Page 9 of Sinful

I knew she would beg. Cry. Scream. Threaten me. I’d see the wild, trapped-in-hell look in her eyes and hear the pleading tones in her voice every time I came to visit her down here. None of it would change my mind.

One way or another, she’d eventually be forced to give in. Submit herself to me as she shivered under my directives. And when that happened, I’d finally have everything I needed.

Answers.

Justice.

Vengeance.

3

Rose

“Goodbye, Miss Trudeau!”

I waved at the gaggle of students walking toward the schoolhouse door. “Goodbye! Enjoy your weekend!”

When the last of them were gone, I exhaled deeply and leaned back in my chair. I usually loved teaching, but sometimes the work drained the life out of me, leaving me exhausted by the end of the week. This was such a week. My students were preparing for the French exam I’d scheduled for next Wednesday, and they were filled with nervous energy, making many of them irritable and difficult to deal with.

Thankfully, it was Friday, which meant it was time for the usual end-of-week rituals and celebrations. Tomorrow night, the festivities would continue, because both weekend evenings were our ‘fun’ nights before the long and often boring Rite of Communion on Sundays.

I loved those seemingly endless nights. Music, dancing, offerings, storytelling, food, and drinks, all around the bonfire and ritual huts. I only wished I could take part in more of the fun, due to the urges and twinges I often felt when I saw the aspects that were forbidden to a woman like me.

With a sigh, I stood and left the schoolhouse, keeping my chin lifted as I reminded myself of my place in the community. I was a celestial virgin. One of the four blood moon idols, more specifically.

My life had been dedicated to the most sacred of rituals since my birth, and it was a great honor. I needed to remember that. But even though I always tried my best to do just that, I still felt a pang in my stomach when I looked at the other women in Alderwood. A few of them were jealous of me because of the status I was afforded, and they had no idea that I occasionally longed to be them.

Alas, it was not for me. My path was decided for me the moment I was born, taking my mother’s life in the process. I could not allow her sacrifice to be in vain.

“Rosamund?”

A lilting feminine voice called my name, and I turned to see Alice Leclerc hurrying toward me. I lifted a hand in greeting. “Hi, Alice. You can just call me Rose, you know,” I said, smiling warmly.

She offered me a shy smile of her own. Just a few years ago, she was one of my students, so she was probably a little nervous about approaching me. “I was wondering if you could give me some advice,” she said, interlocking her fingers and twiddling her thumbs.

“Of course.”

Alice hesitated, gnawing at her bottom lip. “It’s my first proving ritual tonight,” she finally said in a low voice. “I, um… I wanted to know… well…”

My eyes widened, and I took her arm and pulled her away from the busy main street. “Alice, please don’t tell me you’ve lost your purity,” I said in a harsh, urgent whisper.

Recently, I’d seen her spending a lot of time with a boy her age, and they were often laughing and touching each other’s arms. If they’d done more…

“No! Of course not!” she replied, tone filled with righteous indignation. “My purity is intact.”

I let out a long sigh of relief. “Oh, thank heavens,” I muttered. “Sorry. You gave me a bit of a fright.”

She let out a nervous giggle and tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “No…I’msorry. I find this sort of thing very awkward to talk about,” she said. “I just wanted to know what it’s like, or if there’s anything special I need to do to prepare. I didn’t want to ask my father, and I can’t exactly ask my mother, can I?”

I nodded understandingly. Like me, Alice had been motherless since birth. “You’ll be fine as long as you’ve truly honored your vow of chastity. The test is quite short, and there’s nothing you need to do to prepare beyond ensuring you are clean.” I briefly hesitated and lowered my voice, a small smile playing on my lips. “Unless you really don’t like any of the healers, in which case you are free tonotbathe beforehand.”

Alice giggled again. “Thank you for reassuring me,” she said, shoulders sagging with relief. A question appeared in her eyes, and her head tilted slightly to the side. “What happens to celestial virgins who fail to maintain their purity?”

As soon as the words left her lips, a wave of unease washed over me. My mind raced, scrambling for a coherent response while the weight of her gaze bore into me.

I forced a weak smile, hoping it masked the anxiety that her question had stirred within me. “I don’t think that has ever happened, so I’m not sure,” I said. “It’s not something you need to worry about.”

“Really? It’s never happened?” Her eyes widened. “Not once? In all these years?”

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