Page 44 of Sin

“Them?” He cocked a brow as he pounced on the word.

I snorted. “My prison guards.”

He stopped walking and turned me to face him. “Do you need me to arrange a prison break? Exactly how many of them are there? You know, so I can plan.”

A wan smile spread across my lips and I opened my mouth to tell him how much I wished he was real so it would be possible for him to rescue me. Instead, he and the paradise beach vanished, leaving me sitting up in the darkness of my room at the penthouse prison.

“Sonofabitch,” I hissed under my breath, smacking the little lamp beside my bed to turn it on. “Cockblocked by my own brain.”

My eyes fell to the cover of the book I’d been working through, now illuminated by a pool of golden light. I picked it up, chuckling at the image featuring a hot blond surfer on a very familiar beach.

“Well, I guess that answers that question.”

Flopping back onto my pillows, I sighed and tried to go back to sleep, hoping to conjure up a vision of Luc once more. As much as I’d loved lusting over his body, it was actually the conversation I wanted more of. I’d gotten used to being alone, my interactions with others mostly conducted through a computer screen. At least they had been until Blackwood. I hadn’t even realized how much I missed that daily dose of socialization until I’d gotten stuck here and it was withheld from me once more.

I craved it, even if my safety required this level of isolation. Lilith would never have arranged this for me if it wasn’t necessary, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t suffering from debilitating loneliness. I’d seen the possibility of a full life with friends and love and everything in between. Then it was snatched away from me.

I wriggled on my pillow, attempting to get comfortable as I let out another sigh. Looked like my dream lover and I had a lotof time to kill. Especially if the grumps holding me hostage got their way and kept me indefinitely.

What they didn’t know wouldn't hurt them.

Right?

Operation PFFN Super Secret Video Correspondence: #2

Static screen blinks to life. Asher Henry appears in camera shot, looking worse for wear. Adjusts camera to get a better angle. Asher sits and leans closer to the camera.

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Asher:Uh, hey out there. Wherever this message finds you, I hope you are safe and doing well. *sighs* I wish I was coming to you with good news today, but I’m not. As you might have guessed, the world isstillending. So you know... not ideal. And if you’ve been living under a rock or off visiting some other realm and my first message hasn’t reached you yet, welcome to the apocalypse. We’ve got fun and games. Actually, no, we don’t.

Asher scrubs a hand over his face.

Asher:*groans*I’ve officially spent too much time with Remi and Kingston. *heavy exhale*Sorry about that.

Asher sits back in his chair and takes a deep breath.

Asher:Okay, listen, I’m not going to beat around the bush. Shit is going down. We’re not just under a looming threat of the end times. We’re living the events now. As of this morning, Victoria Falls, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, mysteriously went dry. I’m talking bone dry. Nothing but cracked earth and dusty silt to remember her by. I’m sure you’ll see reports on the news if you haven’t already. There’s no explanation. At least, not one any scientist will be able to provide.

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Asher:I wish I knew more about what this means, if there are going to be more events like this one, and how much time we have before, you know, everything goes tits up for good. But I don’t. I am one hundred percent confident this is a direct result of the apocalypse. That’s why I’ve called you all in. Some of you have already arrived, but there are a lot more to our ragtag Scooby gang, and we need all hands on deck.

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Remi:Excuuuuse me, ASH-hole. I told you to tell me the next time you were doing one of these. Every news anchor worth his salt has a sexy co-host. That’s me. I’m the sexy co-host.

Asher:*sighs* Did you ever stop and consider that I don’t want a co-host?

Remi:Too bad. I don’t make the rules. Scoot over.

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Remi comes into frame, hoisting a chair. Asher begrudgingly moves to make room.

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