Page 96 of Forbidden Flesh

His gaze glides over me and says, “Everywhere. I fucked you everywhere for hours.”

“And what about Rose?”

He sighs. “Rose is your biological sister, but the sister she thinks graduated died.”

My heart breaks. “How?”

“She was in a car accident with her parents, and none of them survived.”

“How did she get into Kenyan, and how is Rose my sister?”

“Your mother had two girls. CPS took you both after she abandoned you. I tracked Rose for you because she is your only living family, and I got her a scholarship after she applied ten times when she was seventeen. Rose has an ugly past, Melody. She was sent to foster care and then got a break with a family, but they all died on a trip to visit her here. Rose was adopted like you were, but in her case, it happened twice. The sister Rose thinks she graduated, died, and she was sent to foster care at seventeen.”

“Who adopted Rose? The second time?”

“Garret’s family.”

That is why she hated Garret. She thinks he was with her sister when his family adopted her.”

“Why Garret?”

“Do you have a better option?”

“His parents do whatever he asks. He asked to help a girl in trouble, and they agreed.”

“She’s sick.”

He nods. “Yes, baby. I love you too much to leave her out there all alone like that.”

“Thank you,” I say softly.

“I think a part of her inside is drawn to you. She loves you, even if she doesn’t realize it.”

I look down at our hands. “What about Zack and Sam?”

“What do you mean?”

“Where are they?”

He pulls out his phone and hands it to me.

The article reads: There is a heightened police presence in Ohio. Two Ohio students were found decapitated in their car, with their bodies sitting on the hood of the car outside a frat party house with two red Solo cups with HE DID IT written in blood on the windshield. They discovered their heads in the front seat, their eyes severed.

The killer is still at large. Homicide detectives are now calling it a serial killing. The serial killer is targeting college football players. They have no leads, but students are strongly urged to stay vigilant.

I hand it back. “Was it…?”

“You didn’t think me and my little brother were going to let it go, did you?”

Under the grand arches of the church, the air hummed with softness, and the voice of Lana Del Ray’s “Say Yes to Heaven” played like an ancient organ.

Stained glass windows, alive with vivid hues of sapphire and crimson, cast a kaleidoscopic light across the stone floor. Between the towering pillars, the guests stand. My parents and Valen’s father. My brother and the rest of the founding fathers of the Order.

At the end of the long, petal-strewn aisle stood the altar, bathed in the ethereal glow of candlelight. The shadows flickered and danced, creating a ballet of darkness and light on the ancient walls. Above, the vaulted ceiling soared, whispering echoes of the lyrics as I walked down the aisle.

Valen stands with pride, donned in an elegantly tailored suit of midnight velvet. Azriel stands beside him as the best man.

A hush falls upon the crowd as I take off my gown, which is completely inside a masterpiece of lace and whispers of tulle, trailing me like a silvery mist. My veil, a delicate web of the finest silk, barely conceals the excitement and love in my eyes. With each step, the echo of my heels on the stone sings in rhythm.

The priest stands, with a voice both clear and reverent, as he begins. My husband, breaking tradition, lifts the veil and places a soft kiss on my lips, a seal of love and a promise of forever. The applause renders the priest speechless for a minute.

When it’s our Valen’s turn to say our vows, He clears his throat with my ring on the tip of my finger. He looks at me with his eyes glistening and begins, “In the quiet shadows of our solitude, we found each other, seeking the part of us that was missing. I vow to be the keeper of your secrets and the partner of your soul. I vow to love you beyond the final breath of stars, in the spaces where darkness whispers its truth. When night falls and the world sleeps, you are my love, and I promise to love every part of you. Where you forget, I’ll remember for us both. If you get lost, I promise to bring you back so I can love you harder and longer until we both rest peacefully on earth.” He slides the ring the rest of the way. “Forever in your embrace.”

My eyes blur. “I do,” I say with a smile. “I love you, Valen Vikiar, with everything that I am. Every part of me is yours forever.”

THE END

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