by Webb, Betty
“The children’s voices cry on the wind,” Lomahguahu said. “Can you not hear them?”
I shook my head. “I don’t hear a thing. But, damn, Mr. Lomahguahu, did you read those birth dates?”
He shrugged, his face betraying none of the outrage I knew mine did. “All the men of Purity believe that the more children they have, the better life they’ll have in Highest Heaven. I imagine they think their wives’ unhappiness is a fair trade for such riches.”
A fair trade. I turned away from the tiny graves and faced him. “Are you serious?”
“That’s the way they see it.” He shrugged again, as if he had long ago stopped trying to understand the ways of his neighbors. Then he said something I didn’t understand. At the time.
“The children will speak when you are ready to listen.”
We stayed at the graveyard for several more minutes as I strolled among the handmade crosses. While I was no expert on the benefits of neonatal care, it was obvious that the women and children of Purity would have benefited from some. Too bad Solomon eschewed the advances of modern medicine and relied upon prayer to treat his flock. Maybe Davis would change all that.
Solomon himself lay buried on the cemetery’s highest point, his professionally carved granite slab protected by a low, wrought iron fence.
Prophet Solomon Royal, God’s Own Prophet to the Community of Purity. Lifted up into the Highest Heaven.
Highest Heaven, my ass. If an afterlife truly existed, the manipulative old goat was probably warming his toes in the deepest regions of Hell.
Saul sat waiting on the front porch when I got back, a grim expression on his face.
“Lena, I just received a visit from the Circle of Elders. They nullified our marriage an hour ago. They’re saying that if you want to stay here, you have to find another husband. You’ve got twenty-four hours to do it in, because they can’t allow two unmarried people to live together. That would be a sin.”
I was so appalled that I forgot to hike up my long skirts as I mounted the porch steps, and caught my heel in the hem. If Saul hadn’t reached out and grabbed me, I would have fallen on my face. As it was, he had to help me to the porch swing, where I sat in silence for a few moments, composing myself.
“Can they do that?” I finally managed. “Nullify a legally performed marriage?”
He nodded. “As far as the rules of Purity go, damn right they can. Remember, the Circle doesn’t respect anyone’s laws but their own, so unless Davis says otherwise, they can do anything they want. Don’t get your hopes up there, either. I’ve seen Davis looking at you, and something tells me he wouldn’t mind your being available, you understand me? Besides, I think he’s biding his time until the next Circle meeting, where I hear he’s really going to kick some ass. Cynthia’s situation, well, that was an exception, partially because he doesn’t much care for Earl Graff. Earl and Davis are cousins, you know. Had a bad falling out just after Solomon was killed, mainly over the more liberal direction Davis wanted to take the compound in.”
“Cousins? Davis and Earl? The hunk and the pig?”
“Their mothers were sisters. Just about everyone around here is related in some way or another, you know that. Earl looks like his mother, except she was a lot prettier than him. Royal looks like his father.”
I held my head in my hands. “Cousins. Oh, Jesus. It just keeps getting weirder and weirder.” I sat in the swing for a while, letting the breeze whispering down the Vermillion Cliffs cool my hot face. When I felt collected enough, I turned toward him and asked the question I should have asked immediately.
“So tell me, my dear ex-husband, why did the Council of Elders take it upon themselves to nullify our marriage?”
He blushed, and after a few stammering false starts, said, “Um, Ruby, um, you remember that she does the laundry?”
I raised my eyebrows. “And?”
“Well, she, um, Ruby noticed, she noticed…”
He looked so miserable I decided to give him a break and finished for him. “She deducted, my dear Watson, that we weren’t having sex because there were no semen stains on the sheets.”
He smiled weakly. “She wasn’t going to say anything, but Brother Earl cornered her when she was visiting one of her cousins at his house…”
“At his house?”
“Yeah, Earl’s married to Pearl, her cousin. Anyway, Earl started cross-examining her about you and me, and he scared her so bad she broke down and told him. So Earl told the rest of the guys in the Circle.”
