Griff and I may never have left the garage if his dad hadn't come home. I would have been content to sleep under the desk the rest of my life if I could stay there with Griff and his artwork. But we heard a door slam and Griff sighed. "Sounds like Dad's home."

My legs were a bit unsteady, but I managed to make it into the living room, where Griffin's dad stood. He was tall, like Griff, but I didn't see any other similarities. His hair was darker, his eyes were brown, his nose was wider, his lips were thinner. He was a handsome man, but he was no Griffin. "Hey, Dad."

"Griffin!" The man looked briefly at me, then back to Griffin. They hugged and his dad slapped his back. "It's good to see you, son! It's not the same without you here."

"Yeah, well. We had some detours. You wouldn't believe the stuff we've gone through." This was not the reunion I had envisioned. I assumed Mr. Hendricks would be grumpy and horrible and yell at Griff until he cowered. These two were acting like long-lost friends.

"Dad, this is Lucy. Lucy, my dad."

"Sam Hendricks," he said, sticking a hand out at me. "How do you do?" He was so polished for somebody who left his food and clothing and garbage all over the house.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Hendricks."

"It's Sam. Please call me Sam."

"It's nice to meet you. Griffin has really helped me out the last several days. He's saved my life, actually. Literally."

"You don't say?" Sam looked at Griffin, who was smiling on top a grimace. He looked terribly uncomfortable. "How nice of you, Griff." Griffin shifted as though his skin were suddenly too small.

Thankfully, Misty burst into the room with Rocco following. "Hi there!" she bubbled. "You must be Griffin's dad!" Sam looked startled at her boisterous voice. Griffin performed all the introductions.

"Well, we have a real houseful, don't we? How about I get some food on the grill?" He took off to the kitchen, with Misty chattering behind him, offering to make a salad.

"Hey, your old man is alright!" Rocco said, shaking Griffin's shoulder.

Griffin grinned, "Yeah, he's alright. And his burgers are better than alright!"

It was true, Griff's dad seemed nice enough. Charming, even. But I kept hearing Griff's voice from earlier today, "Look, my dad has a lot of demons..." I'd faced men with demons before. I wasn't about to let my guard down around Sam.

Misty and I cleaned up after dinner. Sam insisted he would, but even as he was insisting, he was sitting down and opening a beer. I knew a hollow offer when I saw one. It was fine though. I was happy to have something to do. And it gave me a chance to catch up with Misty, quietly, under the cover of the clanking dishes.

She moved close to me by the sink and whispered, "So Sam isn't as nice as he seems, huh?"

"How did you guess?"

My friend shrugged. "Not my first rodeo. He reminds me a lot of my dad, actually. Phony nice, charming, then boom! Blows his top over nothing at all."

I nodded. "I don't want to stay here any longer than we need to."

"We need a plan first. Money, a place to live." She sighed. "How in the world are we going to take down the council?"

I scrubbed a plate aggressively. "I don't know. I-" The soapy plate slipped from my hands and crashed to the floor. Misty and I froze. Griffin and Rocco were in the garage, but Sam came into the kitchen as I was frantically picking up chunks of glass. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Hendricks." He grabbed a broom and began sweeping.

"No worries, Lucy. They're slippery little suckers. And really, you can call me Sam."

We cleaned up the mess. "I'm really sorry," I apologized again.

Mr. Hendricks held up a hand. "Forget about it. Has Misty seen Griff's workshop yet?"

"No, I haven't seen it."

"It's really something. Come on."

I followed Sam and Misty into the garage. Rocco was inspecting the finished work and Griff was casually whittling away at a little chunk of wood. "Wow!" Misty was as impressed as I'd been.

"Isn't it great?" Rocco was as enthusiastic as I'd ever seen him and my affection for him grew just a bit more. "Babe, come look at this," he called Misty over to a chair. Griffin came over to his dad and I. I resisted the urge to nestle into him.

"Griffin is so talented, Mr. Hendricks. Did you teach him how to do all this?"

"It's Sam! No, I don't have the gift Griff does. My wife's dad gave Griffin a knife when he was way too young to have a knife, but it worked out alright in the end. Griff taught himself how to whittle, then carve, then really create amazing art." Griffin was concentrating on the piece in his hand, but I saw the color of pride rise in his cheeks.

