Page 59 of Regressive

25

Imogene

I’m blindfolded againand forced to trust Margaret as she guides me through Serendee in the dark. She’s careful, and although we take circular route, I can tell when we enter the main house. It has a certain scent—less earthy than the rest of the homes, where air conditioning units are frowned upon, and solar panels provide much of our energy.

I almost ask why we’re going to Anex’s home—Margaret had assured me this group was disconnected from him outside of his blessing and approval. Something about being here makes me feel uneasy. I can’t help but think about the women in the cells below, the Fallen.

“You’ll wait here,” Margaret says, nudging me into a room. Her hand clamps down on my forearm and squeezes. “After tonight, I won’t be just your Main but your sister, too.”

I hear others. Their shifting feet and a few other sounds of anxiety. We shouldn’t be afraid to have our vision blocked. We’re Enlightened and our other senses should take over. At least that’s what I remind myself once the door closes and Margret leaves, and my pulse starts to race.

“Keep your blindfolds on,” a voice calls, breaking the quiet. “But remove your clothing.”

“All of it?” a soft voice asks.

“Strip completely. Tonight isn’t about material bindings. It’s about spiritual ones. Connecting to the other women in the group. There’s no reason to hide your true selves. Not your body, nor your mind, or your secrets.”

Something nags at me as I obey, unbuttoning the tiny pearl buttons on the front of my dress. Maybe it’s because for once I do belong to someone else—more than one person. We’re in a relationship. Committed, even if by arrangement. My agreement with Rex is deeper than the one I made during the ceremonies. We’ve made promises to one another. My body belongs to him and the other men in our home. Something tells me he wouldn’t like the fact I’m revealing myself to others.

Still, I do as I’m told. How can I not? My dress slips from my shoulders, and I remove my Serendee approved undergarments. Fabric rustles around me as the other women do the same.

Little Lamb.

The nickname echoes in my head, but it feels wrong. I’m not a lamb. I’m nothing more than a sheep.

“We’re ready,” that same voice says, light and full of joy. “Grab the hand of the person next to you and follow me.”

I’m trying to reconcile my thoughts, my emotions, the thrumming in my chest, when a hand grabs mine and pulls, dragging me along with the others. My steps are clumsy, and our bare bodies run into one another. Nervous laughter bubbles from somewhere ahead. I sense when we cross the threshold. It’s the scent that hits me. The smell of antiseptic. The blast of cold, sterile air. My nipples, already hard, tighten painfully. Goosebumps spread across my flesh. The pit of my stomach clenches, turning over. And I know before our host says, “You can remove your blindfolds,” exactly where we are.

The healer’s room.

Anex’shealer’s room.

I peel back the blindfold and see that I’m one of four other women. There had been more initially. Had they not made it to this part of the process? That thought sends a jolt of pride to my chest, but it’s tempered when I look away from the other women and take in the room—I’ve been here before. The medical table in the middle of the room, where I was studied and tested, twice on the command of our leader. The table is covered in a white sheet, the symbol of innocence and purity, but that weird, distressed feeling in my belly only intensifies.

Margaret, in a white cloak, steps forward, a serene smile on her mouth.

“Welcome,” she says, spreading her arms. “This is the night you’ve been waiting for. You’ve completed your steps. Your commitment to the women in Serendee. You’ve given your collateral and been deemed worthy. Anex has given me full control over this group and through that power, I am able to tell you that you’ve been chosen for the final step that will make us sisters.”

Her words set me on edge. I’m reminded of the fallen, the girl babbling about the sacrifices she was making to attain Anex’s approval. Are Margaret’s words any different?

“Tonight you’ll take the mark of our group—a birthmark. This is a rebirth. One not tied to your parents or anyone else. You’ll be tied to Serendee. To The Way.” She makes a symbol with her fingers, that looks like a sideways ‘W.’ “We’re women. We’re Enlightened.”

Those words send a shiver down my spine. Enlightened? That’s the ultimate goal. And this ceremony is the final step? There’s an immediate shift in the nervous energy that filled the room when we walked in. Now it’s anticipation. Our nudity and sacrifice make sense: we must shed everything to reach this state. Our fears. Our pride. Our modesty.

We’ve been chosen.

“Let me prepare you,” Margaret adds, “this won’t be easy. It will hurt, but from pain comes empowerment. And if you violate the sanctity of your sisterhood, your collateral will be exposed to your loved ones, your community, and Anex.” She taps on the door, and it opens, another woman in white joining us. “Healer Bloom has been anointed to assist in the process. I’m grateful for her strength and skills.”

The woman crosses the room and stops at a rolling cart arranged with instruments. A square box fills most of the space. She rolls it over to the exam table and presses several buttons before lifting something that looks like a wand.

“Kayla.” Margaret nods to the woman next to me. “You’re first.”

Kayla steps forward and Margaret meets her, pulling her into a hug. She whispers something in her ear and gives her a hand as she climbs onto the table.

“We’ll need your assistance,” Margaret says. “Come hold your sister through her experience. She may fight due to the intensity, but remember, she chose to be here, she waschosento be here. Help her get through to the other side.”

The three other women and I surround Kayla, two by her arms and two by her legs. I am at her upper body, where I can see her face. I smile down at her, hoping to be reassuring, but all I feel is my own anxiety. “You’re strong,” I tell her. “Worthy.”

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