I started to say something then stopped.

The Leader’s eyes sparkled. “Speak. There’s nothing you can say that will offend me.”

The words flew from my mouth, moving more quickly than Joel’s excited-wings. “I don’t like this at all. You’re leaving. You won’t be the Leader anymore, and somebody else will be in your place. You’re the Leader who led me outside. I don’t want to follow anyone else.”

The Leader’s eyes traveled away from me and looked into the distance. “You love the ocean, don’t you? Have you noticed the tides, the way the moon pulls the water forward and backward in a never-ending rhythm? There are tides among people, too, times when love and the protection of sanctity are needed most, times that call...

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