Page 27 of Sinful

Augustus shook his head. “No. Not even them.”

“Why?”

“Our belief system is very complex. It must be learned from a young age.”

Ah. Good old brainwashing.In most cases, it needed to be done when the mind was still infantile and malleable. Easier to condition.

“I see.” I rubbed my neck. “I have another question, but you might find it offensive.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing I haven’t heard before,” Augustus replied, eyes never wavering from my face.

“There were nine founding families, if I remember correctly. But your population has grown substantially since then. How—”

He cut me off, holding up a palm. “You want to know how we avoid inbreeding,” he said bluntly. “Due to the birth defects it can result in.”

“Yes.”

“Our founding families knew that could be an issue down the line, because their numbers were so few,” he said. “Because of that, we have always taken great pains to arrange marriages with close attention to bloodline. As a result, we’ve managed to avoid inbreeding. No cousins marrying cousins, or anything like that.”

“Hm. Okay.”

Augustus smiled again. “Any other pressing questions before we return to the tavern?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”

He clapped me on the back and ushered me out of the church.

“Actually, I just thought of something,” I said when we reached the path outside. “I’m curious about something you told me earlier.”

Augustus glanced at me, brows rising. “What is it?”

“You said something about Rosamund being one of the most important women who ever lived.”

“Ah. I was quite vague, wasn’t I?” he said, eyes flashing with amusement. “My Rosamund is one of our most important celestial virgins.”

It was lucky I wasn’t drinking anything as he spoke, because I would’ve fucking choked on it if I was.

“What?” I said, forehead wrinkling. “Did you say celestial virgin?”

“That’s right.”

Holy fuck.Suddenly the whole bit about Rosamund being permanently unmarried made perfect sense. She was a virgin. A real-life, untouched, bona fidevirgin.

My day just kept getting better and better. It was one thing to defile someone’s daughter under any circumstances, but their innocent virginal daughter? Another thing entirely.

“What exactly is a celestial virgin?” I asked, brows knitting as I painstakingly hid my glee over the revelation.

Augustus twisted his lips. “It’s a long story,” he said. “Why don’t I let Rosamund tell you about it at the feast tonight? She could do with a friend to talk to.”

“Why’s that?”

“She’s well-liked and respected in our town, but despite that, she’s always been a bit of a loner. Off in her own world half the time. Especially these last few years, since she started having visions,” he replied. “But I think she’d be happy to have someone new to talk to. Especially someone from the outside world. I believe she’s been curious about it lately.”

Jesus.This was going to be like shooting fish in a barrel. He was practically throwing his daughter at me.

“Well, I’d certainly be happy to talk to her,” I said, nodding slowly. “You don’t mind?”

“Of course not. It might even be better for you to hear about our way of life from her or other community members. After all, I am the governor. It’s my job to make everything sound good, isn’t it?”

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