The Maiden (The Cloister Book 1)

by Celia Aaron

  “Let us in.” Sarah’s voice reassures me, and I open up.

  “We can’t go in the bathroom,” I whisper as she, Susannah, Eve, and Hannah line up along the wall under the camera.

  “Yeah, I heard you got a little extra hardware installed.” Sarah puts a hand up to stop me from closing the door. “We’re going.”

  “Right now?” The urge to run with them pulls at me like a strong undertow.

  “Bitch is in the bathroom. This is our chance. Are you coming?”

  I should say no, instead, different words come out. “I-I’m not sure.”

  “You better get sure.” Sarah’s dark eyes meet mine, and the intensity in hers brings me back to myself.

  Sarah’s right. I should leave this place. I’ve gotten no closer to finding out what happened to Georgia, and at this rate, I could end up at the Chapel in short order. The thoughts are all so reasonable, but my feet are anchored to the ground.

  Georgia keeps me here—her ghost lingering in the dark halls, hints of her like cobwebs so fine they can only be felt, not seen. Leaving is failure. Giving up on her has never been an option. But is this giving up? Or is this finding the truth in another way?

  “Ten seconds, and then we’re out.” Sarah peers into the hallway.

  And now, it’s not just Georgia that ties me to the Cloister. Adam—he’s another reason to refuse this offer. My heart pulls toward him, demanding I stay right where I am. But I can’t trust that organ anymore, not when it’s led me to this. Dying here, or something worse, is not what Georgia would have wanted for me. There has to be some other way. And maybe, I lie to myself, I can still be with Adam.

  “Now or never.” Sarah sticks her hand out.

  I waver for a second, torn between everything I feel for my sister, my captor, and my freedom. With a shaking hand, I take hers.

  “Smart girl. Let’s go.” She leads the way into the corridor.

  I join the other three with her, falling into step as we creep across the dormitory floor. When she reaches the door to the rest of the Cloister, she pulls a keyring from her pocket.

  “Where did—”

  “Shh.” She gives me a deadly glare, then turns back to the door.

  The toilet in the small antechamber flushes, and we all freeze, except for Sarah. She keeps trying keys. The Spinner’s footsteps are loud in my ear, one after the other as she walks across the bathroom floor.

  Shit shit shit shit shit. We’re going to get caught before we’ve even left the dorms.

  Click. Sarah turns the key and the door swings open on a low squeak. We hurry through and close it right as the bathroom door begins to open.

  “Stay close.” Sarah takes the lead again down the long hallway that bisects the entire structure. We pause at intersections, looking both ways for something far worse than speeding cars. Sarah holds a hand out when we come close to the dining hall.

  A faint snore vibrates through the air. Sarah points at her eyes and then down the hall. I’m guessing it means she sees someone. She eases across the open doorway that leads toward the Spinners’ rooms. I follow, and see Chastity slumping in her chair, the source of the light snores. A pang of guilt stabs through me when I think about what might happen to her when Grace realizes we snuck out on Chastity’s watch. But I can’t dwell on that. I have to keep moving. My decision has been irrevocably made.

  The last girl creeps past, and we turn right toward the back doors. The ones that require a code to open.

  I grab Sarah. “Do you have the code?”

  “No.” She continues along the corridor.

  I grab her again. “How are we going to get out?”

  “We’ll figure it out.” She takes my hand and squeezes.

  I stow the rest of my protests and follow, hoping that Sarah knows some sort of code magic to get us out of this prison. We have to have been caught on camera at this point, but no alarms ring. If someone is supposed to be watching, they’re asleep at the switch.

  We reach the back doors, and Sarah stops and pulls what looks like a shiv from a prison movie out of her dress. “Susannah.” She hands it over, and Susannah pulls up her sleeve.

  “Are you—” Susannah jabs the sharp end into her skin right where they implanted the tracker. Blood runs down her arm in a ribbon.

  Sarah pulls another shiv, which looks like a sharpened toothbrush handle, from her pocket and stabs it under the cover on the keypad. Working it under the plastic, she digs in as far as she can, then yanks. The plastic splinters down the side.

