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Of course he didn’t.
Hawk said the club would clean it up.
I couldn’t help but smirk, the worry on his face fueling me. “He came for my family.”
He slammed his cane against the floor. “Where is he?”
“Hopefully inhell,” I spat, inching closer to him. “Since I stabbed him with my kitchen knife.”
Some bastard forced their feet into the back of my knees so they buckled, and pain shot through my legs as I hit the floor.
Urgent whispers filled the silence, the men in hoods turning to each other, their heads down, their hands moving frantically while their prophet stood there, his hands trembling as he shook his head.
“Prophet Andrew,” one of them finally said loudly, stepping out of line and lowering his hood. The old man shot the younger man a dark glare.
“William, be careful with your words,” Prophet Andrew hissed.
William nodded. “We are concerned that this woman is not fit to carry the chosen child.”
Wait, what?My heart skipped, feeling as though for a second it was going to stop completely. The bed. The shackles. The candles.
“She is a deviant. Even if you create a chosen child with her, are you sure our Lord would accept it?”
“Create a child,” I rasped, clambering to my feet and taking several steps back before hands grabbed me, pinching my arms while something hard was driven into my back, forcing the air from my lungs and causing me to hit the floor, face down.
This couldnotbe happening.
I fought for each breath, my head span, and my heart pumped so hard that my blood whooshed in my ears.
“You are right,” Prophet Andrew agreed, and his cane tapped on the floor as he walked toward me. “We will test her.” He pushed his cane into my shoulder, digging in hard under my collarbone until I let out a pained groan and rolled onto my back to try and escape the torment. “Get my snakes.”
Snakes. If their bite killed you, you weren’t worthy. If you survived, God had a plan for you. Want to take a guess at how many people survived?
I could hear Hawk’s voice in my head.
The story he told me about his scars.
“If you are still alive after the snakes have bitten you…” Prophet Andrew announced as he stood over me, “… we will know you are pure enough to bear my child, and they will carry the mark of our savior.”
“You know that’s a lie,” I choked out, still trying to catch my breath as two men crouched beside me, holding me down. “The snake bites will kill me.”
He shrugged. “Then you are not the one who will bring us to our salvation.”
“You mean you’d rather kill me than have to explain to all your people when this doesn’t work. After yourape me,and in nine months, the kid doesn’t have a birthmark.”
“You will stop this blasphemy,” he hissed, slamming the base of his cane into my palm and pressing it hard to the floor, pinning it down.
“Screw you,” I screamed as two men carried in a large glass tank full of sticks and leaves. They placed it on the floor a few feet away, and the gentle movement inside quickly made me want to vomit. Copper-colored skin pressed against the glass for a second before it slithered away, disappearing beneath the foliage again.
A man stood over the tank, pulling on a pair of large, thick gloves before reaching for a metal pole with a hook on the end.
Prophet Andrew grinned down at me. “Bring the sna—”
Bang.
A hard thud shook the floor, and the candles flickered a little with the sudden movement.
The robed men began to whisper loudly, and Prophet Andrew looked around frantically as if waiting for someone to tell him what the hell was happening.
