SinfulTruth

by Regina Cole

  I shut my eyes against the raw memories. Harold and Rafe enjoyed making me pay for trespassing. Never mind this had once been my home.

  Sunlight pierced my eyes as the wooden door creaked open. I winced and turned away.

  “I thought you’d have passed out by now, girl.” Harold laughed, an ugly barking sound. “Guess we’ll have to do this the other way.”

  “What are you doing to me?” I rasped, my voice nearly gone from screaming.

  “Just having a little fun before we get what we need.” Harold crouched by a toolbox, flipping open the rust-spotted lid with a metallic clang.

  “What you need. You mean hormones.”

  Harold stilled then rose to his feet. “You don’t know nothing about what we need.”

  I lifted my chin and smiled despite the pain. “I know you need female hormones. Why, Harold? What use are they to you?”

  He kicked my shins, wrenching a gasp of pain from me. “Shut up, you fucking bitch.”

  “Hey, Harold, tell her.” Rafe entered the shed, holding the knife I’d seen him use on a dark night in the woods. God, it felt so long ago. “She’ll be dead in a few minutes and it won’t matter.”

  Harold’s face turned uglier as he glared at Rafe. “It’s no one’s damn business.”

  “She’s just a stupid cunt. Don’t worry about it.”

  Rafe pressed the cold tip of the knife beneath my chin. I barely dared to breathe as a tiny sting pricked my skin.

  “Bryerly, we are the hosts of the children of Set. You’re actually part of something bigger than yourself. By your death, you’ll be supporting the next generation of gods.”

  I blinked slowly, mindful of the knifepoint beneath my jaw. “What?”

  Rafe smiled and rubbed my cheek almost tenderly. “Set should have been king, not Osiris. When Set was banned from the underworld, he spread his children across the world to create an army. The first child here chose Harold and Set told him how to keep his symbiote alive.

  “It’s right that we have you too. After all, your mother was the first to give Harold the ability to host. We all were blessed after him because of that. It was sheer luck that she was nearby and weak enough to allow him to feed.”

  My world dimmed around the edges. “My mother?” I stared at Rafe, trying to make some sense of it all. Verum’s gift-curse took over then and showed me something I didn’t want to see.

  The day my mother died, I’d known things were bad. I hadn’t wanted to hear the arguments, to see the pain in my mother’s eyes. I’d left. Because I left, she’d been the easiest one for Harold to take. Because she died, these monsters survived. Because they lived and spawned into others, more and more women were tortured and killed. All because of my selfishness.

  Bitter tears tracked down my cheeks. All of this is my fault.

  Harold scowled and jostled Rafe’s arm, sending the point of the knife deeper. I cried out, the pain in my skin not even coming close to the agony in my heart.

  “Shut up and do it already. We’ve gone too long without the hormones now. If we don’t ingest some soon, we’ll die and they’ll seek new hosts.”

  Rafe removed the point of the knife with a regretful sigh. “It seems wrong that no one knows about how powerful we are.”

  Harold smiled, his eyes turning oddly tender as he stroked Rafe’s hair. “They will soon, son. They will. Now get this done.”

  Rafe nodded then plunged the knife between my ribs.

  A shocked gasp escaped me. The blade of the knife was within me, so cold and alien. A hot gush of blood soaked my shirt. The edges of my vision went dark.

  “Hurry up, Rafe.” Harold’s voice was deeper now, with an odd echo. It didn’t sound like Harold anymore. “I need them. Hurry.”

  The knife dragged down the center of my belly, separating my flesh with a burning agony. I tried to scream but there was no air in my lungs. Only blood.

  “More, Rafe. Open her more. I need it.”

  An otherworldly growl filled my ears. I blinked but I couldn’t see. Everything was dark. Blood bubbled up into my mouth. Claws grabbed at my belly, ripping and tearing.

  My bloody lips formed a single word. “Verum.”

  Chapter Nine

  Even through the pain, I knew he had come.

  “Bryerly, no.” Verum’s voice was agonized, sadness and rage tingeing his words. I thought I felt him brush my cheek.

  I couldn’t speak but I thought the words to him—Verum, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I don’t want to die with you thinking I hate you. I don’t.

  “I know.” His lips pressed to my forehead, his breath warm on my skin. “Hold on.”

  Cool, silvery water splashed my face, my throat, the burning wounds on my abdomen. With a cry, I opened my lids.

  Verum’s white eyes were nearly blind with fury. He’d torn Harold away, throwing him up against the shed wall. His hands closed around Rafe’s throat and he wrenched him to the ground before turning to me.

  “Verum,” I whispered, tears streaming down my cheeks. He untied the bonds on my wrists and ankles, gathering me close to his chest when I would have collapsed to the ground.

  “I cannot do more,” he rasped into my ear. I clutched at the strong shoulders beneath his robe, trying to assure myself he was really there. “I will suffer for what I’ve done already.”

  “Let me take your place.”

  He jerked away, searching my face with questioning eyes. “What?”

