Sophia found the perfect spot to hide her cellphone. Detective Salvino was right, behind the toilet worked. It wasn't easy since the bathroom entrance was just a doorway, absent of a door, absent of privacy. "This is where we all shower. We shower together as one. There are no judgements here just a solitude that will lead us to The Light." Sophia forced a smile. "I need to use the bathroom. Will you excuse me?" "The Darius says we don't have to be ashamed about anything. Everyone at Freedom House does everything and anything in front of each other." "I'm just finishing up my time of the month, that's all." Sophia moved her eyes down toward her bladder. "I know this is very new for you. You'll need to get comfortable in front of everyone, blood or no blood. I'll wait in the hall this time." Cyrus said. Cyrus walked out without looking back. Sophia looked around and found tampons and pads under the sink. She grabbed a tampon and sat on the toilet, going through the motions. As she sat on the toilet, her eyes caught the pads again. She grabbed a pad and ripped through the cotton center with her nails. "You alright in there?" Cyrus asked from down the hall. "Yeah, I'm good. Almost done." She pulled the tape off her upper thigh as slow as she could but with a sense of urgency. Her eyes squinted as the tape pulled at her skin. She balled up the tape and wrapped toilet paper around it. Her eyes shot at the doorway. She opened the flip phone and sent her first text. Her eyes glanced at the doorway again. OpCLT got n safe hidin fone She got down on her knees next to the toilet and placed the phone into the pad and wrapped the pad up. She realized she needed some tape. She looked back at the doorway. She got some tape out of the wadded-up toilet paper from the trash and got back down on her knees to tape the pad to the back of the toilet. She heard footsteps and looked back at the doorway, still vacant. She turned to face the toilet again, the stench of piss filled her nose. "What are you doing down there?" Cyrus asked. Sophia grabbed the wadded-up toilet paper out of the trash with ease. She stood up, "Missed the trash," and held up the scrunched toilet paper in her hand. "Let's head to meditation. The Darius is out in the woods tonight with some of the others, so I'll be leading it." --- The Darius was the only one who had a tent. The rest of us were to sleep on the forest floor. Jonas was getting a fire started in the center. A thin rug lay in front of The Darius' tent and he sat on it, staring out at everyone. "Penelope, it's time to prep the meat," he said. Penelope took out a large bed of lettuce. She unwrapped it and inside were small cubes of raw bloody meat. A red puddle soaked the fresh green lettuce. Penelope used her index finger to swirl the blood around and then licked it. She took out a small container of mixed spices and dipped each piece of meat in, rubbing it through her hands. Once the fire was started, Jonas stacked a few rocks on each side of the fire. "Hey Ivy, can you help me with something?" he asked. "Of course." "Come here. Do you see these short stacks I made? We need to find a thin, smooth rock that we can place onto these stacks. It'll be right over the fire and perfect for cooking the meat." "Okay, I can do that." I said. I walked around our campsite, searching for the perfect rock slab. Skye walked up to The Darius and he whispered something in her ear. She looked over at me and I caught her eyes just for a second. She nodded her head as her ear pressed on The Darius's words. The Darius stood up, held his hand out to Skye's and they both entered his tent. She zipped it up. I continued to look around and made my way behind The Darius's tent. As I searched for a rock, a butterfly fluttered into my line of sight and carried my gaze up and into the sky. I watched as it moved with grace ever so lightly, reaching high into the sunset sky. It moved away from me, from us, and from Freedom House. I heard some whispering. It was coming from the tent. I could see the dimmed shadows of Skye and The Darius, they were sitting next to each other. I walked to a nearby redwood, wrapped my hands around it, using it to hold my breath and keep me still. "I want her in my tent tonight. She is ready." The Darius said. "Yes, she is. I will be sure she comes to you tonight." Skye said. "Lovely. You have always been one of my favorites Skye. So perfect in every way." Through the tent I could see a piece of the dark shadow move up and touch Skye's face. "Thank you The Darius. I am everything I am because of you." Skye said. "Well, tonight will be Ivy's time but right now it's your time." he said. The shadow moved from Skye's face and up onto her head. The shadow pulled her head down into his lap. I saw a blurred pulsing movement, then heard someone calling my name in the distance. Another butterfly snapped me out of it and like a magnetic force, my eyes followed the flutter of its wings. The butterfly landed onto a rock. It was the perfect rock. I picked it up and the butterfly was still for just a moment