The next three days were stressful but somehow went off without incident. Rush was constantly worrying that something would go wrong. After all, he wasn’t in charge of this escape. He had no idea if he could trust everyone they encountered or not.
The truth was that he could hug Marian. She’d made all these arrangements, putting her own life in danger to save five other people. With each passing day, Rush felt more indebted to her, and he silently vowed to do everything in his power to send a team to rescue her daughter.
The clock was ticking on that possibility though.
They were on the last leg of their arranged transportation tonight, huddled once again in the back of a supply truck. When this road ended, they would be on their own. But Rush knew where they were now, and he could get them to an outpost run by The Wanderers on foot.
Rush was sitting on the floor of the truck with his knees drawn up, his arms wrapped around them, and his chin on his knees. He glanced at Braylon. “Tell me more about Marian’s daughter. Maybe my people will have an idea on how she could be rescued.”
Bray smiled. “She was such a sweet girl.”
“Is,” Riggs interrupted. “She still is.”
“Let’s hope so,” Storm grumbled. “She’s been in that damn girls’ home for eight years. Who knows what the status of her mental health is.”
Haley reached for Storm’s hand. “I was there for fourteen, and I turned out okay.”
Storm wrapped an arm around her. “You’re far more than okay, princess.” He kissed the top of her head.
“They aren’t cruel. They don’t abuse the girls. After all, they need them to be healthy and somewhat well-adjusted when they turn them over to the people who paid top dollar for them,” Haley informed them.
“How many of these homes are there?” Rush asked. His heart ached for the woman sitting across from him who spent fourteen years in what he had to assume amounted to a juvenile detention center.
“Who knows?” Braylon stated.
“Mine was pretty big. The girls live together by age, and I’d say there were about twenty girls near my age. We grew nervous together and quiet when we knew our time was up.”
“How much did you know about what would happen?” Rush asked.
“Not enough. Only that we would be going to fulfill our duties to society by marrying a chosen man. We were raised to be obedient, polite, and demure. We were taught that if we did anything to embarrass the home and make it appear that the school couldn’t train girls to behave and know their place, our fate would be far less pleasant than the cushy life we would be granted with the family who’d purchased us.”
Rush cringed. It was all so fucking barbaric. He’d known such homes for girls existed, but he’d never met anyone who’d lived in one. He doubted many managed to escape and live to tell about it.
“Is there any chance Marian’s daughter was at the same home as you?” It was a long shot, but Rush figured it would help if he at least knew which home Harmony was in. Though that would also require Haley to have a clue where she’d been.
“No idea.” She glanced at Braylon. “Marian never spoke of her when she was around me. I don’t even know her name.”
“We didn’t talk about her a lot because it was too painful. She was our friend. Even though she was only a baby when Marian came to the estate to be our tutor, she grew up with us.” Riggs stated. “Her name was Harmony.”
Haley’s eyes widened. “Harmony? I knew a Harmony. What does she look like?”
“Brown curly hair that hung way down her back when it was pulled straight, but the curls were so tight it never reached very long unless it was braided,” Braylon informed her. “She has huge brown eyes. She’s incredibly smart. Marian let her sit right next to us when we did our studies. She wasn’t permitted to directly educate her daughter, but she did nothing to stop it from happening on its own.”
“We taught her to read before she was old enough,” Storm stated proudly. “Her mother didn’t even know until later, and she scolded us for a long time when she found out.”
Rush frowned. “Marian didn’t want her daughter to learn to read?”
Riggs shook his head. “That wasn’t it. She didn’t want us to get into trouble for encouraging Harmony.”
Haley grabbed Riggs and Braylon by the knees. “How old was she when she was sent away?”
“Twelve,” Braylon answered.
“Did she have darker skin? Like maybe her father was darker than her mother?”
“Yes.” Braylon nodded, his brows lifting.
“I knew her.” Haley sat taller, eyes wide. “It had to be her. I remember when she joined us. I bet it was about eight years ago. She was in the next age group below me, but I know exactly who she is. Gorgeous skin, beautiful curly hair, full lips, a smile that lights up her eyes.”