"Meh. Just a fun hobby," he said modestly.

"Hobby scmobby!" Sam exclaimed, "This guy is a real money maker. Speaking of which, how'd we make out at the fair Griff-o?" Just like that, Griffin went from proud to defeated. Without a word he walked over to a drawer and pulled out a fat wad of cash. He slapped it into his dad's waiting palm. "Let's see what we've got here!" Sam began counting bills silently, but moving his lips. I eyed Griffin, who was intent on his project. Misty and Rocco were cuddling by the cradle. I busied myself admiring a chest of drawers.

Sam harrumphed. "A little light, isn't this, Griff-o?" He flipped the banded bills in the air and caught them as if to emphasize the feathery weight of them.

Griff shrugged at him. "We ran into a little trouble. I had to leave the fair early and use a few bucks for some other things."

"Trouble, huh?" Sam's good-nature was slipping. For the first time I saw for myself the hint of a temper. I wanted to speak up, to help Griffin, but my heart clogged my chest.

"He really bailed us out, Sam!" Misty came to the rescue. "Lucy and I were abducted and Griffin and Rocco rescued us. We'd have died without them." Rocco pulled her tightly to him.

"He's a hero," I finally added. Sam stared at me like he was just meeting me for the first time. Like he hadn't just made me dinner, like he hadn't helped me clean up a broken plate in his kitchen.

"A hero, huh?"

Griffin continued whittling, while Misty, Rocco, and I watched Sam for a reaction.

"Well. Good for you, then Griff-o." I wished he'd stop calling him that. "What's a few bucks if it means you lovely ladies are safe and sound?" He shook my shoulder in what I think was supposed to be a show of affection, but actually rattled my teeth a little.

Griffin set his wood down and came over, taking my hand. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm beat."

"Me too!" I said, a hair too enthusiastically.

"We've had a pretty exhausting day," Misty pointed out. "I mean, just this morning we woke up in a cell."

"That's a nice word for it," Rocco grumbled. "You need some rest," he said protectively to Misty.

"We'll see you in the morning," Griffin said, pulling me gently toward the garage door. I stopped him for a moment, and turned.

"Thank you for letting us stay here, Mr. Hendricks. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it." I didn't like the guy, but I did mean the thank you.

"It's Sam," I heard him say quietly as Griff and I left the garage.

**

I didn't even have the energy to worry about sleeping in the same bed as Griffin tonight, but as it turned out, it wasn't a problem at all. In his room, he reached under his bed and pulled a trundle out. "Ta-da!" he announced. "I made this like ten years ago and never had reason to use it!"

"It's perfect!" I fell face down onto it. Griffin threw a blanket over me and tucked a pillow under my head. I flipped onto my back so I could watch Griffin get into bed. Once he was settled he leaned down at me.

"You good?"

"So good."

He bent down and kissed my forehead. We lay in the dark. "I love you," I whispered after a bit.

"I love you too," he whispered back. I reached up and found his hand. We held on to each other until I fell asleep and my hand dropped from his.

**

It was my first night in a bed since I'd slept at Rocco's parents. I would never take a mattress for granted again. When I woke, the aches and pains from the floor of the dungeon weren't completely gone, but they had faded to a shadow of discomfort. The ease in my heart compensated for any soreness left in my body. Griffin lay above me, still sleeping soundly. My friend (my friend! Who I never thought I'd see again!) was asleep in the room next to me with the love of her life. If only I could look past Griff's dad and the danger my family was in, I could convince myself life was perfect.

I heard banging in the kitchen and watched Griffin move from dead asleep to barely awake. Finally he opened his eyes and smiled sleepily. He sat up, ruffled my hair, then flopped back on his pillow. "Hi," I whispered.

"Morning." We lay quietly. Then he rolled over and fell onto my bed. I giggled and cozied into his armpit.

"We have to come up with a plan today," I said.

"Ugh. It's too early to talk plans yet! I need coffee."

"You drink coffee?" In some ways I felt like I knew every single thing about Griffin. At other moments, I ached at the realization I hardly knew anything about him.

"You don't?"