then flew away forever. I walked back to Jonas. "I found this one." "This is more than perfect. Thanks Ivy." He set the rock onto the fire, the left and right sides were held up with the small rock stacks he made. "Where's The Darius?" I asked. "Just in a yoga planning session with Skye, the usual. All part of our journey." Jonas said. "Penelope, you ready to cook this meat?" he asked. "Always ready." Penelope said. She stood up from the ground, dirt stuck under the crevices of her butt cheeks. She wiped the dirt off using her wet sticky raw meat hands and it created mud streaks across her butt. The smell of the meat made me sick to my stomach. I still wasn't used to it. The Darius opened his tent and walked out slowly. "It smells like heaven Penelope." The Darius said. "We are in heaven, aren't we?" Penelope giggled. Skye walked out from the tent with a calm smile. She gazed at The Darius with brightness and love. "Let's gather around the fire. We will eat soon but first we need discuss our next steps in our Journey to the Light," said The Darius. Skye sat next to me and touched my knee with her hand. The Darius continued, "As you all know, I have been having visions of The Darkness. It's coming for Freedom House, as it does when it sees a shining bright light. In history, all great endeavors, all great leaders, are faced with a battle of darkness. We must beat this with our practices of compassion, love, and true enlightenment. We must not ever allow darkness to cloud our vision of the truth." Everyone cheered and shouted reassurances. "You are all out here tonight because you are the strongest of Freedom House. You are each special and perfect. I need you in this journey. It cannot happen without you. Let us feast on this meat and discuss the Ceremony of The Free, a ceremony of celebration amongst all of Freedom House." I chewed the meat, switching it from my left side to my right side, trying to break it into smaller pieces. Instead, it seemed to stay a chunk of chewed up bark, each bite squirting juice into the back of my throat. Penelope was on her third piece already. I felt a force in the center of my stomach creeping up. I thought about the butterfly fluttering its wings and my jaw chopped on each flutter. The knot in my belly moved up into my chest and hit the back of my throat, burning and sizzling. The vomit pushed through into my mouth but I forced my lips shut. The meat marinated in it while I chewed and forced myself to swallow. "Isn't it so tender." Skye asked me. "Yeah, it's delicious." I said. "The Darius wants you to stay with him tonight in his tent. It's really the highest honor," she said. "I have been dreaming of it. It's all part of the Journey to the Light." I said. "Exactly. I am glad you understand that." Skye said. --- Sophia Arc had just finished her first pain meditation. She lay in the living space, her hands on her forehead as she attempted to catch her breath. Her eyes watered from the choking. It was similar to some police force training she once had but she was in more shock this time around. "It's exhilarating, right?" Cyrus asked. Sophia thought about Charlotte. She tightened up. "That was amazing," she said through a slight moan. "I'm glad you are fitting in so fast. We need new members to learn quickly. We will have our Ceremony of The Free soon so we'll need everyone ready for that." "What's that?" Sophia asked. "It's when we reach The Light, full enlightenment. The truth of everything." said Cyrus. "And what's the truth?" "That's exactly what we're going to find out. Since you did so well with pain meditation, you will enter The Love room tonight. I will be your mentor," Cyrus said. "The Love Room." Sophia gave a nod. "The deepest expression of love and compassion. The core of our practice." --- "Penelope has created the perfect feast for our Ceremony of The Free. We will hold this ceremony in a few days and all of Freedom House will partake. It will be our entrance to The Light as one. During the ceremony we will eat one last special meal. Penelope has created a sacred sauce that the meat will marinate in for twenty-four hours. I will bless the sauce and all of Freedom House will eat it together. We will show The Darkness that it cannot hurt us. We will complete our journey no matter what tries to get in the way." Everyone cheered. Everyone sang. Everyone danced around the fire. "It's time." Skye put her hand out. "It's time." Cyrus put his hand out to Sophia. I held Skye's hand and walked behind her as she led the way to The Darius's tent. Cyrus led Sophia down the hall and to the door of The Love room. They stopped and Sophia stared at the door. She thought about Charlotte. Skye stopped at the tent entrance. She unzipped the tent and looked at me. I stared into the shadows that waited inside. Cyrus opened the door and Sophia stared into the room, the fluffy white mattress in the center waiting for them. I walked into the tent and Skye zipped it close. Sophia walked in first and Cyrus followed. He turned around, looked down the hallway and then closed the door.