The Stone Serpent, page 8
“Sharon, you and Meredith stay here,” Eliezer growled. He thumped angrily out of the dining room toward the front door.
“Shit,” Laura muttered and hurried after him.
11.
* * *
Shepherd Eliezer reached Francis’s pamphlet table before Laura did, moving remarkably quickly for a man of his age and pushing his way through the crowd that had gathered. Fritz, the red-bearded member of the Order of the Faith, grabbed fistfuls of pamphlets off the table and tore them to pieces. The other, Damien, snatched pamphlets out of Francis’s hands.
“What is this nonsense, Elder Francis?” Eliezer raged. “Remove this filth immediately!”
The spectacle of the confrontation caused the crowd around the table to grow. They formed a tight human wall, keeping Laura on the outside. She stood on her toes and saw Fritz push Francis roughly aside, then grab two big handfuls of pamphlets and crumple them into balls. Rebecca tried to gather up other pamphlets to save them from the same fate. Damien grabbed Rebecca roughly by the arm and yanked her away from the table. Furious, Laura began to force her way through the crowd.
“People have a right to know there are other ways of doing things,” Francis insisted. “There can be a role for women in the Church. The community is interested in this idea, Shepherd Eliezer. Look!”
He pointed at the crowd. Many of them dropped the pamphlets they were holding, afraid of the Shepherd’s wrath.
“The Devil has filled your mind with folly, Elder Francis,” Eliezer said, speaking loudly so everyone could hear him. “When the Lord chose his Apostles, he chose twelve men. That’s why Church leadership is reserved for men alone. We follow His example, just as we live His word.”
Laura broke through the crowd and stormed up to Damien, who held Rebecca roughly by the arm. Rebecca squirmed, trying to free herself.
“Let go of her!” Laura said.
Damien turned his head toward her. His features were as sharp and angular as a weasel’s. His slate-gray eyes were full of animosity. “You’re not welcome here. Why don’t you go home where you belong?”
She could tell from the confidence his voice and his easy, unconcerned stance that he was accustomed to telling women what to do. He’d probably done it all his life. If he expected Laura to obey, he would be sorely disappointed.
“I said let go of her.”
“Laura, don’t,” Rebecca warned her.
Damien’s eyes narrowed. “Didn’t you hear me? Leave, or I’ll drag you to your car myself.”
“Try it,” Laura said. “See how far you get.”
He glared at her, but she didn’t back down. Slowly, doubt crept into his eyes. She guessed he’d never been defied by a woman before. Finally, he let go of Rebecca’s arm.
“You’re not worth the trouble,” he sneered, trying to save face before oozing back into the crowd to join Fritz and Eliezer.
Laura put her hand on Rebecca’s shoulder. “Are you okay?”
The girl rubbed her arm and nodded. “You shouldn’t have done that, Cousin Laura. You’re going to get in trouble.”
“I’m already in trouble.”
“Me, too.” Rebecca grinned slyly. Laura saw Aunt Gwen so clearly in the girl’s features that she could have been looking at a younger version of her. “I thought you left, Cousin Laura.”
“Not yet. I have more to do.”
“I’m glad you’re still here. Excuse me, please.” Rebecca hurried back to the table and snatched up any pamphlets within reach.
“The word of the Lord is not to be questioned, Elder Francis,” Eliezer said, his voice raised as loud as a carnival barker to make sure everyone heard him. “The old ways are best. These modern ideas have no place here. Nor does anyone who adheres to them, which is why it’s so laughable that you wish to replace me as Shepherd!”
Rebecca glared at him, holding the pamphlets protectively to her chest so they couldn’t be taken from her. “The old ways aren’t the best ways, Shepherd Eliezer, they’re just your ways!”
A shocked gasp rippled through the crowd. Everyone, even Francis, froze, wondering how Eliezer would react. But he only smiled patiently and reached out with an age-spotted hand. Rebecca backed away from his touch.
