#Chapter 55: Out of Place

Moana The drive to the gala was quiet. Ella was too busy fiddling with the beads on her dress to talk much, and Edrick made no attempts at holding a conversation with me. I felt self conscious after the way he looked at my belly when I got in the car -- was I already beginning to show signs of being pregnant, or was it only a coincidence? Eventually, the driver pulled up to the curb outside a large stone building with huge marble columns on the front. Edrick told us to wait until the driver came and opened the door, then Ella and I got out first. She held firmly onto my hand as we approached the building, clearly just as nervous as I was. Her nerves only seemed to heighten when we stepped inside and she realized that there were no other children around. “Moana?” Ella whispered, tugging at my dress while giving me big doe eyes. “I don’t like it here.” “I know, love,” I said, pulling her closer. “It’s okay, though. We’ll stick together all night.” Ella nodde