  “Here.” I reach over and pull at it, the plastic cutting into my fingers as I help her leverage the cover off. It pops free and falls to the ground.

  We flinch at the hollow sound the plastic makes when it hits the wood floor, then don’t move for a few seconds. Running footsteps and angry yells—they never come. We all breathe again as Sarah pulls out the wires behind the panel.

  “Do you know what you’re doing?”

  “I took some electrical courses at community college.” She examines the wires. “So, no.”

  Eve hands me the bloodied shiv. It’s my turn. I feel along my arm and find the implant. With as much courage as I can manage, I use the sharp end to cut into my flesh, leaving a hole that leaks blood. I’m used to pain now, but it still hurts.

  “Let me.” Susannah places her fingers on either side of the hole and squeezes as if she’s popping an enormous pimple. I bite my lip to keep from crying out. A moment later, the implant is out and piled on the floor with the others.

  “Sarah?”

  “I already got mine out.” She lifts her arm to show the red stain and continues to fiddle with the wires.

  “Can you get it?”

  “I don’t …” She pulls out a yellow wire, then a blue one.

  I examine the door, trying to find where the lock is. Leaning down, I can see a metal bar through the crack that spans between the two doors.

  “Give me the toothbrush.” I hold my hand out, and someone slaps it into my palm. I try to shove it into the crack beneath the bar, but it’s too thick. Shit.

  “What is it?” Eve peruses the area.

  “I think that bar may fall from one side or the other to lock the door. If we can find something thin enough to fit in there and strong enough to lift the bar, that might be our way out.”

  She squints at the crack between the doors, then darts off down the corridor.

  “Eve,” I hiss.

  “What’s she doing?” Hannah wads the skirt of her dress in her hand, then lets it go, then wads it again. “Ratting us out?”

  “No way.” Sarah has pulled several different wires free, but doesn’t seem any closer to getting the door open.

  I try to wedge the toothbrush in again, but it won’t go, and there’s no way to whittle it down.

  Footsteps raise the hairs on the back of my neck, and I stare at the gloom until Eve reappears. We all take a breath when we realize it’s her.

  “I’ve got this.” She kneels in front of the door and slides something in the crack.

  “What is it?”

  “Our good friend the dildo stick.” A metallic clang sounds from the door when the ruler makes purchase on the metal bar.

  “Smart.”

  She tries to lift the bar, but it either doesn’t work that way or is too heavy. “It’s digging into my hands, so I can’t get any leverage.”

  “Here.” I wad the skirt of my dress around my palm, then grip the part of the ruler closest to the door.

  Eve holds the end.

  “On three.”

  She nods.

  “One, two—” We both push up on the ruler, and the bar moves, but not enough. It clangs back down. “Fuck.” I pull my hand away, and Eve’s shoulders slump.

  So much time has passed. My hope is draining away, and I keep casting fearful glances down the dark corridor. If we can’t get out this door, we’re sunk. They could catch us any minute.

  “We’re never getting out, are we?” Eve lo
oks up at me, her eyes welling with tears.

  I have to stay calm, even though I’m going to pieces on the inside. “We are. We just need to—”

  “What are you doing?” Chastity appears out of the dark hallway, her brows pinched.

  I freeze. Dread whispers along my skin, like poisonous tendrils caressing me toward death.

  Susannah sprints past me toward the Spinner. Chastity is too surprised to react. By the time Susannah wraps her arm around her and presses the bloody shiv to her throat, Chastity has no chance.

  “Make a sound, and I’ll stab this all the way through you.”

  Chastity nods, her eyes wide, as Susannah walks her over to us.

  “Don’t hurt her.” I can’t help my trembling words. Chastity has been good to me.

  “I’ll do what I have to.” Susannah keeps the sharp end pressed to Chastity’s neck.

  “Do you know the code for this door?”

  She nods again.

