Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 130317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Brother Jonash still appeared to be speechless. At last, he nodded and cleared his throat.
“All right—as you are Sister Mia’s husband, it’s definitely your right to let her remain overweight. Er, curvy,” he amended quickly, since a growl was building in Sev’s deep chest. “However her body pleases you best, that’s how you should maintain it,” he finished hurriedly.
“Mia maintains her own body,” Sev said. “I don’t tell her what to eat or drink. Well…” His eyes darted to the empty smoothie cup. “Not often, anyway.”
“But when you do tell her, does she listen?” Brother Jonash raised one silver eyebrow and looked pointedly at Mia. “Don’t worry if the answer is no, Brother Severith,” he added. “Now that you’re here in the Dome, we will teach you the proper way to train your wife so that she will become the chaste, dutiful, obedient woman you wanted when you first married her.”
Mia felt hot words rising to her lips but Sev gave her a warning look so fierce she bit her tongue to keep them from coming out.
“Remember you promised not to say anything that would make these people force me to punish you,” he had told her. And since they still didn’t have any idea of what “punishment” consisted of here in the PPP Dome, Mia thought it was probably wise to keep her promise—no matter how provoking Brother Jonash’s constant misogyny was.
“Now, before we can get to the training or your Induction Ceremony, I’m afraid there will have to be a review,” Brother Jonash went on, when no one contradicted him. “The Council of Elders has seen some disturbing things when they reviewed the camera footage of your domestic doings this morning.”
“So you’re already watching us?” Sev growled, his big hands clenched into fists at his sides.
“I told you we would be,” Brother Jonash reminded him. “Come—we must go, for the Council is waiting. Leave the dirty dishes,” he added when Sev started to take his plate to the sink. “Your wife can deal with them later.”
Biting her tongue again, Mia picked up both dirty plates and took them to the sink. Damn if it didn’t feel like she was right back in her old sect and her old marriage again! She was the “little woman” who did all the domestic chores around the house and didn’t have a right to her own opinion.
It was extremely irritating but she knew she had to keep her mouth shut about it. She just hoped she didn’t explode from extreme frustration before the day was over!
SEVENTEEN
MIA
The walk through the Dome was pleasant enough. They saw other couples leaving their homes and Brother Jonash waved at them and greeted most of them by name. The men answered him in turn but Mia noticed that the women said nothing, only nodding their heads respectfully.
That’s right—they’re not supposed to speak to another man unless their husband authorizes it first, she thought and clenched her fists in irritation.
She kept her own mouth shut as they walked down the paved lane that led from the rows of little white houses and towards the center of the Dome, where the park and the Inner Sanctum of the Prophet was located.
Sev walked with Brother Jonash, both of them a little ahead of her, and this morning he was not slowing down so she could keep up. In fact, even Brother Jonash was looking a little winded as he tried to match the big Kindred’s stride.
Guess he’s still mad at me, Mia thought as she hurried after him and wished they could have a moment alone to talk. But there was no way she could say anything in front of the irritatingly pious Brother Jonash.
“Where is everyone going?” Sev asked, breaking the silence at last.
“To their work assignments of course,” Brother Jonash answered. “As you and your wife will be, after you finish your review and the Induction Ceremony.”
“I thought the women worked in the home, though,” Mia said, forgetting she wasn’t supposed to talk.
Sev shot her a glance over his shoulder but repeated her question to Brother Jonash, who doubtless would have ignored it otherwise.
“Oh, well the women normally stay in the home, but tonight we have a special treat—the Prophet himself is going to give us a lecture,” he told Sev. “So the women will be working today in the communal kitchens to prepare dinner for everyone. We’ll all eat in the park and then we get to hear the Wisdom of the Prophet!”
He had an enraptured look on his narrow face, as though he was a kid talking about Christmas morning or his birthday party, rather than listening to a boring lecture in the park, Mia thought.
She wished she could say so to Sev—or at least give him a significant look—but she couldn’t catch his eye. Was he deliberately ignoring her? How angry was he over the smoothie incident, anyway? Was he going to carry a grudge the whole time they were here? He—