  “Tell Ma’at that I’ll be the Truth Keeper from now on. Tell her to release you. You’ve paid for your crimes and then some. You’ve saved me and the least I can do is free you of your curse. Besides, I’ve done a lot worse than lie to protect someone I love.” I bit my lip in shame.

  Harold groaned from across the shed and began stumbling to his feet.

  I gripped Verum’s robes, looking up into his face. “Please.”

  “You’ll pay for that,” Harold spat at Verum. “You’ve taken our nourishment. You fucking idiot, you’re going to die now.”

  Verum turned away. “There are some truths I will not suffer in silence.”

  My lover’s body shimmered around the edges, white light emanating from his form. He wavered, almost like a TV screen going bad.

  “No!” I lunged forward, trying to grab at Verum’s robes, but they dissipated from between my fingers like so much smoke.

  I sank to my knees, watching, disbelieving as he completely disappeared.

  Rafe stood, Harold behind him. Together they came toward me, bloody knives drawn. I shrank to the wall, certain this time there’d be no rescue.

  The explosion of light stunned us all. And there, at its heart, stood Verum with Ma’at’s purple orb held high. Without a word, he threw the fiercely glowing orb to me.

  I caught it and leapt to my feet, energy shooting through my veins. Raw power soaked my palms where my skin touched the orb and I channeled it gratefully.

  Harold’s face, which had been a mask of rage only a second before, turned white with fear. I advanced on him and Rafe, holding the orb before me.

  “You and Set’s children can burn in hell.” With a scream that seemed to come from the pit of my soul, I pulled all the power from the orb I could, jetting it at the two who had tried to kill me. Bolts of blue-white light shot like lasers.

  My bullets hadn’t harmed them but the magical energy from Ma’at’s orb had no trouble. Again and again, I drew the power from the orb, launching it at Rafe and Harold. It sliced through their flesh, over and over, blood spraying like fountains from their bodies.

  Rafe fell first then Harold. The door to the shed flew open and other men charged me. Davis. Ronald. Larry. Two others I didn’t know. I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. For that grocery store clerk in the woods. For Donna. For that nameless woman in Rafe’s bedroom. For Crystal. For the mother I’d abandoned. And then, for me.

  When their corpses were only ribbons of destroyed flesh, charred and bloody, I let the orb fall from my fin
gers. It thunked to the blood-soaked floorboards of the shed, its center light shining dimly.

  “Bryerly,” Verum whispered, pulling me into his arms. I collapsed in sobs against his broad chest.

  “Did you know?” My voice was ragged with tears. “About Set?”

  “The truth is my curse. You know of my burden.” He rubbed my back gently, almost lovingly.

  “You had the orb all along,” I choked out in a last-ditch effort to fight his tenderness and the feelings threatening to overtake me. “Why didn’t you stop them if you knew?”

  “The orb is my prison, not my weapon. I cannot interfere.” He lowered his head to mine and said against my hair, “But I could not let you die.”

  I sank into him, letting my eyes slide closed as I fell into a deep, healing sleep.

  I woke in Verum’s bedchamber. Reality was a foreign concept. Had any of that happened? Was I dreaming or crazy or both? Where was my lover? I blinked slowly, trying to focus in the dim, flickering firelight. When I sat up, cool air brushed my bare torso. Suddenly panicked, I looked down at my abdomen.

  “You are well.” Verum stood, crossing over to the edge of the bed where I sat examining my now-unharmed skin.

  “How?” I looked up at him even though I knew the answer.

  “The water of the temple.”

  I shook my head. “Why? I told you I hated you. It was my fault I got caught in the first place. Why would you save me when I was such a stupid bitch?”

  He cupped my cheek, his white eyes almost burning me as they stared into mine. “Because, my love, I know the truth.”

  With those words, a twist set up in my heart. I swallowed hard. “What truth?”

  Instead of speaking, he bent and kissed me.

  His hands on my body were tender instead of hungry this time. His mouth on mine was soft, pleasingly teasing and exquisitely tender. I let my fingers run beneath his robe, reveling in the smooth, bare muscles.

  He stretched full-length atop me and tangled his fingers in my now-clean hair. The life that had nearly been ripped from me was still there and I needed to celebrate in the most primal way. I ached for him worse than I ever had before. Arching my spine, I tried to push my breasts closer to him.

  Take me, I begged silently. All of me. I’m yours. He relented to my silent plea by removing his robe and pressing his body to mine. I sighed against his lips when his chest touched my own.

  Each time we’d had sex before, it had been wild. Almost dangerously intense. After all, kinky sex with a perfect stranger was thrilling. But this? Verum’s hands played my body with familiarity and a gentleness that moved me to tears. The shame that had nearly destroyed me dissipated in the sweet motion of his lips on mine. I rubbed the smooth skin of his head as his beard tickled the skin of my nipples.

  “Verum?” My voice came out thin and shaky.

  He lifted his head, odd white eyes soft. “Yes?”

  I swallowed hard and pushed him away. “You don’t want to do this. You don’t know what I’ve done. It’s my fault all those women were killed and Set’s children…”

  A long brown finger pressed my lips, silencing me. “Love, I am the Truth Keeper. I’ve known everything you’ve done all along. You hold no more blame than any other.”

