Chapter 1

The old pickup truck bounced hard on the dirt road, throwing me against the door.

Brenda, my biological mother, didn't even look back from the passenger seat.

"Almost there, Ashley," she called out, her voice too sweet, too fake.

I hated that name, Ashley.

It was the name they gave me, the name I was trying to forget.

In the New Dawn Sanctuary, I was Chloe.

My adoptive parents, the Prophet and Matriarch Seraphina, called me Chloe.

I escaped New Dawn six months ago, found these people, my "real" family.

I thought maybe, just maybe, they could be different.

This camping trip, deep in some remote national forest, was supposed to be "family bonding."

Earl, my biological father, grunted from the driver's seat, his eyes shifty in the rearview mirror.

My brother, Kyle, sat beside me, reeking of stale cigarettes and resentment. He kept poking my arm.

"Stop it," I said, my voice low.

"What, Princess Ashley doesn't like being touched?" Kyle sneered.

Brenda finally turned, her smile thin. "Now, now, kids. We're here to have fun."

The truck lurched to a stop in a small, dark clearing. Trees pressed in on all sides.

"Okay, Ashley, out you go," Earl said, not meeting my eyes.

I got out, feeling a chill despite the summer air.

Kyle grabbed my backpack from the truck bed.

"I'll take that," he said, his smile mean.

Then Brenda came over, her sweet act gone.

"And your phone, dear."

"Why?"

"No distractions. Just family time," she said, but her eyes were cold.

I hesitated.

Earl stepped closer. "Give it to her, girl."

Reluctantly, I handed over my phone. Brenda's fingers snatched it.

She tossed it to Kyle, who immediately started poking at it.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Just making sure it's off," Kyle said, not looking at me.

Then Brenda dropped the bomb.

"Ashley, honey, we found a wonderful place for you."

My stomach twisted.

"A special community," she continued, her voice dripping with false concern. "They'll appreciate you much more than we ever could."

"What are you talking about?"

Earl finally spoke, his voice flat. "They're willing to pay good money for you, girl. A lot of money."

"Pay?" I whispered, my breath catching.

"Yeah, pay," Kyle chimed in, stuffing my phone into his pocket. "Turns out you're worth something after all."

Brenda nodded. "We made a contact. A very generous one. They're expecting you."

A sick feeling washed over me. A "special community."

"Who?" I asked, dread coiling in my gut. "Who did you contact?"

Brenda smiled, a truly ugly smile.

"Oh, just some old friends of yours, dear. They miss you terribly."

My mind raced, connecting the dots. Isolated. Powerful. Secretive.

The way she said "old friends."

It couldn't be.

"No," I breathed. "You didn't."

"They call themselves the New Dawn Sanctuary," Earl said, as if it were nothing. "Said they'd take real good care of you."

New Dawn.

The Prophet. Matriarch Seraphina. Caleb.

The place I ran from. The place I thought I'd escaped forever.

My adoptive parents.

They weren't just "old friends." They were the leaders.

My blood ran cold. This wasn't a camping trip.

It was a delivery.