“Poor child. Your misguided father has filled your head with his foolishness.” Then, louder, he said, “‘Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church.’ Ephesians 5:22.”
“I believe the women among us can be so much more,” Francis said. “My daughter can be so much more. All our daughters can.”
Eliezer only bellowed to the crowd again, “‘Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve.’ First Timothy 2:11.”
The more Laura saw of Shepherd Eliezer, the more she leaned toward the possibility that he was responsible for Malachai’s death. There were rat poisons that calcified the soft tissue of rats; a similar poison used on Malachai could have done the same to him, although on a much grander scale. Sam Templeton said everything Shepherd Eliezer did was about holding on to power within the Church of the Divine Chariot. For a man like him, the public humiliation of a wayward son could be reason enough to murder his own flesh and blood.
A girl’s voice rang out suddenly. “Rebecca!”
Laura saw a blur of copper hair as Meredith ran up to the table.
“Meredith!” Rebecca said. The two girls beamed and hugged each other. “I haven’t seen you in so long!”
Sharon came running after Meredith, one hand on her swollen stomach as if to keep it steady. “I’m sorry, Eliezer, she got away from me.”
“Get her out of here!” Eliezer raged. “Who knows what lunacy Elder Francis will fill my daughter’s head with?”
“That’s not fair—” Francis began, but Fritz and Damien grabbed more pamphlets and his attention was drawn away. “Stop! Put those down!”
The crowd grew larger as things became more chaotic. More bodies clustered in front of Laura, keeping her from helping Francis.
“Meredith, come!” Sharon ordered.
She pulled the girl away from Rebecca. Meredith slipped out of Sharon’s hands and ran back to her. The girls hugged again, laughing, and Sharon pulled Rebecca away once more—although not before Laura saw Meredith pass something small into Rebecca’s hand.
“Now, Meredith!” Sharon dragged the girl back toward the house.
“You are sorely testing my patience, Elder Francis,” Eliezer said. “Pack up these papers at once and return to your home, or I’ll have the Order of the Faith do it for you.”
“This isn’t right,” Francis protested.
“You’ll do as a I say. I’m still your Shepherd, Elder Francis.”
“For now,” Francis said. He knew he’d lost this round. He and Rebecca began shoving pamphlets back into the box.
The crowd thinned as people realized the drama was over. Laura looked back at Eliezer’s house and saw Sharon usher Meredith through the door. Sharon wouldn’t talk to her without Eliezer’s permission, which he was never going to give, but what about Meredith? The girl seemed strong-willed. Laura might have better luck getting answers from her than from Eliezer. While the Shepherd and the Order of the Faith supervised Francis and Rebecca as they packed up their pamphlets, Laura made her way back to the house.
She would have to do it before Eliezer returned. He wouldn’t like her talking to his daughter. Laura knocked on the door. When no one answered, she tried the knob and found it unlocked. She stepped into the empty entrance hallway.
“Sharon? Meredith?” she called.
Raised voices came from deeper in the house. Meredith and Sharon were arguing. She followed the sound of it through the dining room and kitchen and into an angled hallway that led to the bedrooms. She heard a door slam. As Laura rounded the corner, she almost collided with Sharon coming toward her.
Sharon gasped and put a hand to her chest. “Oh!”
“Sharon, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” Laura said. “I just wanted to make sure you and Meredith were okay.”
“We’re fine, thank you,” Sharon said. Her hands went protectively to her stomach. “You really should go. When Eliezer gets back, he’ll be in a foul mood.”
“I was hoping I could talk to Meredith. Just for a moment.”
“I don’t know.” Sharon folded her arms, and her gaze darted back down the hall to a white-painted wooden door. Meredith’s bedroom. Sharon had a terrible poker face. “She’s in a foul mood, too. She takes after her father that way. But I’m sorry, I don’t think it’s a good idea. Eliezer wouldn’t approve.”
“I know he wouldn’t,” Laura said, taking a risk. “That’s why I was hoping to talk to her before he comes back.”