  His fingertip was calloused on my soft lips. I kissed it then moved it away. “Why did you call me love?”

  He only smiled and I knew.

  His body covered me again, touching me from mouth to toes. Our breaths mingled and our skin burned. His muscled back, tight ass and strong legs felt so good to me. I didn’t let my brain try to process what was really happening between us. It was too new, too fragile and beautiful to wrap my mind around.

  He delved between my legs, sliding deftly between the damp folds of my pussy. Lifting his head an inch or two, he smiled. “Are you ready, my love?”

  “Yes,” I whispered and brought his head down to me as his cock entered me.

  He took my gasp into his mouth and his tongue and hips matched in rhythm as he fucked me, slowly and sweetly. My tongue danced with his and my body greedily drank his in. It was right, so very right.

  Our rhythm quickened slightly but Verum’s mouth never left mine. He grew harder within me, his thick length still stretching me, a possession that made me throb in anticipation.

  He loved me for a long while, nipping kisses on my lips, hands wandering over my pale skin, fingers tweaking my hardened nipples. I gave as good as I got, trying to show him through gentle caresses and soft kisses the words my brain wouldn’t let me say.

  When it became too much for either of us to bear, Verum braced his torso on his elbows. I looked up into his eyes as his body quickened in rhythm. Hotter and faster, he thrust, the loving heat he’d built in my belly stoked into a blazing inferno.

  “Touch yourself,” he groaned as his cock throbbed hard within me. I obeyed, reaching between us to cover the hard little nub between my legs.

  “Verum!” I cried as the orgasm began to crash over me. His cock twitched and jerked as he poured his heat into me, over and over and over again.

  His arms gave out and he lay atop me. I buried my face in the crook of his shoulder, riding out the intense feelings. Nothing like this had ever happened to me before. I’d never belonged to anyone as completely as I did to Verum, my white-eyed, dark-skinned lover. Nothing about this was normal but I couldn’t convince myself that Verum was anything but my life, my future and my happiness. I shuddered, clutching at his shoulders with an almost desperate grip.

  An echoing, feminine voice robbed me of the peace Verum had brought. “Rise, Truth Keeper.”

  The voice, double-timbred and otherworldly, could only belong to a powerful being. It had to be the goddess Ma’at. A heavy sigh blew from Verum and after brushing a kiss on my lips, he stood to face his jailer. Drawing the silky sheet over my nudity, I peered at the deity from behind him.

  She was tall, at least seven feet, with flowing, straight, jet-black hair. Her luminous skin was a shade lighter than Verum’s but still much darker than my own. The most incredible thing about her, though, was her wings. As black as her hair, with small streaks of turquoise and cerulean, they were truly awe-inspiring.

  Her serious voice broke the spell her beauty held over me. “You have more to answer for, Verum.”

  My lover hung his head, kneeling before the goddess. “I apologize. I know I am to witness, not interfere. I will accept any punishment you give.”

  For a moment, I hesitated. In that tiny split second, I was the same old Bryerly. The one who avoided trouble, who hated conflict, who let bad things happen because she was afraid.

  But then that second passed. I knew the truth now. And it had set me free.

  I stood, dropping the sheet. The stones were cold against my bare feet but I ignored the slight discomfort, stepping between my kneeling lover and the goddess before speaking in a clear, sure voice. “No. Ma’at, I am responsible. Verum has more than paid for his lie. Make me the Truth Keeper instead. He doesn’t deserve to suffer a moment longer.”

  “No,” Verum roared, leaping to his feet.

  I ignored him, my hands fisting at my sides as I stared up at the beautiful goddess. “I am the one who should pay.”

  Ma’at looked at me, her eyes as dark as Verum’s were light. A strange expression crossed her face but then she smiled. “Very well. Your burden shall be shared, from now to eternity.”

  With a wave of her hand, a weight settled on my shoulders, staggering me, nearly felling me. But then Verum caught me. I stood upright and faced my fate.

  “Bide your time well, my Keepers.” Ma’at bent low and brushed a kiss across Verum’s forehead and then mine. A searing white pain went across my eyes and she was gone.

  Verum turned me to him and he held me close. “You should not have done that. It was not your burden to bear.”

  I pulled away to look up at him, knowing my eyes were as white as his now. “I had to, Verum. I love you. I’ll be by your si
de forever now.”

  I pulled his head down and he took my lips in a kiss that was both sad and thrilled at the same time.

  The Truth I’d feared so long was now mine for eternity. But a burden this massive could be carried, as long as Verum was there to stand by my side.

  About the Author

  Regina Cole, lover of manly muscled arms, chest hair and mini-marshmallows, has been reading romance since her early teens. While she adores a love story of any heat level, she’s been drawn to the erotic side and is loving every minute.

  When she’s not frantically pounding away at the keyboard, she can be found fishing with her family, playing with her dogs, trying out strange new recipes or snuggling with her hubby.

  Regina welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

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