A Wedding Night Gone Terribly Wrong novel Chapter 378

The old woman pocketed the money. She didn't have a phone, she explained, but her husband did.

Seth retreated back to the cornstalks, peeking his face through to meet his sister's wide eyes.

"Annie."

"I'm here."

"The lady says she can take us to her house and we can use her husband's phone to call Mommy."

Annelise pushed the stalks aside, revealing half her little face. "Is she safe?"

Seth's gaze was heavy with calculation beyond his years. "She seems like a simple country lady."

"Okay."

Annelise crawled out. Seth helped her up, brushed the dirt from her hands, and held onto her tightly. The old woman loaded bundles of dried stalks into her basket and led them away.

After a ten-minute walk, a small mud-brick house emerged from the shadows of a bamboo grove. The woman pushed open a broken wooden gate.

"My husband went into the village. He's not back yet," she said, opening a chipped rice cooker. "I'll give you something to eat first."

She scooped out bowls of sweet potato porridge and handed them wooden spoons.

"I want to wash my hands," Annelise said, holding up her grubby palms.

The woman brought over a red plastic basin with barely an inch of water inside. When Annelise finished washing, the water had turned pitch black. Seth looked at his sister's smudged face, then at the filthy water, his brows furrowing.

The porridge was mushy and sweet. Annelise opened her mouth, fed herself a spoonful, and swallowed it without even needing to chew. Seth forced down a second bowl, filling it himself. He set his bowl down and tilted his head at his sister. "You should eat more."

Annelise patted her small tummy. "I'm full."

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