Page 173 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

“What about the dead guy? How are they taking his body out? Are they etching a rune on his body?”

I shake my head.

“The dead are taken to the morgue and placed in a special wooden coffin that has the runes etched inside. And if we don’t find another way to leave, that’s going to be our fate, too.”

“Not necessarily,” he comments.

I raise a brow.

“I have an idea.” He smiles sheepishly. “And this”—he holds up the key—“will help us.”

“Let me guess. Another stupid idea that will put your life in danger. No, thank you.”

He tilts his head to the side as he regards me.

“My life? Only mine? You don’t have powers, remember?”

“I still likely won’t die. But you can. And I’m not about to stand by and watch you die.”

His lips curl up, his features lighting up.

“So you do care for me. At least a little.”

“You’re impossible,” I mumble and look away.

Suddenly, though, his expression changes.

“There are worse things than death, Minnie. They might not kill you, but they can certainly do other things.”

“By other things you mean…”

He grabs my chin and turns me to him.

“Rape. Yes. You saw how he looked at you. I wanted to gouge his eyes out for the mere fact that he dared to look at you.”

“They can’t. Rape isn’t allowed,” I protest. “We have very stringent rules and the higher-ups would never condone that.”

He lets out a dry laugh.

“Is that what you think? Ah, Minnie, you’re much more naive than I thought.”

“I’m not naive.”

“Idealistic then. You think your rules mean anything when there’s no one watching?”

“But—”

“I wager if they can kill a defenseless man, they can very well rape a woman, too.”

“No, that’s… It can’t be.”

“Men will be men, no matter what world they’re in.”

I nibble on my lip. He does have a point. And though I still don’t believe any militia or military personnel would engage in that, I don’t want to risk it.

“So what’s your great idea then?”

“Simple. We get out of here and head to the morgue. We find an empty coffin and that’s our way out of here.”

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