Page 219 of Sins of the Hidden

"I'm not asking." My voice broke, but I pushed through. "I've already had my happily ever after. I want you to have yours."

"B-but?—"

"Promise me," I whispered, gripping her skeletal hand tighter. "Promise me you'll run when they come."

Callista stared at me through her tears, those sapphire eyes seeing something in my face that made her breath catch. Her platinum hair fell like a curtain around us, creating a moment of sanctuary in this hellish place. Slowly, like it cost her everything, she nodded. "I p-promise."

The door creaked open. Both of us flinched, our bodies instinctively curling smaller. Callista's eyes widened in terror as she scrambled back, pressing herself against the wall like she could disappear into the rotting wood. She folded in on herself, becoming smaller, more fragile, like a flower trying to close before a storm.

A man stood in the doorway—thick, brutal, with small eyes that crawled over Callista. His expression was worse than his scowl, predatory and patient.

"Callista." I watched her body tremble before going unnaturally frozen, like prey freezing in a predator's sights. Every instinct she had was screaming at her to run, but years of conditioning kept her rooted in place. "Our session was cut short the other day. I'm here to collect."

Callista's face went even paler, if that was possible. "L-Levi w-we cannot." Her voice quavered like a broken string, each word stuttered through terror. "We have a n-non-believing witness."

His gaze flicked to me dismissively, then back to Callista with renewed hunger. "She's half-dead anyway. Won't matter what she sees." He took a step closer, and Callista flinched backward until her spine hit the wall. "Besides, God rewards the faithful. He won't begrudge me what's mine."

"P-please," Callista whispered, her skeletal hands pressed flat against the rotting wood behind her. "Not... not in front of her."

"You don't get to make requests," he said, voice dropping to something dark and possessive. "You belong to us. To me, when I want you." Another step closer. "And I want you now."

His thick fingers reached for the ties of her dress. She was shaking so hard I could hear her teeth chattering. A loose board jutted from the wall beside me, probably loosened by years of neglect.

Something inside me snapped.

I lunged, wrenching the board free with my good hand and bringing it down on the back of his skull with every ounce of strength I had left. The impact sent shockwaves up my arm—wood connecting with bone in a wet, satisfying crack.

Callista's scream shattered the air as he collapsed to his knees.

He groaned, fingers probing the back of his head. They came away slick. I stood over him, swaying on my feet, watching his pale skin grow paler. His eyes found mine, hatred and disbelief burning in them as he tried to push himself up.

I swung again. The board whistled through the air, connecting with his temple with a sound like a watermelon hitting pavement. He tried to crawl away, fingers scrabbling across the floor. I followed, my bare feet slipping on the wet floorboards.

The next blow caught him in the face, crushing his nose with a wet crunch. My grip tightened on the splintered wood.

I straddled his back, raising the board high overhead with both hands, ignoring the screaming pain in my amputated finger. His fingers clawed at the floor, trying to drag himself toward the door. The metallic scent grew thick enough to choke on as his struggles grew weaker, more desperate, until they stopped altogether.

I didn't stop until there was nothing left but pulp and bone fragments scattered across the floor like grotesque confetti. My arms ached, muscles burning from the effort.

The board slipped from my nerveless fingers, landing with a wet thud beside what used to be a human being. I staggered back, my legs threatening to give out beneath me. Bile burned my throat as reality crashed back like a wave.

I'd never been violent before. Never imagined I could do something like this.

"Y-You..." Callista was shaking so hard her teeth chattered, eyes fixed on the destruction I'd wrought. "You killed him."

"I-I..." The words caught in my throat as bile rose instead. I doubled over, vomiting until there was nothing left but dry heaves that tore at my already destroyed throat. My entire body trembled, shock setting in as the adrenaline drained away.

I grabbed Callista's arm with my good hand, smearing gore across her pale skin. "You have to run," I gasped, the words urgent despite my ruined voice. "Now. Before they come back."

Her sapphire eyes widened in terror and confusion. "Run? Where would I?—"

"Find the Unforgiven Souls MC," I interrupted, my grip tightening on her arm. "In Diamond Ridge. Ask for V—my husband. Or my dad, Law. Tell them what happened here. Tell them where I am." I was speaking too fast, words tumbling over each other in my desperation to save her. "They'll help you. Even if it's too late for me."

"I cannot leave you," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "They will kill you."

"And they'll kill you too if you stay." I pulled her toward the back window, my mutilated hand leaving prints on her dress. "Please, Callista. This is your chance. Your only chance."

Heavy footsteps echoed from outside—multiple sets, moving fast.

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