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A simple internet search for ‘Nathan Greer St. Charles Parish’ would confirm all of this, and my story would look real.

At least I fucking hoped so.

“I know this may sound wrong to you, but that incident is actually what turned me back to my faith again,” I said.

The Elders didn’t respond. I wasn’t expecting them to, as they weren’t supposed to give any indication of whether or not I appealed to them as a member. I could tell they were pleased, though. Their gleaming gazes said it all.

“We’ll have to verify this story of yours. As much as we can, anyway,” Jacob said. “But it was very brave of you to tell us. I understand the risk you took in sharing it with us, and I just want to reiterate that we will never, ever tell anyone. Unless, of course, you give us a reason to do so.”

“Thank you, Mr. Chastain.” A contrite expression was pasted across my face.

Inside, I was smiling. My story worked on more than one level. For one, I’d given them the dark blackmail material they’d asked for. Secondly, I’d let them know more about my supposed views on women and sex. Lastly, I’d let them know I was supposedly capable of violence in terms of protecting those views. Given what I thought I already knew about the cult, I was sure that was the exact sort of stuff they wanted to hear.

The Elders asked me to leave the room for a few minutes so they could talk amongst themselves. Finally, I was called back in.

“Thank you for coming to speak with us, Mason,” Jacob began. “And thank you for your patience despite all the questions. As is customary, we’d like for you to return to your regular life for a while, so that you may reflect on your reasons for wanting to join us out here. This also gives us ample time to discuss the answers you gave us today and decide whether we think you’d be a good fit or not.”

I nodded. “Of course.”

“If we decide we want you to join, you will hear from us in a couple of months, and you will be invited to live here at New Eden as part of a trial run.”

I nodded again.

Jacob smiled. “We’ll say goodbye for now,” he said, standing up. The other Elders followed suit. “But if all goes well, we’ll see you in eight weeks.”

I returned his smile, and this time it was genuine. I didn’t need to wait eight weeks to find out how I did. I already knew.

I was so fucking in.

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