Sharon’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “If you know my husband wouldn’t allow it, why would you think I would?”
“Because I saw how you reacted when your husband said God struck Malachai dead as divine retribution,” she said. “I know you cared deeply about Malachai, and I know you want to know the truth about what happened to him as much as I do. Eliezer won’t tell me anything because I’m an outsider—and also because I’m a woman. I’m right, aren’t I?”
Sharon nodded, eyes downcast. Her pink cheeks turned darker. Laura got the sense Sharon already felt like she was betraying her husband just by talking to her.
“Meredith knew Malachai better than anyone,” Laura continued. “He was her big brother. They spent every day together. If anyone can help me figure out what happened, she can. Please, let me talk to her. Even just for a moment.”
Sharon glanced at Meredith’s bedroom door again, then sighed and nodded. “Very well. For Malachai’s sake. But I can only give you a few minutes. If Eliezer finds you here…”
“I know,” Laura said. “I’ll be as quick as I can.”
Sharon led her to the door and knocked softly. “Meredith?”
“Go away,” Meredith sulked from inside.
“Laura would like to talk to you,” Sharon said. “Will you let her come in?”
“Laura?” There was a pause. “Okay.”
Sharon gave Laura a nod. “Remember, you need to be gone before Eliezer gets back,” she said, retreating down the hall.
Laura gently opened the door. Meredith’s bedroom was as spartan as the rest of the house, with none of the posters, pillows, and stuffed animals she expected to see in a fourteen-year-old girl’s room. There was a single pine chest of drawers, a plain wooden armoire, and a narrow bed with an equally plain wooden frame. One white wall was adorned with a cross, another with a small framed painting of Jesus tending to a flock of sheep while gingerly cradling a lamb in one arm. Meredith was lying face-down on the bed where she’d thrown herself during her tantrum. She sat up quickly when Laura entered, straightening her wrinkled prairie dress. Her frizzy red hair looked as wild as tumbleweed.
Laura closed the door behind her. “I’m sorry about what happened with Rebecca out there. She’s a nice girl.”
It didn’t feel safe to mention that she and the Ponders were family, not even to Meredith. She didn’t want any more attention to fall on them than she’d already brought.
“It’s not fair that we can’t be friends just because our fathers don’t get along,” Meredith said. She lowered her voice to a whisper. “But it’s okay. We have secret ways to talk.”
“You passed her a note outside, didn’t you?”
Meredith looked worried. “You saw?”
“Yes, but it’s okay, I don’t think anyone else did,” Laura reassured her. “May I sit?”
Meredith moved over on the bed to make room for her.
“I have an important question to ask you, but it’s also a difficult one,” Laura said, sitting down.
“That’s okay. What is it?”
“Would your father ever do anything to hurt Malachai?”
“You mean punish him?” Meredith asked. “Some of the other kids get the switch from their parents when they misbehave, but Father never did that to Mal. When he wanted to punish Mal, he put him in the Penitence Room.”
Laura didn’t like the sound of that. “What’s the Penitence Room?”
“It’s where Father puts you if you talk back or disobey. You sit in the dark and the cold, with no light at all, and no food or water, and you’re supposed to take that time to ask God for forgiveness. Sometimes Father leaves you there for hours. It’s awful.”
“Meredith,” Laura said, “did he ever put you in the Penitence Room?”
She nodded gravely. “Now can I ask you a question, Laura?”
“Sure.”
Meredith bit her lower lip as though she were afraid to ask what was on her mind. “What’s it like where you live?”
“It’s nice. It’s quiet, usually. Most of the people are friendly. It’s very small, though, only about three thousand people.”
Meredith’s eyes went big. Laura realized three thousand people wouldn’t sound small to Meredith at all, not when there were only about two hundred in Valley Grove.
“I work as a family doctor in Sakima,” she went on. “Sometimes I help the police department with their investigations. My boyfriend Booker teaches science at the high school.”
“You have a boyfriend?” Meredith asked.