  “The key pad is busted, Sarah.” I point to the broken plastic on the floor. “Can you put it back together?”

  “Fuck.” She gets to her feet.

  “So, no.” I want to scream. Instead I turn to Chastity, “There’s another door. The one we came in that first night. Do you know the code for it?”

  She doesn’t respond, and Susannah pushes the shiv into her skin, a crimson snake flowing down Chastity’s pale throat. She flinches, then nods.

  “Let’s go.” I take the lead, hurrying back to the main hall and turning right. We go as fast as we can, but still check each intersecting hallway. By the time we get to the room where the Spinners washed our feet, faint rosy light is beginning to peek through the windows.

  “Enter the code.” Susannah walks Chastity to the door.

  Chastity enters four digits.

  I practically hop from one foot to the other, adrenaline lighting up every cell in my body. Like a wild animal fleeing the hunter, I can’t stop. The urge to move and move and move hums beneath my skin.

  The keypad beeps, but the door doesn’t open.

  Hannah covers her face with her hands. “We’re going to get caught.”

  Susannah shakes Chastity. “Are you fucking with us?”

  “No. I just did it wrong.”

  “Her hands are trembling. Give her a second.” I eye the bar between the two doors.

  “We don’t have a second.” Sarah points her shiv at Chastity’s face. “Get it right or lose an eye.”

  Chastity enters the code, and with a pneumatic sound, the bar lifts.

  “What do we do with her?” Eve asks.

  Sarah looks at me, and I don’t like the darkness I see in her eyes.

  “We take her with us.” I take Chastity’s arm and drag her outside. “Close the doors.”

  The cold air hits me in the face, and I’ve never felt anything more wonderful. “We have to hurry.” I keep Chastity at my side as we dash up the path toward where the bonfire was the first night. “Beyond this is another clearing, and after that, a few acres of woods before there’s a fence.” I recall the layout I’d memorized before coming here. “There’s barbed wire on the fence, but we can pile our dresses on the top in one spot, climb over, and not get hurt.”

  The dead leaves crackle beneath us as we enter the trees. The branches and trunks give me some sense of security. At least we aren’t out in the open.

  “They’ll catch you.” Chastity stays with the pack, but like us, she’s winded.

  “No.” Sarah shakes her head. “Not a chance.”

  “We’ll be gone from here before they know it.” Hannah hurries ahead.

  “They will catch you.” Chastity doesn’t even need me to hold her elbow anymore. She’s keeping up. “They always do.”

  Eve gives her a sharp glare. “And how would you know?”

  “Because they caught me.”

  Chapter 32

  Adam

  “Higher.” I stand back as the small construction crane swings a set of pallets onto the top of the bonfire structure. Once it’s in place, I motion for Tony to turn the machine off.

  He walks over and whistles at the structure we built almost overnight. It’s three stories tall, dry as a desert, and ready to go up in a rush of flames.

  “Heaven won’t be able to miss it once it’s lit.” Tony cocks his ball cap back on his head.

  “That’s the plan.” I clap him on the back. “You can get on over to the development now. I think we’re done. Put in for overtime and I’ll see you get paid.”

  “No, sir.” He peruses his work. “This is for the glory of our Prophet. I was happy to do it. Molly wasn’t too happy when I told her I had a night job, but she got in line real quick.” He winks. “We’re big believers of perfect obedience at our place.”

  I wonder what part of Molly is bruised or broken before brushing the thought from my mind like dust off a mantle. “All right then. I’m going to stay and do some cleaning up on the back side. I figure we’ll set up one of the pavilions over there.”

  “Yeah, that’d be a good spot. I’ll call Gene and see if he can come on out and start working up the structure. Last time I looked he had a truck bed full of raw wood that would work for this. Anyway, see you later, man.” He shakes my hand, then walks off toward his white work truck. Once he’s bounced down the road toward the rear of the property, I’m alone.

