Rite of Revelation (Acceptance Book 2) Read online

  “I don’t care what you wear for the wedding.” Daniel pushes his thumb into the tender muscles bordering my spine.

  “But you will care when we run out of wool or canned fruit halfway through winter because I can’t get the trade routes together.”

  “Everyone understands you are doing your best.”

  I let my head drop into my hands. “And everyone is counting on me to pull it together the way Ana always did.”

  “Rebecca,” Daniel spins my chair around until I’m facing him and kneels down so we’re eye to eye. “I know you. I know you can pull off miracles when you put your mind to it.”

  “And if I can’t—”

  “If there is something that you absolutely can’t manage to get, obviously because it no longer exists, we’ll all learn to live without it.” He takes my hands and rubs soothing circles against my wrists.

  “I just…these people here, they matter so much to me.” I squeeze his hands and blink back hot tears stinging my eyes. “I don’t want to let them down.”

  “That’s not even a possibility.” Daniel reaches into his pocket and pulls out a handkerchief.

  It’s one of Molly’s. I can tell by the tiny flowers she embroidered using spare bits of thread she scavenged from the clothing donations.

  Elizabeth and I went out the morning after Ana’s funeral and found the perfect spot in the woods for Molly’s stones. A small bed of moss, surrounded by purple and blue wildflowers. It exudes peace the way Molly did.

  Several of the others saw our work and have built up cairns for their own loved ones. A half-dozen stacks of white stones decorate the little patch of forest, creating both a solemn and happy spot.

  Elizabeth held it together until we were almost done before letting the tears fall again. But this time, they were happy tears. She told me Molly was finally at peace, resting among others who fought for their freedom.

  The day brought relief for Elizabeth, but only filled me with more stress. I can’t help but imagine how many more cairns will be added this winter if I can’t manage to get all the supplies we need.

  My heart rate kicks up just thinking about it. I hand the handkerchief back and straighten up in my chair. So much work to be done.

  “I love you, but I’ve got a lot to do, so I’ll see you at dinner.”

  “Nope.” Daniel grabs my hands and pulls both of us to standing. “You need a break.”

  “There’s no time.”

  “Doc’s orders,” Daniel says, tugging me over to the door. “He swears you’ll end up with a vitamin deficiency if you spend every day stuck up here without any sunlight or fresh air. So let’s go.”

  Daniel opens the door and we’re both smacked in the face with the lingering odor from the trashcan. Daniel picks it up with one hand and holds it out as far from his body as possible. “Besides, we have to take care of this before Carol quits in protest.”

  “Fine, I’ll give you ten minutes.”

  “Fifteen or the trashcan stays.” Daniel swings it around to waft back into the office.

  “Fifteen,” I say, pushing him and the putrid can down the stairs.

  * * *

  Daniel threads my arm through his as we make our way through town. People who were strangers only a few months ago shout out greetings as we pass through the square. It’s shocking to think about how much has changed in such a short period of time.

  Less than six months ago, we were eking out an existence in the PIT, trying to cobble together makeshift furniture from cast off junk. Daniel, Elizabeth, and I were just barely getting by and focused on keeping the hopelessness of spending our lives in the PIT from dragging us into the dark places in our heads.

  I barely recognize that scared little girl who couldn’t be trusted walking down the alleys alone. Even with Daniel watching out for me, I wouldn’t have survived in there much longer. Eventually, the despair would have won out and I would have quit trying.

  Now we’re walking down the middle of the street. Free from all the confined drudgery of the PIT and surrounded by kind, caring people who welcomed us like old friends. None of us are those old people anymore.

  “So is there a destination for this walk or are we going to meander around a bit? These clouds are pretty dark so we could get rain any time now.”

  Just to prove my point, a sharp gust of unseasonably cool wind whips down the street, tossing my growing hair in a million directions.

  “I thought we could walk over and check out progress on the house. Thomas said they’ve been working double time, but they don’t think they’ll have it ready by the wedding.”

  “I’ll take it whenever they can be ready.” I didn’t mind all of us sleeping in the same room at first. It was so much like our cabin in the PIT, it was kind of comforting to have something familiar in the midst of all the changes. Several months in, and I’m dying for some privacy. Not just from each other, but from Doc and others randomly showing up to get supplies or collect laundry. It will be nice to have a place of our own, with a door.

  Constance’s house already has little touches of home. Paint is too hard to get in the trade routes, but she used some kind of berry dye to put their hand prints on the door. Constance says once the baby comes, she’ll add their hand prints as well. The curtains in the front windows don’t even come close to matching, but they still give her home that distinct lived-in feel.

  Next door where we’ll live, the house sits blank and forlorn like an empty soul. The work crew that would normally be pounding away at something has disappeared. Maybe they thought the rain was a given and decided to stay dry working on an indoor project.

  Daniel clomps up the front stairs, pausing on the third one to bounce a bit on the new tread. “Must be getting close if they fixed the stairs already.”

  He winks at me and pushes open the door. My jaw about hits the floor with the transformation.

  A month ago, this main room was filled with broken and dusty furniture and places on the ceiling that made me worry for my safety. Now, that’s all been cleared out. The dusty chandelier from the corner glistens in the main room, revealing freshly plastered walls and ceiling.