Poor Ruby. Although we’d never hit it off, I sympathized with her dilemma. She didn’t want to tattle on her husband, but at the same time, Earl could have scared Dracula. I sighed. “So I’ve got a big twenty-four hours to find a new husband or get the hell out of Dodge.”
“Better start hustling, honey.”
I stared off at the Vermillion Cliffs. Saul joined me and we both sat there miserably for a while. Then he eventually said, “I’m sorry it didn’t work out, Lena. I really did try to help.”
I reached over and took his callused hand. It felt cold. “I know you did. It’s all been my fault, really. I just couldn’t keep my mouth shut.”
He squeezed my hand. “Or your fist out of another man’s face.”
“It was the edge of my hand, not my fist. But yeah, you’re right. Maybe if I hadn’t smashed Earl Graff’s nose this wouldn’t have happened.”
We fell silent again, and after a while, saw several women carrying babies climb into a van that pulled into Prophet’s Park. Among them I recognized Rosalinda, Earl’s wife, and a couple of Prophet Solomon’s widows. All had given birth since I’d arrived in the compound.
“You don’t mean to tell me Earl’s making Rosalinda go shopping already, do you? The poor girl just had her baby only a few days ago!”
Saul grunted. “That trip’s about more important things than groceries, Lena. Brother Vernon’s taking the new mothers to sign up for welfare.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I’m not kidding. According to the law, they’re unmarried, remember? That makes them eligible for Aid to Dependent Children, or whatever it’s called these days. A couple of the older women there, they gave birth to Downs Syndrome babies, and their husbands are all excited. Downs kids bring more money, because not only does the mom get the ADC, she gets extra benefits because of their medical problems. Now that Davis is going to let these folks keep more of their welfare checks, a Downs baby is great news for the dads.”
I felt revolted at this crass commercialization of tragedy, and told him so.
“That’s the way it is here, Lena. You know Hanna, the gal with the bad limp? She’s one of the Arizona contingent. She had her baby this morning while you were gone, and if it lives, she’ll go to the county seat in Plattville next week to apply for her benefits. Her baby will get extra money, too.”
I frowned. “What do you mean, if the baby lives?”
“None of her others did. She’s had about six of them, I think, and all died right after birth. I hear this one’s got some real serious problems, too. The Circle of Elders was over there at the clinic all morning praying over it.”
I didn’t even bother asking why Hanna and the baby hadn’t been taken to the hospital. After more than a week in Purity, I knew why. Would proper medical care help the poor thing?
The van drove off but we continued sitting there until I heard a rumbling noise. I looked up at the sky and saw that masses of dirty-looking clouds had gathered. But they didn’t appear dark enough yet for thunder.
“Saul, was that your stomach?”
He grinned. “Nobody nukes Ramen like you do, wife.”
After we’d eaten, Ruby asked me to help with the dishes. I almost refused, but then I saw the expression on her face.
“I’m so sorry, Sister Lena,” she finally said, as I dried the three forks and glasses she’d taken so long to wash. “I didn’t mean to tell, really I didn’t
, but Brother Earl is pretty persuasive.” Her eyes lowered to her wrist, bare now since she’d rolled back her sleeve to wash the dishes. I saw a man-sized bruise.
I clenched my fist. “It’s all right, Ruby. I know what you’re up against.”
“No, you don’t.” She said little more.
The next morning I rose to a new resolve. After dressing hurriedly and pouring cereal for three, I headed out the door toward Davis Royal’s house.
A bewildered Sissy Royal, overcome by my insistence, led me to his office. As soon as she shut the door behind us, I asked him the question.
“Brother Davis, will you marry me?”
Chapter 16
“Why Sister Lena, I didn’t know you cared,” Davis said, a bemused smile on his handsome face. “May I ask what brought about this sudden declaration of love?”