"Coffee wasn't an option on the commune. Artificial energy. The Brothers and Sisters said Diety provides all the energy we need to get us through each day. The same idea behind the donuts. It was putting fake stuff into us. Diety provides everything we need, and if he isn't sending donuts from the sky, then we aren't meant to eat donuts."

"I thought putting you in a pillory and a dungeon was bad, but no caffeine?! No donuts?! Now that's barbaric."

I smiled.

There were so many things I truly did love about Diety. I felt his presence in the mornings when I sat on the mountain. When Herb fed me bread. In the love that surrounded my family and in Griffin. I wouldn't renounce Diety, but he was different than what the council said he was.

"You know, just because I wouldn't come live on the mountain doesn't mean I don't believe in God," Griffin said as though reading my mind.

God. I'd heard that term from other townspeople that I'd tried to convert. They'd hold up a hand, warning me not to come closer and say, "I already believe in God," or "No thanks, I already know God."

"Tell me about this God of yours."

"Actually, Annie and Gibby clued me in. In some ways I think God is a lot like your Diety. Just a different name, and without all the cruelty the council wants you to believe."

I looked up at him. "I'm listening."

"It's a lot to cover before I've had my coffee."

"Well, maybe it's time I give your God and your coffee a chance."

Griffin inhaled. "I have to believe a God that bothered creating us, doesn't want us beaten into submission by a random group of guys on a mountain that have no problem burning girls who don't comply with their rules. Or putting them in archaic stocks or throwing them in dungeons. I mean- I'm no expert on loving fathers, but I know what a good dad doesn't look like, and it sure as hell doesn't look like the Diety Brother Augustus worships."

"Wow. Don't hold back."

"It's just- I love God. I think you know the real God. Not the one that kicks you out if you don't make three conversions by the time you're twenty, but the real one. Forget what the council told you. What do you think about God?" I thought about the connection I felt every morning watching the sunrise.

"He's a good artist," I tried. The council's lectures never mentioned Diety painting the sky, but if I was going to get to know God that's where I wanted to start.

"The best," Griffin agreed.

I thought about my parents and Soph, Misty, Annie, and Griff. "He's planted the best people in my life."

Griffin smiled. "That wasn't coincidence. He's a provider." My head was racing, my heart swelling.

"He doesn't like what the council is doing."

"Definitely not. He is just."

"Griff. I think he's got a plan for us."

Griffin kissed me. "Lucy, I know he does."

**

Rocco and Misty were already up and bustling around the kitchen with Sam when we walked in. Griffin poured us some coffee, which I promptly spit back into the mug. "Um, no thanks!" All four of them laughed at me.

"It's an acquired taste," Sam said.

"Try some sugar in it," Misty offered. She rummaged around the kitchen like she owned the place until Griffin directed her to a cupboard with a small sugar bowl. She spooned some in my mug and I tried again. Much better.

"Sugar's for wimps," Sam announced, pulling a bottle out of another cupboard. He dumped the dark liquid in. I could smell the sharp alcohol from across the room. Griffin's face tightened. His dad slapped his back. "Put's hair on your chest, son! I'll leave you four to it. I think I might hit Clyde's Cavern for breakfast now that I have a little money again!" He flashed the wad of cash Griffin had given him last night and was out the door.

As soon as the front door slammed Griffin's posture relaxed. Misty and Rocco made themselves busy preparing breakfast for us. I was ashamed at how useless I was. One of these days I'd ask Misty to teach me to cook. Cracking an egg, Rocco asked, "So what's our plan?" Nobody could ever accuse that guy of beating around the bush.

"I don't know. My main priority is getting Sophie and my parents out of the commune since Brother Augustus blatantly threatened them. But I want to shed light on their whole operation, so the entire commune knows what's going on."

"I agree. Nobody on that mountain knows about the burning, or the dungeon," Misty added.

"I think they were pretty surprised to see my head in a pillory too. I wouldn't want to do that again, but maybe that made some people realize the council is overstepping their boundaries."

"Let's hope so," Griffin was already refilling his coffee cup. "Do you think it's as simple as storming in there and announcing to everyone what they did?"