  Daniel reaches around the door and hits a button. The bulbs in the chandelier pop to life, filling the room with light and shining little glittery diamonds against the walls. I want to grab a blanket and move in.

  “Surprise,” Daniel shuts the door behind him, grinning ear to ear. “I might have under-promised on the house’s progress.”

  I spin around and take in the beauty of the room, picturing the little details that will make it a home once Daniel and I move in. “So that’s it. It’s ready.”

  “Almost, there are just a few details to finish up, mostly on my end, and then getting the furniture in here.” Daniel takes my hands and pulls me close. “Everyone worked overtime to get it ready for next week. It’s our wedding gift from the whole village.”

  “It’s amazing.” I want to run through the rooms turning on every light in the place, but I can’t pull my eyes away from this room. It’s ours. The perfect little house I always dreamed of, but so much better because of the amazing people in my life. “You are beyond a doubt the best thing that has ever happened to me.” I put my hands on the sides of his face and pull him in until our foreheads touch. “What did I ever do to deserve you?”

  “Questioned the Cardinal and his policies, got yourself Rejected, and then staged a coup inside the PIT.”

  That smart mouth of his is going to get him in trouble, but right now all I want to do is kiss it. No tender, sweet kisses will do right now. I come in strong and Daniel is right there matching me with force and desperation. We’re a tangled mess of arms and hands, each of us reaching for more. His hands slide up the edge of my shirt and I grip his to pull us closer. It’s a good thing there isn’t any furniture in the house or we might not come up for air until the wedding. We’ve had too few moments of privacy, but with this new house, that’s about to change.

  My bac
k bumps up against the wall and pulls me out of the moment. Daniel places two more kisses on the side of my neck sending chills down my overheated body.

  “Hot in here.” I barely get the words out without moaning.

  “I was able to salvage the ACS with a few new fuses in the motherboard and get it wired into the solar module much easier than I had previously thought.” His thumb traces tiny circles where the collar of my shirt ends and my collar bones begin. “Thomas and his crew patched it into the ventilation ducts used for the furnace.”

  “I love it when you talk techy to me, but I have no idea what that means.”

  Daniel chuckles, his lips vibrating against my ear and making it nearly impossible to pay attention to what he’s saying. “I have an artificial cooling system all ready to go as soon as we need it.”

  “If that kiss was any indication, we’re definitely going to need it.”

  “Would you like to see it now?” His thumb dips lower, the circles expanding across the exposed skin on my chest toward the buttons.

  “I think we had better find something else to keep your hands preoccupied.” I kiss him slow and deep. “At least until the wedding.”

  He kisses me back and pushes off the wall. I feel better that he at least looks as flustered as I feel.

  “Right, cooling things off.” He walks over to the wall panel and rubs his hands over his face.

  I walk behind him and wrap my arms around his waist, resting my cheek in the little crevice of his spine. Perfection.

  The panel emits a few beeps and the system kicks on with a quiet purr. Daniel turns in my arms and drapes his hands over my shoulders. “It should only take a minute for the condenser coils to hit the right temp.”

  As if on cue, a puff of air pushes out of the vent by our feet. I close my eyes and bury into Daniel’s chest. He smells like oil, pine, and dust. Dust?

  I open my eyes as the pungent odor of dead leaves and old dirt fills my nose. Clouds of dust billow at our feet.

  “Daniel?”

  “Shit, the vents haven’t been cleaned yet.” He pulls a handkerchief out of his pocket and puts it over my mouth. In the few seconds it takes to do that, the dust-filled air climbs up around our knees. “Let’s go.”

  I take Daniel’s hand and run behind him as he leads me back toward the front door. We run out the door and down the stairs half-coughing, half-laughing.

  “So that’s what happens when a house sits empty for a century or so.”

  Daniel nods, clearing the last of the grit from his throat. “I’m thinking we might need a bit of spring cleaning before we move in.”

  Daniel grins, his golden brown eyes lit up with glee, and reaches around my waist to pull me close. His eyes turn from glee to passion in the space between heartbeats.

  “No matter what obstacles you face or how impossible the future looks, I will always be there. I will always keep you safe.” He dips me back and singes my lips with a deep kiss. “Always.”

  Twenty-Nine

  “I shouldn’t be nervous about this, right?” I stare out the window down at the group moving benches from inside the dining hall to the square. “I mean, what’s to be nervous about? We already said our vows ages ago. And Daniel is…”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Elizabeth chimes in from her spot splayed out on one of the unmade beds of our bunk room. “If you start spouting a bunch of lovey-dovey stuff about Daniel being the perfect guy and finding your soul mate, I’m out of here.”

  “Ignore her, Rebecca.” Constance sticks her tongue out at Elizabeth. “If a girl can’t gush about the one she loves on her wedding day, when can she?”

  She fingers the net veil made from some old fishing gear. Without the material to make a dress, it’s the only part of the traditional bridal outfit I’ll be wearing.

  “I’m not sure why anyone would want to marry my brother, but I think it’s romantic that you’re nervous.”