  I walk toward the back of the clearing to gather up my shovel and work gloves. The sun isn’t up yet, the first rays lighting the tops of the barren trees. It’s cold and lonely, and I’m more than happy to have a few minutes of solitude. As always these days, my thoughts stray to Delilah. I wanted to see her last night, but my father had different ideas. He piled more work on me, keeping me busy while they installed additional monitoring equipment in Delilah’s room. Maybe he even sprang for audio. I plop down next to a chunk from a tree trunk and lay back.

  The chill doesn’t bother me. I let my head rest against the bark. It’s green, probably thinks it’s still alive, but I killed it days ago. Wind makes the tree limbs creak and knock, and I watch the ridge to my left. Any second the sun will show its face, bright orange granting color to the dingy winter woods.

  Did Delilah worry about me? I can’t stop thinking about her, about what Grace said about trying to get answers from her. Grace. I’d like to destroy that bitch, but for some reason, she did me a good turn. When she did her little perusal in front of my father, she lied. I hadn’t showered since I’d been with Delilah, a mistake on my part. And a witch like Grace would be able to tell, but she didn’t give me up. Why? I know it wasn’t for Delilah’s sake. She wants to ruin her, to send her to the Chapel as soon as possible. Then again, she could have scarred her by now, ended her run at being a Maiden of worth that’s bartered off to the highest bidder. Any Maiden who’s scarred or “defective” as my father calls them, are never allowed to marry.

  I’ll see Delilah tonight. The Prophet won’t upset the equilibrium amongst the Protectors. He already tried that with the office showdown. I just need to lay low. And more than anything, I need to see her. She asked me to trust her, and I do. That’s part of my problem, because now she’s invaded my entire being. Trust is like a chain that binds us, and I’d like it to cinch even tighter.

  Her trust is the only thing seeing me through right now. I had no idea how close I was to the void, to the edge, to despair, until I found her. Now I have hope that maybe we can work our way out of this place. Maybe we can have a future. Her belief in me can make all that happen. Setting my plan into motion has never been so close, so real. But with her by my side, I can finally make this place right.

  “Adam?” a man calls from the other side of the bonfire pile.

  I stand and brush myself off, the solitude busted. Walking around the structure, I find Gene there along with the promised pickup truck full of lumber. “You got here quick.”

  “Tony radioed me, and I was already up on the main road. He said you’re needing some stuff built.” Gene is
older, with crooked glasses and a warm smile. “My crew is right behind me. We can go ahead and get to work on this before we start working on the decks at the family houses.”

  “Yeah, sounds good. I can show you the spots.” I lead him back around the side, and catch movement in the woods.

  “Did you see that?” He stops next to me.

  “Not sure.” I change direction and head into the trees, Gene at my heels.

  Chapter 33

  Delilah

  “I definitely heard voices,” Sarah whispers and holds a hand out.

  We each duck behind trees. After a few moments, footsteps crackle from up ahead. Someone’s coming. Have they already sounded the alarm? Surely not. There’d be more men in the woods beating the brush to try and find us. This is a coincidence. Has to be. Whoever it is will go away. They’ll lose interest and just go back to whatever it is they were doing.

  I try to breathe slow and even, but my heart is beating at a jackrabbit pace. We only have a handful of acres to go before freedom. We’re so close.

  Susannah has Chastity behind a wide pine tree, the shiv at her neck again. But Chastity stares at me with doleful eyes, as if she’s already seen this drama play out and knows the ending. She’s tried to escape before. Is that where the scar on her forehead came from? A punishment?

  The footsteps grow closer, and I can’t tell for certain, but it sounds like two sets. We have to stay still, hidden. Maybe they’ll go back, maybe it’s a deer, maybe it’s nothing at all and we’re just paranoid. I hope it’s the latter, but I know it isn’t. Someone is coming, and it won’t turn out well if we’re caught.

  I grip the tree and rein in my desire to peek around the trunk and see what or who it is. This is our only chance, and we have to make it. Go away, go away, go away.

  “I think I saw a woman, maybe.” A man’s voice, and he’s close.

  Shit. I look at Sarah. She’s pointing toward the back of the property, toward our escape.