Laura smiled. “Yes, I do. Would you like to see a picture of him?”
Meredith nodded, and Laura pulled up a photo of Booker on her phone. Meredith’s eyes went big again.
“He’s huge,” she said.
“It’s true, Booker is pretty tall.”
“He’s not just tall, he’s…” She flexed her arm muscles.
Laura put her phone away. “Yes, that too.”
“Do you and Booker…?” Meredith paused and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Do you do stuff?”
“What do you mean?” Laura asked, although she had a definite idea what Meredith meant.
The girl turned away from her, embarrassed. “Can I tell you something, Laura?”
“Of course. Anything.”
“And you can’t tell Sharon. Or my father,” she said. “Definitely not my father.”
“I promise,” Laura said.
“When Mal left, I was jealous. I wanted to go, too. I wanted to leave with him.”
“You don’t like it here?”
“I hate it here,” she said. “I think about running away all the time, but I don’t want to leave Rebecca behind. Maybe I could get her to run away with me. Or maybe I won’t leave at all. I’ll have to make up my mind soon. I don’t have a lot of time left.”
“Why do you say that?”
Meredith’s face darkened. Her mouth tightened into a frown. “I’m supposed to get married next month.”
Laura felt like somebody punched her in the stomach. “Married?”
“I’ve been matched to Elder Bernard,” Meredith said. “I don’t even know him, except that he’s one of the Church Elders. I think he and my father made some kind of deal. Elder Francis wants to replace Father as Shepherd, and Father is worried it might happen. He got Elder Bernard to promise to back him if it comes down to a vote. And in return …”
“In return, he gave you to Elder Bernard.” Laura could hardly keep the disgust out of her voice.
Meredith got off the bed and opened the armoire. She pulled out a white, lacy, beaded dress on a hanger. A wedding dress. It was so small Laura’s heart broke at the sight of it.
“My mother made this,” Meredith said, admiring the elaborate beadwork on the bodice. “My real mother. She started when I was little. When she got sick, her only wish was to live long enough to see my wedding day. She didn’t. Part of me wants to go through with it for her sake. It was all she ever wanted for me, but…”
“But it’s not what you want.”
“I’m not interested in it.” Meredith hung the dress in the armoire again.
“Getting married to an older man?” Laura said. “If I were your age, I wouldn’t be interested in it, either.”
“No,” Meredith said. She sat on the bed again and lowered her voice. “I’m not interested in it. You know.” She looked down at her hands folded in her lap. “I know I’m supposed to be. It’s all the other kids talk about when there are no parents around. They all run off into the woods together to do things. Everyone except me. I don’t want to. I don’t even care about it. But if I marry Elder Bernard, I’m supposed to give him babies. I’m not dumb, I know where babies come from.”
Laura’s heart sank. The poor girl. “Meredith…”
“It’s not like I don’t want a boyfriend or even to get married one day, if it’s someone I choose for myself,” Meredith said. “I just don’t want to do that. I never have, and I never will. But Elder Bernard won’t care. He already has five children from his first wife. All of them are older than me. But I know he wants more.”
Laura didn’t know what to say. She wanted to take Meredith away from here, bring her back to Sakima where she wouldn’t be forced to marry someone. Forced to have his children.
“Maybe there’s something wrong with me,” Meredith said. “I’m supposed to want to do it, aren’t I? Especially if it’s with someone I like. But… I just don’t. Does that make me a freak?”
“No, there’s nothing wrong with you, and you’re not a freak,” Laura said. “There are other people who feel the same way you do.”
“I doubt that.”
“It’s true. I had a friend in school who felt the same. We didn’t have a word for it back then, but we do now—asexual. People who are asexual make up about one percent of the population. I know that may not sound like a lot, but one percent of the world’s population is still over 77 million people. You’re not alone.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Meredith said. “There’s no one else like that here. I haven’t told anyone. They wouldn’t understand, especially not my father. Please, please, please, don’t tell him.”
