Page 82 of Deliver Me

“You’re not sorry,” Mia said. “Not yet, but you will be.”

“Are you threatening—”

“Not at all,” Mia said. “We’re well beyond the need for threats.”

The crowd around them shifted uneasily and Mia knew they were gathering a watchful audience. Lilly was approaching from across the room with Mrs. Mitchell close behind, both of their faces creased with worry, but there was no going back now.

“You can’t say these things to me,” Mrs. Newberry sniffed. “I’m a parishioner at this church. My family has donated—”

“Absolutely no one here gives a shit,” Mia said, interrupting her again just to watch her mouth open and close on her silent outrage. Several onlookers covered their mouths with theirhands as though trying to smother a laugh and no one at all seemed inclined to speak up on Mrs. Newberry’s behalf.

“Mia, what is going on?” Lilly asked, stepping between the two women and looking from one to the other like a teacher on a kindergarten playground. “You two know better than to do this here.”

Mrs. Newberry’s smile faltered when Mia stepped in close and whispered a few words in Lilly’s ear. She’d been able to manipulate her way around any real repercussions for so long that the cold look that passed over Lilly’s face must have come as quite a surprise.

“So,” Lilly said. “Mia told me what happened and she’s clearly on the edge of doing something very unpleasant right here in the middle of our Bible group. Fortunately for you, I don’t agree with that.”

Mrs. Newberry smirked at Mia over Lilly’s shoulder. “I knew you’d realize how unreasonable she was being. I thought she was going to attack me, and you have no idea how frightened I was.”

Lilly smiled back, and Mia had known her long enough to recognize the look and its implications. “I’ve got something much better in mind for you,” she said, her voice dripping with sugar sweetness. “Go home and don’t come back.”

“What?” Mrs. Newberry looked from Lilly to Mia desperately. “You can’t do that!” Mrs. Newberry said wildly, turning to face the group of onlookers that formed a tight ring around the action.

“I can,” Mrs. Mitchell said loudly, and every head turned to stare with open mouths at the small woman as she pushed her thick glasses back up her nose. “You’ve done nothing for this church that hasn’t been to make it worse and, if we’re all being fair and honest, we should have kicked you out a long time ago.”

“You can’t,” Mrs. Newberry repeated, her voice rising as though loudness might make them all change their minds. “You can’t do this to me.”

“I've had conversations with Mia about returning you to the flock, but you are not a lost lamb. You are a wolf in sheep’s clothing. I will protect the people in this church that depend on us to keep them safe.”

“Which is what I should have done a long time ago,” Mia said, squeezing Lilly’s hand in silent apology.

“You’ve been nothing but a bully to all of us,” Lilly added.

“I am not,” Mrs. Newberry screeched. “You have no proof!”

“I have no proof that you were the one leaking information about my relationship with Gabriel to the media, either, but we all know it’s true.”

“I’ll go to your father,” Mrs. Newberry said, her lips thin and triumphant. “I’ll tell him what you did to me today.”

“And I’ll tell him what you said to me and to Gabriel,” Mia retorted. “I’ll tell him that you stood in the house of God and spoke cruelly about Lilly because you’re a bigot and a bitch.”

“You’re nothing but that criminal’s whore.”

“And you,” Lilly said, her voice brimming with authority, “are no longer welcome here.”

Mrs. Newberry looked around the room for support but was met with only disapproving frowns. Perhaps some of them might have stood with her privately, but they were not brave enough to speak it now in front of so many.

“Go,” Mia demanded.

Mrs. Newberry grabbed her purse off one of the nearby chairs and pushed toward the door, knocking aside anyone who was too slow to move out of her way and nearly knocking Bryce over as he entered the room with Pastor Anderson.

“What the …” Bryce exclaimed. “What happened here?”

“Taking out the trash,” Mrs. Mitchell said. “And it was long overdue.”

“Was that Mrs. Newberry?” Pastor Anderson asked.

“It was,” Mia acknowledged. She sank down into a chair and smiled up at Lilly thinly when she passed a bottle of water into her shaking hands. “She’s not going to be coming back.”

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