“Do you?” said Stephen. He moved away from her and then turned to Kurt and me. I swear that he was conscious of our attention in this supposedly intimate moment. “I think every mother deserves some time to herself. To go out to a movie or have her hair done. It’s difficult when every minute of the day is spent caring for someone else’s physical needs. I’m sure you remember that time in your life, don’t you, Linda?”
“Yes,” I said after a long moment. “I remember it well.” But I didn’t think it had been the same for me as it was for Joanna.
I hated this place, I thought. If not for Talitha, I would be packing my bags and leaving right now, wedding or no wedding.
“All right. We’ll head back to the main house now,” Stephen said. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Joanna.”
He turned to the door, but I lingered, trying to think of something to say to Joanna. Could I let her know that I was safe, if she needed another option for her life and her three daughters? What could I do for her, other than call DCFS, which Naomi had specifically said she wanted not to do? At least not yet.
In that moment, I saw Joanna’s body jerk and her eyes roll back in her head. She seemed to gargle in her throat, and then she spat something up. “Wait, Stephen!” she called out.
He stopped, but took a long moment to give her his attention. “What is it you want now, Joanna?”
“It’s not for me. I had a vision just then.”
Was that what a vision looked like, from the outside? It didn’t look pleasant. Unless—could she put on something like that? I didn’t believe she was much of an actress based on what I’d seen of her so far.
Joanna extended her hands as if feeling for something in the air, then shuddered and wrapped her arms around her middle. “Stephen, be careful tonight. There may be danger coming for you.” Her whispered, dark tone left me with a chill.
Stephen didn’t seem affected. In an annoyed, patronizing tone, he said, “All right, Joanna, I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you so much for looking out for me.” He shook his head and then stepped out the front door, nodding for Kurt and me to follow.
The sun still bright outside, we walked back to the main house. I thought about what it must have been like for Kenneth when he’d come to visit. He’d made it sound so benign, but hadn’t he been affected by the power dynamic here? Or maybe it hadn’t been the same, given the recent argument that Jennifer and Joanna had apparently had some part in. I hoped very much that Kenneth and Naomi would be able to make their future life with as much distance from this compound as possible.
Stephen stopped at a good vantage point away from the scrub oak and motioned to the valley. “Whenever I stand here, looking out at the valley that Brigham Young said was reserved for the Saints, I think about how God has reserved this special piece of land for me and my family. I will always give thanks to Him for all that He gives me every day, however long my life lasts under His hand.”
“It’s a big piece of property. You said you inherited it from your parents?” I asked.
He nodded. “It’s all I have left of my family. If my brother had lived, it would have been ours to share.”
There was something fierce in his attachment to this land. I couldn’t help but wonder if he and his brother would have fought over how to divide it. Surely his brother would have been uncomfortable with Stephen’s call to “the Principle.”
Kurt cleared his throat. “Do you mind my asking about your finances?” he asked. “As a father myself, I’m concerned about the children.”
“I don’t have any secrets,” Stephen said, which I highly doubted.
“You make enough money as a doctor to manage food and housing, plus some college expenses, for more than twenty children?” That was the accountant coming out. He wanted to know the bottom line here.
Stephen turned to us and I could see his smile even as his face blocked out the sun. “It’s a good profession in Utah. Did you know that we as a state have the highest birthrate in the nation?”
“I think I did know that,” Kurt said blandly.
“And your investments with Jennifer must help,” I added.
“Yes, very much so,” said Stephen, glancing at me for a moment before turning back to Kurt. “Shall I show you two my financial statements before we agree to let our children marry?”
“No, no. I didn’t mean that,” Kurt said, looking more soberly out at the same valley.
Stephen began to walk again. I followed him, thinking I’d very much have liked to see his financial statements. I wanted to know how much he had salted away for retirement and whether the wives had their own bank accounts. Did Joanna have enough money to survive until her three children were in school? What about Carolyn? I’d come because of Talitha, but I couldn’t help but think that everyone here needed my help, if only I could figure out what to do for them.
Chapter 10
As we were nearly back to the big house, the sound of howling rose from the backyard, growing louder and louder. It was a child’s cry of pain.