I sat down on the big leather sofa. “It’s not really a declaration of love. It’s just that…”
My voice trailed off. Davis wasn’t stupid. To make him believe my wild tale, it needed to smack of reality, and the only way to do that was to tell as much truth as possible. But how much? I obviously couldn’t tell him everything, that during the long, fearful night I’d come to the realization that to save Rebecca, I’d screw the devil himself. Not that Prophet Davis was the devil. Far from it. From what I had observed, he was the only polygamist who had shown a shred of compassion toward women. He certainly didn’t have any thirteen-year-old “wives,” and to his credit, had ordered the practice halted.
Start with the truth, then. I took a big breath. “Brother Davis, I’m a desperate woman.” No lie there.
He lifted one blond eyebrow. Damn, the devil was good-looking. “Desperate? How so?”
I filled him in on the Circle of Elder’s decision not to sanctify the marriage between Saul and myself, and then I added my own spin, mentally apologizing to Saul as I did so.
“Saul, well, he’s an older man, and, well…”
Davis nodded. “I understand. It’s a more common problem than women realize. But when it happens, the poor things believe it’s all their fault.”
Had the man been reading Cosmopolitan? Or did he speak from experience? My surprise must have shown on my face.
“Sister Lena, several women have discussed their marital relationships with me. You may not know this, but when I assumed the role of prophet, I married two widows, women who had been the wives of elderly men. They had both endured situations such as yours.”
His smile was gentle, his blue eyes calming. Encouraged, I plunged ahead. “Then you understand it’s so very, very wrong for the Circle to punish me.” I threw out my hands, trying to look pathetic. “Brother Davis, I want to be obedient to the rule of Purity, but I’ll admit that unlike the women who were raised here, I’ve been out in the world and sometimes those rules are hard for me. I’ve done wicked, sinful things, and I really messed up my life.” Mimicking shame, I ducked my head.
When I peeped up again, the expression on Davis’s Greek-god face told me I’d made an impact, so I continued my tale of woe. “If I have to leave Purity, God knows what’s going to happen to me! I want to stay, I really do! I want to lead a good life, a Godly life. But I know that the only way I can stay here is to be married. You only have, what, six wives? I’d be a good wife to you.”
A faint smile played about his well-sculpted lips. It was no trouble imagining them pressed to mine. But only if that’s what it took to save Rebecca, of course.
“Sister Lena, I hear you’re not a very good cook.”
“No, Brother Davis, I’m not. But I can do other things.” I allowed a sultry note to enter my voice and leaned forward, making my breasts strain against the cheap fabric of my dress.
Davis wasn’t blind. A fine sheen of perspiration appeared on his brow. He crossed his legs and cleared his throat. “Other things?”
My performance would have done a hooker proud. “Believe me, Brother Davis, if you take me for your wife, you won’t be disappointed. And if you want me to learn how to cook, I’ll learn how to cook. I almost know how to make biscuits.”
He threw back his glorious head and laughed. “That’s not what I hear!”
I laughed back.
He wiped his brow and shifted in his seat. As if seeking to remind himself that my body wasn’t perfect, his eyes flickered to the scar on my face. “Women can do other jobs around here, Sister Lena. You went to college, didn’t you?”
I blinked in surprise. Was it that obvious? Yes, I had graduated with honors from Arizona State University, but there was no way I’d admit to that, so I hurriedly disavowed my alma mater.
“Well, I took some courses at a community college. History, mainly, and English. Some economics. I wasn’t the world’s greatest student, though.” Actually, my grade point average had been 3.8, not bad for a kid who’d lived like a gypsy in more than a dozen foster homes.
“You could teach at the school.”
“Without a degree?”
He leaned toward me, his knees touching mine. “Sister Lena, none of our teachers have even graduated from high school, and it’s been a growing source of concern to me. Knowing that one day I’d assume his own role as prophet, my dear father sent me to Utah State University to study economics, but the experience transformed me in ways he didn’t foresee. I came back a changed man. Now I’m convinced that so many of Purity’s problems are traceable to lack of education. Yes, I know my father believed God would teach us everything we needed to know. But I think God needs a helping hand every now and then, don’t you? After all, that’s why God gave us brains—to use.
