Page 9 of Obsession

We walked in silence until we reached the edge of the forest.

“That’s my house. The one with the blue fence. It should be brown like the rest, but it’s not.”

Alex halted at the edge of the forest, his body rigid. “You have to go the rest of the way by yourself, Maggie. I can’t go past here.”

I didn’t want to say goodbye. Alex was friendly, and it was rare to meet nice boys. The only other kind one I knew was my stepbrother, Johannes. “Will I ever see you again?”

“I hope so, Maggie. But if you ever get lost, I’ll find you.”

“Alex?”

He steps closer until no space remains between us. I attempt to fill my lungs with air. I never thought I’d see the stranger from the woods again, even though I thought about him from time to time. About the possibilities life may have held if I’d been born anywhere but within the confines of The Covenant. I thought Alex and my time in the forest was a dream, an illusion I made up. Some imaginary place my mind conjured to escape.

“I always told you I’d find you if you got lost, Maggie. I kept my promise.”

CHAPTER 6

Xander

Obsession is a wild emotion because you can’t rein it in no matter what you do. Obsession has ruined empires, created religions, and fueled massacres. My first experience with the affliction was when I discovered dark truths about my lineage. My second experience was gifted to me by the two people standing before me.

I should’ve hated everything about them—they ruined my mother—but I can’t bring myself to. Besides, the sins of the father—or mother—aren’t inherited. Unlike The Covenant, I don’t believe in the generational bullshit that creates a caste system. A system that holds people down and removes all hope. Even if the system was beneficial to Hans, it sure as fuck wasn’t for Margarete. She turned my need for retribution into a fight for salvation.

Margarete has no clue about the sinister plans for her existence. She was an innocent child born into and caged in a precarious situation. I watched over her, witnessing her transformation into a woman with a sweet disposition and a free spirit.

I watched through windows and the shadows of trees as her melancholy grew daily and her hope vanished hourly. I couldnever describe the sorrow lodged in my heart at the sadness of her predicament.

At first, I used Hans to get closer to her, to unearth information about The Covenant. But then he also buried himself in corners of my heart I thought were long deceased.

“You know each other?” Johannes asks, interrupting our reunion and my revelry.

Maggie drags her gaze from me to look at him. “I wouldn’t say we know each other. More like we met once upon a time.”

An odd pain tightens my chest at her words. “She doesn’t know me,” I whisper, “but I know her.”

I glance from her pretty face to Johannes' handsome one. They would’ve made a beautiful couple if The Covenant had allowed them to choose each other. And I would’ve stayed away, believing her to be in good hands. Unlike the many men in their community, Hans has always exhibited his love for her. Observing them, I know Hans would place her and their offspring above the church and its demands. I think that’s my biggest issue with religion as a whole: how the members sacrifice their children for fairytales and promises. I could never give up my child for the wants of perverted old men.

I stood in the shadows, shrouded by the tree's twisted branches. They couldn’t see me, but I had a perfect view of them.

Over the years, I’d watched Maggie’s relationship with Hans blossom. From mischievous children to determined pre-teens to young lovers.

Since Maggie turned eighteen a few months ago, they’d taken their relationship to new heights. I shut my eyes, going throughthe regular ritual of convincing myself that my stalking wasn’t perverse. I’d never crossed the line, nor had my feelings ever delved into perverted fantasy. I’d never wanted to be anything other than a protector. But during the last two weeks, I’d regarded them differently.

My gaze moved to Hans’ face, knowing that his lust-filled eyes mirrored mine. Did this make me an animal? I’d watched over this woman since she was a child, yet there I was, my body revealing the evidence of my carnal desire.

“Hans, we can’t go too far. They’ll expect me to bleed on my wedding night.” Maggie’s words were laced with passion, desire, and fear.

My eyes shot open, and I was instantly prepared to fight. From what I’d learned, Hans was nothing like the others in The Covenant. He was a good man, respectful to women and kind to children. But he was still bound to a patriarchal system of religious indoctrination. Men raised to reign supreme in a tyranny didn’t care about the feelings of those they deemed subordinates if it meant they had to temper their desire.

My hands formed fists as I moved toward them, resolved to protect Maggie by whatever means necessary.

Hans’ words halted me. “I’ll never do anything to put you in harm’s way, Margarete. And I’ll die before I allow anyone to hurt you. The only comfort I need is to hold and be held by you because I’m certain the only paradise I’ll ever experience in this life and the next is in your embrace.”

My shoulders relaxed and I filled my lungs with a deep breath. My instincts were good. I needed to trust them. Hans wouldn’t hurt her.

“What if I want more? What if I want my first touch from a man to be filled with love? Does that make me wanton, Hans? Am I sinful to long for more than I was created for?”

My heart ached at the sorrow in her voice and the cruelty of the world forced upon her. It took every ounce of control I could muster not to run to her. To tell her the possibilities were endless for her. I wanted to demand she leave with me so I could show her she didn’t need to abide by the rules of an unjust prison lacking the vision to see the magnitude of her essence. At that moment, I wanted to fall to my knees and beg her to save herself. Beg her to allow me to set her free. But emancipation could not be forced upon the unwilling. Indoctrination ran deep, and even when society worked against those bound to it, there were those who ignored the evidence to cling to a shred of improbable hope.

---