“I missed you Daddy! Did uncle find a wife?” she asked excitedly.
“Why don’t you peek your head in there and find out?” He kissed her forehead and made his way back inside, Becky ran to the back and I could see her jumping up and down to see through the window.
“Uncle! Uncle! Did you find one?” she shouted. Clyde laughed and opened the hatch. Becky peered inside, staring at me.
“Wow, she sure is different! What’s her name?”
“I named her Skye, because of her eyes.” I looked away but he grabbed my chin and when I closed my eyes he squeezed.
“Show your new niece your beautiful eyes,” he ordered. I stared at her, confused. What possible garbage had this child been brainwashed with? Becky continued to stare in fascination as though interactions like this were everyday stuff to her.
“Uh-oh, was Auntie Skye naughty uncle?”
“Yes, but I’m pretty sure she’s learned her lesson.”
“I hope so, spankings aren’t very fun,” she made a face than hopped down and ran around yelling.
“We have a new auntie, her name is Skye,” she yelled as loud as she could.
“I knew she’d take a lying to you.” He pulled me to the edge of the hatch and cut free my limbs.
“Be careful now please.” I slowly put weight down and stumbled beside him. He led me into the house and it was an enormous 2 story. It was built with a wraparound porch, a nice swing off to the side and a few chairs off to the left. The house was long and painted a pale yellow. It was almost too large to be a house, and my stomach knotted the closer we got to it. There were quite a few people sitting around the large living room, all were dressed in similar handmade clothes, and there were several kids playing on the floor. There was one teenage girl on a sofa reading a book, and an old lady that was in a rocking chair and was knitting; I assumed she was the mother. And the two women to my left were enjoying hobbies like embroidery while the other sewed some patches into clothes over her large pregnant belly. My future seemed even more terrifying.
“Skye, meet Sarah.” Her and Becky had the same reddish hair. Sarah wore a pink dress, and her hair was in a tight bun as her green eyes looked up at me, evaluating me instantly. The other wife was Ruth; she had black hair and blue eyes. Mama was introduced as such and the teenage girl turned out to be the younger sister Emily. After Becky was Joseph, Cane, Abigail, Brandon, Josiah and the baby was Elizabeth. I tried to guess by eye and hair combinations who was whose but soon gave up.
“Auntie Skye was naughty,” giggled Becky. A few children giggled and I blushed in humiliation. Clyde led me into the kitchen where Georgie’s third wife was doing dishes.
“Meet Magdalene, but we just call her Maggie.”
“Magdalene? As in Mary Magdalene?” I wasn’t an expert on the bible, but I recalled the name and the story behind her.
“Georgie found her at a stripper bar, name seemed to fit; while she was not chaste, Georgie chose her anyways.” He pulled me down the hall and up a staircase where he knocked on the first door and we were ushered inside.
“Christopher, meet Skye.” Christopher looked young, I was guessing around my age; he was pale with short black hair and black clothes with even blacker nails. Most of his room was black and gothic except for the few statues of Jesus on the cross. His dark blue eyes looked away from his computer and up at me. The way the younger brother looked at me made me feel uneasy.
“Nice choice. Is the ceremony tonight than?” Clyde nodded.
“Can’t wait; you picked well brother.”
“She’s pure, Georgie and I discussed it and we want you to go first.” Christopher’s expression went blank, unreadable.
“Are you sure about that? This is your first wife Clyde.”
“As pleased as I would be to go first, I’ll have her for the rest of my life, it only seems right you get to take her.”
“Take me?” I demanded. The idea of anyone touching me let alone all three of them…
“On our wedding night; it’s tradition for the brothers of the groom to help break in the new bride. Christopher just turned 18 last month. While he’s too young for a wife, he’s not too young to participate in the tradition. I helped Georgie break in his, and they’ll help me break in you.” I felt horrified and suddenly lightheaded. My body started to shake and I had to wonder if it was from the thought of them all touching me, inside me; or perhaps lingering side effects of whatever he shot me with.
“All of you?” I asked desperately.
“Yes, that includes Georgie Skye.” It was like he read my mind
“This is his work?” Christopher asked as he lifted the end of my dress to see the welts that covered my lower body. I jerked my dress right out of his hand was about to slap him when Clyde’s hand smacked me upside the head. He looked down at me with furrowed eyebrows, warning me with his eyes not to follow through.
“She’s defiant, mouthy and a runner. It was hell getting her home.”
“Well that behavior won’t last long.”
“I’m not so confident; she’s proven to be stubborn,” Clyde confessed.
“I can see.” I clenched my fists and grit my teeth.
“I am standing right here, you don’t need to discuss me like I’m not in the room.”
“See what I mean? Let’s go have some lunch Skye.” He shoved me back towards the front of the house and sat me down at the table. It wasn’t long before the others joined us while Sarah and Ruth served lunch. A beef stew with green beans and a homemade roll. Once served, everyone began to hold hands and lowered their head. Clyde held mine down, when I pushed against his grip he grabbed onto my hair.
“Heavenly father, we gather before this meal to give thanks; for all the blessings you’ve given us lord. And we ask that you continue to watch over our family as we work hard to follow your word, Amen.” Everyone muttered an Amen and began to eat.
“Uncle, when is Auntie Skye going to have babies?” asked Becky. He almost choked on his stew; it was his turn to turn a dark red.
“When God blesses them with one dummy,” announced Caine with a mouthful of food.
“Caine, don’t talk to your sister like that and eat all your food before talking,” chastised the old woman. Cane frowned.
“Sorry Nanny,” he apologized.
“Georgie mentioned a few hiccups?” Clyde glared at his older brother and looked to his mother.
“Skye attempted a few escapes but together we handled it.”
“I handled it, with no help from you,” argued Georgie.
“We got her here and didn’t get in trouble,” snapped Clyde. My blood boiled the way they were referring to me like I was an item, an object and not a person. I could feel my hands as they curled into fists and I studied the table. It was a few seconds between the thought entering my head and me following through. I picked up the butter knife and with all my strength I stabbed it through his hand. Blood immediately pooled while pinning his hand down to the wood. A few children screamed while others started to cry. Their mothers attempted to shield them and Clyde cried out, swearing as he pulled the knife out in one quick thrust, giving an arc of blood and spraying Georgie who sat across from him. The old woman handed him a towel to stop the bleeding. Georgie directed his family out of the dining room, grabbing the baby from the high chair.