point, she couldn’t help but agree. There was nothing for her at home, and she was sure to be killed on the streets. How could anything he had to offer be worse than the predicament she was already in?

“Okay,” she answered. “I’ll come with you.”

“Did you hear the news?” Jonathan whispered, pulling her from her memories.

The feel of his warm breath in her ear made excitement erupt inside of her. It was a sensation she’d only felt once before. She was ten. She’d had a serious crush on her teacher, Mr. Barker. She’d been crushed one morning when he announced to the class that he was getting married that summer. The entire class had cheered. But not Luna. She’d sat stock still, heart breaking. And to top it off, Mrs. Baker, formally Mrs. Stanton, was her teacher the next year. She’d gotten over her infatuation, but this was different. Jonathan stirred emotions in her she could not contain.

He set down a container full of dirty clothes in front of the washtub.

“What?” Luna asked, staring at the tub full of steaming water.

Tabitha was already separating clothes.

“Rachel has disappeared.” He stared.

“What do you mean?” Tabitha asked, dropping the dress in her hand back into the basket. “Disappeared?”

“She is gone,” Jonathan answered his sister then turned back to Luna.

“I have heard she has been rebellious,” Tabitha persisted. “She refused baptism last month and was sent to the elders for discipline. Now she is gone? Do you think she has run away? No one could get past the front gate and the fence, it is—”

“No, I do not think she has run off. I have heard she was fleshed-out.”

“Fleshed-out?” Tabitha’s hand darted to her mouth. Her eyes grew to the size of coconuts.

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