Rocco slipped an egg thing and some toast in front of me. "We can show them Misty's scars and the pit. They see how nuts those council people are and leave the commune. Done deal."

I didn't think it would be so easy, unfortunately," I said. "It's the only home some of those people have ever known. Even if they want to leave, they have no place to go, no education to land them a job, no money to start over."

"The council does a great job of making sure nobody has the tools to survive off the mountain." Misty's voice was even more bitter than my coffee.

We discussed our options for a long time. By the time afternoon rolled around I was hooked on coffee, but we were no closer to a solution. Rocco banged his head on the table, which I recognized as Griff's craftsmanship. There was a knock on the door. I grabbed Misty's wrist and looked quickly for a place to hide. Surely, the council wouldn't pull the same thing they had at Rocco's parents' house. Griffin stood and motioned for us to get in the pantry.

Misty and I huddled in the darkness of the little room holding hands. I saw the shadow of Rocco's feet shifting from left to right in front of the accordion door. I didn't hear anything until Griff came back to the kitchen and hollered, "You can come out!" The light forced my eyes to narrow. When they adjusted, Griff was slipping his shoes on.

"My dad's drunk and being obnoxious at Clyde's. I have to go get him."

"I'll go with you," Rocco offered. I expected Griff to decline, but he looked grateful. "That would be great. Thanks, man."

"Well, I want in on the action!" Misty exclaimed.

Griff shrugged. "Sure. The more, the merrier. You coming too?" he asked me.

"Why not?"

The four of us traipsed into town. "My dad's not the same guy that grilled your burgers when he's been drinking," Griffin warned.

"Didn't think he would be," Rocco answered seriously. Misty and I exchanged worried looks behind their backs.

Griffin pushed the door to the bar open. It was darker than The Squeaky Wheel, with far less friendly people. Every person we passed on the way to the bar glared at us. "Get him out of here, Griff," a man behind the bar said not unkindly. "He had words with a guy who he claimed owed him a drink, then urinated in the corner."

"I'm sorry, Clyde."

"I know. Just get him out."

Sam was slumped over in a booth. When Griffin shook him awake Sam took a swing at him, but it was sloppy and ill-aimed. Rocco hefted the man up. Griffin got on his other side and they dragged him out of the bar. One man spit on the floor as we passed. Sam was not well-loved in this place, and I could see why. Every now and then he gained conscious and would try to straighten his posture, mumbling cuss words and threats. We ignored him and hauled him home as best we could.

Back at his house, Griffin and Rocco lay him on the couch and Misty taught me how to make coffee. We brought Sam a cup, but he was snoring loudly, dead to the world. Griffin sat at his dad's feet, the rest of us made ourselves comfortable on the loveseat (Rocco and Misty) and armchair (me). Griff flopped his head back. "Sorry you guys have to deal with this."

"This is nothing," Misty assured him. "At the Squeaky Wheel we had bar fights on the daily, not to mention the puking." She looked nostalgic for her former place of employment. "It was part of its charm," she laughed.

"It was good to think about something besides that freakin' commune for a while," Rocco added.

"You know... I might have an idea..." I said slowly. "I haven't worked through all the details yet, and it's definitely a long shot..."

"Let's hear it," Griffin encouraged. "So far we've got nothing, so whatever you've got is a step in the right direction."

I took a breath. "We know storming in there won't work. Even if people believe us over the council, which they probably wouldn't-"

"Because why would they? They only know what the council has told them. That you and I are sinful girls. They probably told the commune we're possessed or something," Misty added.

"I wouldn't put it past them. Our credibility is shot. Yours is too, by association," I told Rocco and Griffin. "But what if we can get somebody to infiltrate the commune? Like... claim to be a convert, but actually reverse recruit. Get people to leave the commune. Tell them we're here waiting for them. In the meantime, we're here helping people acclimate to town life, finding them jobs, getting them clothes, housing, whatever."

"Giving them coffee and donuts!" Misty exclaimed.

I laughed, "Right! The necessities."

Sam snorted and rolled to his other side. We sat quietly to be sure he was asleep. When he didn't move for a moment, we resumed our conversation.

"I like it," Griffin said. "It'll be hard, but it's as good a plan as any. And I think I might know who could help us."