Page 91 of The Secrets of a Sin

“Good, you’re both awake.” A voice erupts from beyond the forest, and all of a sudden, Annalise pops out of the darkness dressed in an all-white gown. Arsen thrashes the second she comes into view, and all I can do is jerk back in terror.

“What the hell do you want from us?” Arsen snarls as Annalise walks barefoot onto the pad of concrete we’re on and settles herself beside the crumbled staircase. I take in the fifties style nightgown, and suddenly, remember Phoebe and how the night she was found, she was wearing something similar.

“In time, pig.” She spits as two more figures appear from behind us. Verity stalks up to the right side of Annalise as Priscilla takes her left. All three dressed the same. An ominous chill courses through the air.

I glance back over at Arsen, who appears murderous and continues to flail. “What the fuck are you waiting for?” He shouts again, and this time all three focus on him.

“She’s arriving soon.” Annalise grins. “And it would be rude to start without the lady of the night.”

Who is she talking about?

Who’s coming?

“I don’t give a fuck who’s arriving!” He screams violently. “I want to know why we’re tied up in the middle of nowhere.”

Annalise’s jaw ticks, and with a nod of her head, Priscilla struts over to Arsen and stops when she’s directly in front of him. I freeze, watching them, and abruptly Priscilla’s hand lifts and brutally strikes Arsen’s face. The sound resonates through the forest, just like Priscilla’s voice.

“Now, shut the fuck up, and show some respect before I use something more damaging than my hand.”

Arsen remains silent, but you can see his eyes darken to a deadly shade.

“Priscilla.” A feminine voice rings out from the forest, and all eyes focus on the area it came from. Soft crunches are heard from the forest as the stranger gets closer until finally, they make their presence known. “Next time you want to hurt a man, do it where it counts.”

At first, I don’t recognize the older woman as she’s dressed in the same white gown and barefooted, but as she approaches closer. I gasp when I become aware of who it is.

Sister Mary.

Without her habit, she looks entirely different. Her blonde hair is cut short to her shoulders, but it’s the ragged scar on her neck that I notice almost immediately.

“I see you’ve followed my instructions well, ladies.” She leers at the both of us before taking her spot on a small ridge in the concrete, which places her higher than everyone else. All three grin, but I notice that Verity’s isn’t as bright as the other two.

“Aren’t you a little too old to be hanging around teenage girls?” Arsen jokes, but Sister Mary doesn’t even acknowledge his presence. Instead, she raises her chin and meets my eyes.

“She’s our leader, fuck face. Now keep your mouth shut before I come over there and sew it closed.” Priscilla snarls.

What the hell was even going on?

Creepy dresses, eerie candles, scary forest, it all seemed like something out of a horror movie, and we were gonna be the next victims.

“What are you?” I ask on a mumble, and Sister Mary lifts her blonde brow, surprised.

“Why, we’re the Women of God.” She raises her arms in the air and grins wickedly towards the sky.

A devilish tremor shoots down my spine, and I watch in disbelief as Sister Mary meets my gaze again. “It’s our prophecy from God that all women are virtuous, Charlotte.” She speaks as if she’s trying to reach me spiritually. “He converses with me and confessed that his creation of man was an abomination.” She spits. “They were all created evil, but while some are like domesticated animals that can be trained, most are worthless. Just like this one here.” She shrugs towards Arsen, and I stiffen. “He’s the worst I’ve seen in quite some time. Uses and discards women as if they are nothing.” Her eyes connect with his for the first time, and her mood instantly shifts. “He has you right where he wants you, Charlotte. And trust me, he will leave you shattered and broken until you no longer have the vitality to live.”

“You don’t even fucking know me, lady!” Arsen shouts. “Whatever voodoo cult shit you have going on, leave us out of it!”

That only causes them all to chuckle. “Leave you out of it?” Sister Mary laughs. “Arsen Hale, you’ve been involved with us for a very long time now.”

What?

My eyes float to his, but he appears just as confused as I am. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Not directly, of course, but someone else that carries that Hale name.”

Phoebe.

Arsen and I both become eerily silent, and it all fucking clicks.

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