Did he think I would lie? I didn’t think I had ever lied in my entire life. I wasn’t allowed.
“Did you know thatthischurch,yourchurch never purchases anyone at those conventions? They never trade; they only sell. The only time they bring others in is during those auctions, unless, that is, the children of the members have come of age. 6 now. Younger and younger every year. Did you notice that there aren’t many like you here?”
No, because there were. There were girls and boys just like me here. I wasn’t sure how many, but it wasn’t a small amount. They were simply given more freedoms. They spoke, looked people in the eye if the time called for it, but they were just like me. The Leaders just hadn’t taken favor in them like they did me, so their owners had more say in what they did.
I’ve heard that some have even become Pillars. Even now, I didn’t think I would ever choose to be a Pillar, but I had my doubts I would ever be given that choice anyway.
Azrael was quiet. “You’re smart—”
Was I?
“—you would have seen it, so what have I missed?”
He sounded as if he were angry at himself for missing something. Why? Nobody was perfect. God was, but us little humans? We were sinful creatures. Here to do God’s work whenever it was called of us, nothing more.
“Are there others like you here?”
I tapped once.
“Married?”
Some, not all. I lifted my finger only a little and tapped.
“If you know how many, count them off.”
I tapped my finger slowly, counting the ones I knew of in my head.“One…two…three…”
When I was finished, the chair shifted. “23. So I was right, this church has been going on far longer than the auction has.”
Of course, it has. The Church of Daylight began in 1991. The Founder established it here in Seattle, but there were only a few members then, the Elders. It’s grown every year since. Some believed that the Church was founded in 2015, the same year as that first auction, but that’s just when it became more public. I wasn’t sure how difficult that information was to find, but I did know that not many people really asked questions anymore. It existed now, what did it matter the year it was founded?
“What year was it founded?” he asked me.
I tapped once, paused, followed by a nine and then a pause, another nine, and finally a 1.
“And how many churches?”
I tapped my finger seven times. He should have already known that.
“Testing your knowledge,” he said almost to himself. Azrael stood, his steps silent as he walked up to me.
A nervousness filled me, followed by a feeling of sorrow. I could feel him waiting, watching. I pleaded to God that he wouldn’t want me to open my mouth. I didn’t think I could handle anymore cum.
“Trust requires patience,” he explained, his voice low as he hovered over me like some kind of dark god. “I have very little and so very much at the same time. I fear it’ll be difficult with you simply because you do as you’re told no matter what happens. You don’t care about the punishments. You don’t care about the consequences. You do it because you’re told and that, my dear little sinner, is called faith, and you have put yours in the wrong people.”
I felt those metal branches slide around my jaw, forcing my head up until my neck was craned back, until I was sure that if I opened my eyes, I would meet his.
“I need a faithful little servant, and you need a god you can believe in, a new purpose, but the thing about this god is that heis vengeful and possessive. He is unforgiving and seeks out blood and carnage. He doesn’t like to share, especially when he finds someone possessing everything he needs. Which makes this a very big problem, don’t you think?”
All he wanted was information, that much I was beginning to realize, and he believed I had that information. I didn’t know why he wanted it or what he would do with it, all I knew was that I was now his Favorite, and rules were rules.
Well, I suppose there was one other thing; all his attention was now on me. Every ounce of it. Rules were rules, but even if they weren’t, I would have given him everything he wanted. So long as those eyes stayed on me and only me.
I tapped my finger once, feeling that strange pulse between my thighs again. A heartbeat. An ache.
“The rivers will run red soon, until then, let’s look at this like a game,” he purred, that lilt back and stronger than ever. “I like games. The more intricate, the better. So, here’s how it will go; we will abide by their rules and regulations, thetitlesthey have put in place, but that will all be make believe. Pretend. Because the truth is,” he went on, crouching down to my right, allowing me to lower my head just a little, “from here on out, you’remypet. I own you. You are my doll to manipulate and use. My little sinner.”
That flutter happened again.