Riggs gasped. “That’s her.”
“Do you have any idea where your facility was located, Haley?” Rush asked. If he definitively knew where Harmony was being held, it would really help.
Haley shook her head, her eyes sad. “Not a clue.”
“How long did it take you to get to the estate the day of our wedding?” Braylon asked.
“Maybe thirty minutes. It wasn’t far.”
Rush nodded slowly. “There are people with aerial photos of those homes and the areas. There are also extensive sketches of the insides. Could you perhaps identify the one you were in if you saw those sketches?”
“Probably. I can’t see why not. I lived there fourteen years.”
Braylon snorted. “Hell, you could probably create the sketches.”
Rush flinched. “Good point. Or at the very least add to them. I’ll hook you up with the people who work in that department when we arrive. Let’s see if there’s any chance we can narrow down Harmony’s location. If there’s even a slight possibility I could do something to help Marian reunite with her daughter, I will.”
Haley scrambled forward in the cramped space and wrapped her arms around Rush’s neck. “You’re a good man. I’m so glad to have met you.”
“Ditto that,” Riggs stated.
“Indeed.” Storm grabbed Rush’s foot in solidarity.
Braylon took a deep breath. “Who would have thought when we first found out there was a man in the basement holding cell we would later befriend him and even take him in as part of our family.”
Rush felt the bond growing between all of them. He knew they were grateful for his help, but he also knew emotions were running high during this intense adventure.
He refused to let himself believe they could all truly accept him into their family for the rest of their lives. After all, he’d been the source of great distress. The woman they loved had been violated against her will with his sperm. That was a huge mountain to overcome even though it had been out of his control.
Rush worried that when the baby was born, they would all look at the child and feel jealousy or anger toward Rush. Rush had no right to have fathered this family’s firstborn child. He hadn’t been invited.
They were all good people. Riggs and Braylon deserved kudos for managing to recognize the world they lived in wasn’t just or fair. They’d worked hard to educate themselves on what life was like outside the firm thumb of The Republic.
But could they really take in a stranger and not feel frustrated every time they looked at him for the next twenty years?
Rush was falling harder and harder for Haley with every passing hour. He’d felt a connection to her from the moment they first met, but he’d forced himself to be reasonable and keep his feelings stuffed into a tight box, not wanting to pressure her or any of them.
She tugged on his heartstrings though. They all did. He secretly prayed they could truly accept him into their lives and likewise the child who would join the family whether they liked it or not.
The irony was that family units within The Wanders were often comprised of four or more people. Even though women had free will, including the right to birth control and abortion, families often naturally developed in multiples because any other option wasn’t particularly sustainable in a society with so few women.
Often, men gravitated toward each other and developed a bond, moving into the same household and living together before they found a woman who suited them and joined their union. More importantly, no one could be certain exactly who fathered a child.
Granted, there were exceptions. Obviously, they would all know if Storm was the father or if one of the men happened to be of Asian descent or extremely blond or Hispanic. But if two or more of the men looked like Braylon and Rush, they might never know. Nor did they care.
There would be no doubt in this case. And that fact weighed heavily in the air. Rush felt the enormity of the situation more each day. The beautiful, dark-haired, petite woman with the sweetest smile and disposition he’d ever met was carrying his child.
He wanted to pull her into his arms, nuzzle her neck, curl up with her. He wanted to make love to her. Would he get that chance? He wasn’t certain yet.
When they’d arrived at their second destination, it had been Riggs who claimed Haley’s body while the rest of them basked in the beauty that was Haley coming completely undone yet again.
The third time they’d stopped they hadn’t had the opportunity to do more than hold her and pass her around. They hadn’t been alone.
Rush’s chest felt tight every time he looked at her. He was grateful so many people loved her, but he prayed he too could join the ranks one day, feeling their acceptance once and for all.
He couldn’t fully trust that day might come while they were on the run, unsettled, stressed, always concerned. Soon. They would make it to the main bunker. He knew they would. They had to. They were getting closer every day. And with each mile they moved farther from Virginia, he breathed easier. They all did.