Botanicaust

fought the impulse to deck someone. The last month and a half had changed him. Inside, he prayed for peace. Swallowing his frustration, he turned back to Tula. “ Tu – Katie. ” It would be hard to change her name in his mind, but he needed to reinforce her connections here. “ Do you want to see your Papa? ”
    Her eyes tightened against tears but could not keep them from spilling. She nodded vigorously. “ And Mama? ”
    Sickness rose in Levi ’ s gut. Peter had been a widower as long as Levi could remember.
    Brother John spoke. “ Peter ’ s wife died soon after his son and daughter disappeared. He ’ s been alone since then. ”
    Her face crumpled. Levi put his arms around her while looking back at the men. “ God brought this lost lamb back to us. Do you keep her from the flock because her wool has been stained in mud? ”
    “ She ’ s a serpent spitting lies! ” Brother Yonnie hissed from behind the bishop.
    “ God protect us from her deceit, ” Brother Evan added.
    “ She ’ s one of us. She ’ s not a prisoner. I ’ m taking her to see her father. ” Levi kept an arm around Tula as he pushed through the men gathered at the door.

    Tula followed Levi into the daylight, nerves jittering as she passed first the Brethren, then the dogs. “ What about Eily? ” She resisted his pull against her shoulders. “ I don ’ t want to leave her alone. ”
    The Brethren stood outside the door, arguing in deceptively calm tones.
    Levi stopped and turned back to the milk house. “ Wait here. ”
    Tula twisted at her skirt nervously, watching the dogs, watching the men with the dogs. The weight of the fabric annoyed her skin. Would she get used to wearing clothing again? Levi emerged with Eily cradled in his arms.
    One of the men tried to block the door with his body. “ Levi, you cannot — ”
    Without regard for the obstacle, Levi bumped through the group of men. “‘ Blessed is he who has regard for the weak. ’ Brother Samuel, will you care for this child until a decision is reached? ”
    A red-faced man standing behind the rest stiffened. The argumentative man blustered louder. “ We must not allow these sinning heathens into our midst, Bishop! Have a care for your flock! ”
    Levi didn ’ t waver in his focus on Samuel. “ The Tenets of the Prophet command us to consider in Scripture if something may be sent from God. ‘ The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost. ’ These are lost souls, Brothers. And Eily is but an innocent child. Look within your hearts. ”
    Samuel grimaced, his teeth bright above the darkness of his beard. Lifting jerky arms, he accepted Eily from Levi ’ s care.
    “ Thank you, Samuel. ”
    Samuel nodded once and turned from the group.
    The Brother who argued against them called out, “ Remember the words of the Prophet! ‘ And the children were Marked with Affliction, and the earth was deceived. ’ If you choose to become a friend of the world, you become an enemy of God! ”
    Samuel ’ s step faltered, then his spine stiffened and he continued away from the group.
    Levi ignored the man, taking Tula ’ s hand to lead her after Samuel. This time, instead of through the orchard, they cut a path across a stubbled field toward the gate. “ Your father has been the gatekeeper as long as I can remember, ” Levi said. “ I can ’ t believe … ” He shook his head. “ I don ’ t even know what to call you. ”
    Tula knit her brows. “ I remember being Katie. But I ’ ve been Tula for so long… ”
    Pausing, he gathered her other hand and turned her to face him. “ We may be shunned forever. But I don ’ t know how else to keep you safe. I ’ m glad you ’ re with me. ” His eyes drifted down her front. “ It ’ s strange to see you in a dress. ”
    Cocking a playful eye at him, she asked, “ Would you like me out of it? ”
    His smile was immediate, but faded quickly. “ You know our … intimacy … would be frowned upon. For many reasons. We must be careful how we look at each other. ”
    The happiness inside her heart withered. The Haldanians engaged in sexual liaisons so casually, she ’ d been with several lovers and never thought of monogamy, let alone marriage. But with the return of her memory, she recalled playing house as a child, and her assumption she would someday be a wife and mother.
    Another mold she no longer fit.
    She was unclean. Levi might be glad she was safe, but he couldn ’ t be with her here. Not if he hoped to