Author's note: Sorry it took me forever to update. Life has been hectic.

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 Jared did not let me get changed into pajamas after dinner. Instead, he gave me one of his hoodies to wear. He had me stay on his bed. He poked his head out into the hallway a few times before sitting beside me. He reached into his nightstand and pulled out a deck of cards. I raised an eyebrow as he dealt the cards.

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"You know you're not supposed to ask questions," he said.

I bit down on my lip. Jared reached out and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. He gave me a soft smile.

"Don't worry, Leah," he said. "I'm not going to punish you. It was just a warning."

"Thank you," I said.

Jared leaned in and kissed me before picking up his cards. I picked up the cards he handed me as I tried to remember the rules of the game.

"I'm waiting for my family to fall asleep," he said. "I want to do something special for you."

I was going to ask what it was, but I did not want to get punished again. My shoulders ached from just thinking about being tied up in the basement.

We played the card game for about an hour. After our last game, Jared told me to wait in the room. He crept out into the hallway and came back a few minutes later. He snapped his fingers and motioned for me to come toward him. I shoved my hands in the pocket of my sweater and walked over. He slid his arm over my shoulders. He held one finger up to his lips telling me to be quiet. I nodded my head and we walked into the dark hallway.

My heart was pounding in my chest. Jared said nothing as we walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. He brought me over to the kitchen door. He took his arm off from around my shoulders. He pulled the chain off from around his neck.

My teeth dug into my bottom lip. I struggled to stop myself from gasping. Jared was actually letting me go outside.

Jared grabbed my shoulders and turned me to face him. He looked over over his shoulder and then back at me.

"I am doing something big for you," he said. "Dad thinks it is too early for me to take you outside. If you try to run there will be serious consequences. Do you understand?"

"Yes," I said.

I lunged forward and wrapped my arms around Jared. He stumbled back, shocked by my reaction. I pressed my cheek against his chest, and he hugged me back.

"Thank you," I said.

"You promise you won't run?" Jared asked.

"I promise."

He kissed the top of my head, and let go of me.

I was not sure if I was going to run. I would be outside for once. This could be my one and only chance. I had no idea how fast Jared could run. He knew this farm better than I. If I got caught they would throw me down into the basement. They would probably torture me until I was officially brainwashed.

Jared kept a tight hold on my arm as he opened the door. The cool night air was like heaven on my skin. I took in a deep breath as I stepped out onto the porch. Jared grabbed a flashlight off of the window sill. He turned it on and pulled me forward. The cold grass was soft underneath my feet.

We walked toward the barn. I shivered as the cold air ripped through my hair. I pushed the strands of blonde hair out of my face. Jared opened the door and flicked on the lights. A pungent smell filled my nose. He pulled me into the barn before slamming the door shut.

I looked around to see a workbench running along the wall. Piles of junk were on the floor against the opposite wall. Jared pulled Julie's book out of his pocket and dropped it on the bench.

"We're going to burn that book before Dad sees it," he said. "Where did you even get it?"

"I found it on the bookshelf," I said.

Jared raised an eyebrow as he walked toward me. I backed up until I bumped into the workbench. He put both of his hands on either side of me, trapping me in. I took in a sharp breath and looked down at my feet. I could sense that he was staring at me and it made my stomach turn.

"Leah, look at me," he said. He grabbed my chin before I could move and pulled my head up. "Where did you get that book?"

"Theo gave it to me," I said.

Jared rolled his eyes.

"Of course he did," he muttered. "When did he give it to you?"

"When he came inside," I said. "I went to check on him and he gave it to me."

"I don't want you near Theo. The last thing I need is you getting sick."

I nodded my head. Jared kissed my cheek before backing up. I pushed my glasses up the bridge of my nose before taking a step toward one of the piles of the junk. It was a mixture of clothes, purses, and cellphones. I picked up one of the phones and tried to turn it on. To no surprise, the battery was dead.

"Where did this all come from?" I asked.

"Leah," he said in a warning tone.

"I'm sorry," I said. "No questions."

"Good girl."

I don't know why I asked. This stuff must have come from the people that they have killed. The family probably had no idea what half of this stuff was. I looked at the next pile to see a collection of shoes on top of a few coats. I ran my hand over top of it all and took a step to the side. I looked up to see a stereo was sitting on a stool. The cord was sitting on top of the stereo. I bent down and plugged the cord into the socket. I popped the top open the top to see that there was a CD in the top.

"What are you doing?" Jared asked.

"I want to see if it works," I said. "I haven't heard music in awhile."

"That's what that thing does?"

"Yeah. It is a CD player."

I hit the play button and the intro to a song began to play. It was an 80s song that Owen and his friends used to play in the van. I probably heard it fifty different times on our first drive from Anchorage to California.

I hummed along to the tune. Jared chuckled when he watched me start to snap my fingers.

"What's that?" he asked.

"It's music," I said. "Don't you guys listen to it?"

"Sometimes in the truck when we go to Taylor's," he said. "But it does not sound like this."

"You're probably used to hearing country. This is rock. It's old, but it is rock."

"Like a stone?"

I laughed and shook my head. I reached out and grabbed Jared's hands. I swayed with the beat of the music. Jared's lips curled into a smile. He started to sway along with me.

"You never really got to learn about the outside world, did you?" I asked. I knew it was a question, but I could not stop it from leaving my mouth.

"There is no reason to," he said. I sighed in relief that he did not get mad at me. "It's dangerous out there. That's why we are keeping you safe."

"I lived out there for eighteen years and never got hurt," I said.

"Didn't your old boyfriend hurt you?"

Jared let go of my one hand and snaked his arm around my waist. He pulled me toward him as he continued to sway. The realization that I voluntarily started dancing with Jared hit me like a brick. It was something I would have done with Owen during our good days.

I let go of Jared's hand and stepped back. Jared sighed and ran his fingers through his short hair. He picked up Julie's book off of the bench.

"Let's go start a fire," he said.

He held out his hand and I took it. His grip was tight as we walked out of the barn. There was a stack of wood at the back of the barn. Jared let go of my hand so that he could grab a couple. I followed behind him as he turned on the flashlight and walked toward a fire pit.

"Sit down," Jared told me.

I sat down next to the fire pit. I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around myself. Goosebumps ran along my skin when a cold breeze blew by. Jared dropped the wood in the pit. He passed me the flashlight.

"Hold this," he said.

I held onto the flashlight as Jared positioned the wood against each other. He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and lit the pieces of wood. The fire crackled as it grew into flames. Jared wiped his hands on his jeans. The warmth spread across my face. I held my hands out to try and get warm.

"How much of this did you read?" Jared asked holding out Julie's book.

I shrugged my shoulders. "About half of it."

"I want you to forget it all," he said. "It's all lies. Our family is not horrible. We are doing what we need to do to protect you. Understand?"

"Yes," I said.

Jared opened up the book and ripped out a fistful of pages. He tossed them into the fire. I stayed silent as he balled up the pages and threw them into the fire.

When he was done, he sat behind me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me against his chest. I took in a sharp breath when he kissed the crook of my neck.

"I can't wait until Dad says you can come outside," he said. "You'll be able to come in the backyard with me all the time. Mom and Grandma will be able to come out too. When Theo gets his girl you'll have to go back to staying inside. Hopefully, we have our own place by then."

My stomach twisted itself into a knot as he talked about our future. I didn't want a future here.

I stayed quiet as I stayed in Jared's arms. He spent the rest of the night talking about details of our future.