“Now here you are, an obviously educated woman, a woman seeking a higher calling in life, a woman so desperate to learn God’s teachings that she is willing to marry a man she hardly knows, a man she does not love.”
He leaned even closer to me and as he took my hand, I caught a heady combination of soap and sweat emanating from his pores. “Don’t look so surprised, Sister Lena. I know you’re not in love with me, but that is perfectly acceptable. After all, few marriages around at Purity begin with love, especially on the woman’s side.”
His hand closed tightly around mine. “Oh, yes, I am well aware it’s panic and nothing else which brought you to me with your generous offer, but that doesn’t mean I don’t take your offer seriously. There’s good sense in your desires, both the good sense of a woman’s natural need for a man, and the good sense of a woman who with all her problems still desires to serve God. Admirable, truly admirable.”
While one hand continued to clasp mine, the other slid slowly up my arm and caressed my shoulder in a soft, circular motion. When he drew me toward him, my body leaned forward to meet his. God help me, at that particular moment, I wasn’t acting.
His lips, just before they closed on mine, whispered, “Sister Lena, eagles mate with eagles, not with mice.”
Only half-acting, I reached toward him.
“Brother Davis! Brother Davis!” Sissy’s insistent voice and loud bangs on the office door made us both jump.
Davis drew back but didn’t let go of my hand. “I am counseling Sister Lena, wife,” he called. “Please do not disturb me.”
“But Brother Davis, the Circle of Elders is here,” she called. “They need to see you right away! Something about Brother Saul and Sister Lena!”
Davis rose, pulling me up with him. “I can imagine what they want to tell me, can’t you, Sister Lena?”
I pressed against him, inhaling his scent. It had been a long time since I’d been with a man.
“Yes, Brother Davis,” I whispered. “I can.”
When Davis announced our engagement, the Circle didn’t like it, but most of them knew better than to argue with the compound’s new prophet.
Earl Graff scowled, and I noted happily that his eyes were blacker than mine. And was it my imagination, or did he sport scratches on his face, too? I didn’t remember putting them there. Maybe my nails n
eeded trimming.
“You can’t be serious, Brother Davis!” Graff protested, ignoring the warning whispers of the other men. “The woman is…she’s…”
“Watch what you say about my intended wife,” Davis warned. “She is dear to me and therefore must be dear to you. Do I need to remind you that you brought your problems with her upon yourself? Brother Graff, Purity’s women are to be cherished, not struck.”
“But…”
“Brother Graff, have you returned Sister Cynthia to her mother?”
“No, I…”
“Then do so immediately.”
“But the Circle of Elders performed the marriage ceremony last night! Sister Cynthia is now my wife!”
Davis dropped his arm from around my waist and took a step toward Earl. He towered over the piggy man by at least eight inches, and it was gratifying to see the little thug shrink back. Not gratifying enough, however, to keep the image of the terrified Cynthia out of my mind. What had that monster done to her?
Davis grabbed Graff by the throat. “Then you disobeyed the direct order I gave you. Why did you do that?”
Earl gagged and choked until Davis loosened his grip slightly. “I…I convened the Circle of Elders, and we decided that since Prophet Solomon promised her to me, I might as well go ahead and marry her.”
Davis’s eyes narrowed. “That prophet is dead. I, as the new prophet, hereby annul your marriage and demand that you release that girl to her mother. To make certain you follow my orders this time, I’m returning to your house with you, and I’ll escort Cynthia back to her mother’s myself. Woe be to you, Brother Earl, if Sister Cynthia has one mark upon her person.”
“But she…I had to…She…”
Without another word, Davis released his hand from around Earl’s throat and grabbed his collar. Half shoving, half pulling, he hustled the cowering man out the door and toward his house. We all ran after them, across the dirt circle to the Arizona side, and up the stairs of the tar-papered hovel Earl called home. The front door, barely attached to its hinges, flew open with one shove of Davis’s huge hand.