  “Thanks, Patrice, but you should be careful speaking ill of marrying other people’s brothers.” I wink at her.

  “I think part of me is nervous. But the other part is just excited.” I march across the room and plop down on the bed with Elizabeth, forcing her to scoot over. “Ever since we left the PIT, it feels like the whole world has been in a state of flux. Even when we got here and the village voted us in, I still never felt settled.

  “Maybe it was all the unknowns about living here, or it could have been the temporary housing. But having this ceremony, feels real. I can sink my feet into the soil and plant roots.”

  Constance walks over, and I reach out a hand to rest on the little bump of her belly. “Maybe have a family of our own. Can you imagine what it would be like to grow up and never have to worry about the Machine?”

  “Our kids will never have to feel like they don’t stack up.” Constance smiles down at her growing baby.

  Elizabeth sits up. “Your kids won’t have to grow up knowing they can never fit the mold.”

  “They’ll never feel targeted.” Patrice joins our little group.

  “I know in the grand scheme of it all, this is just another day. A flash of time. But I can’t help but feel like this is the beginning of a fresh start. For all of us.”

  A sharp rap on the door pulls us all out of our moment of reverie. “Is everyone decent?”

  “Liam.” I rush to the door and throw it open. “What are you doing here?”

  “Special delivery.” He holds up a small suitcase that has definitely seen better days.

  “Well, come on in.”

  Liam walks in, smiling hello at our little group. He sets the case down on a spare bed and we all gather round to see what’s inside.

  “I heard you couldn’t get material to make a dress.” He unlatches the two rusty hinges from the front of the case. “I know Ana would have wanted you to have this.”

  He pushes the lid open and pulls out a crisp white satin dress. He holds it out until I take it in my hands, the weight of the material making it feel even more important.

  “I should have brought this to you weeks ago, but…” He stops and closes his eyes. “I wasn’t sure I could handle seeing this dress come down the aisle again.”

  “Liam, you don’t have to—”

  “But then I heard Ana in my head, giving me a good talking to. ‘Liam Weaver, that sweet girl deserves to have something beautiful to wear on her wedding day and you’re just going to let that dress rot away in a box? Why don’t you give it new life and let me be a part of her day.’ And as usual, Ana is right.”

  I set the dress down carefully on the bed and pull him into a huge hug. “I would be honored to wear Ana’s dress.”

  “She really was a beautiful bride.” There’s both pride and pain in his voice, and it’s tearing me apart.

  “Okay, enough,” he says, stepping back and wiping at his eyes with the back of his hands. “You need to get changed before the ceremony starts without you.”

  “Thank you.”

  Liam doesn’t say another word. Just sucks his lips in and nods at all of us. We watch him head out the door and close it behind himself. It’s a full five count before any of us moves.

  “Well, you heard the man, ladies.” Constance claps her hands like she’s calling to order a meeting of the ladies auxiliary. “Time to get this bride dressed for her big day.”

  * * *

  With every step we take down the stairs, more excitement builds inside me. It started in my toes and worked its way up my legs, through my belly and down to my fingers. A soft buzz in my ears makes the conversation around me sound like it’s happening under water.

  I take a peek from behind the window curtain and gasp. The simple benches in the main square are transformed with layers of cushy moss and little bouquets of wildflowers attached to the ends. In front of the benches where everyone is currently staring, Daniel and Liam wait under an arch made of branches and ivy. Thomas and Eric stand right next to them, and all of them stare at the door to Doc’s office.

&
nbsp; They’re all waiting on me.

  Constance squeezes my hand. “Are you ready?”

  Instantly the nerves fade away, only to be replaced by an excited energy. “Let’s do this.”

  Constance adjusts my veil one last time and nods to Patrice, who’s waiting with one hand on the door handle, ready to go. At Constance’s signal, Patrice opens the door and walks out. Constance shoots us a wink and follows right behind.

  “Thank you for doing this.” I take Elizabeth’s hand and squeeze it tight. “A bride’s family usually walks her down the aisle, and you are my family. It took a while to convince you not to kill me, but I can’t imagine being here or doing any of this without you.”

  “Alright, princess, don’t go getting all overemotional on me. Just because you’re all dolled up in satin and lace doesn’t mean I can’t drop kick you down to Daniel.”

  I squeeze her hand again. “I love you, too.”

  She pushes the door open and we march out into the mid-morning air.

  At first, all I can take in are the rows and rows of benches. Everyone from the entire village is here. Even the crew who volunteered to make the special lunch for after the ceremony stopped to come watch our vows.

  The musicians see our entrance and kick into a slow march that signals my arrival. Everyone stands, making it impossible to find Daniel. We walk along the back row until we get to the little walkway created by a split in the benches.

  The second we turn the corner, my eyes fly to Daniel. No one owns a suit since they are completely impractical, but Daniel still looks stunning in dark gray slacks and a crisp white shirt. He found a bow tie somewhere and it’s perfect.

  His eyes flash a shock before they light up, his face going into full smile mode. I can’t imagine what he’s thinking right now. He expected me to come down the aisle in nothing more elegant than a simple skirt and blouse. Ana’s dress is so much more.