There was a large crowd gathered around the man sitting like a king on a throne in the middle of a clearing. Someone had painted a pentacle in the dirt. There were four wooden stakes hammered into the ground at different points of the star.
“Here’s the woman of the night,” a soft voice said, almost right in my ear.
I sidestepped and did a quick onceover of the redhead who had come up behind me, noting her tattoo was located on her neck.
“Oh, he got you good,” she laughed, staring at Romero a little too intently for my liking.
“Can you speak like a regular human?” I cut off her view and leveled her with an unimpressed stare.
“Calm down and look around you. Everyone looks at him the way I do.
That’s what happens when you start sleeping with a man with power.”
I blinked at her, not saying a word.
“You had to know you were consorting with the devil,” she scoffed.
“I…” I let the sentence die, looking back out at Romero. She was completely serious. I’d already established that the Savages were a fucking gang of cult worshippers of all things, worshippers of Romero to be more exact.
Having knowledge of something and physically seeing it, though, were two entirely different things. The man I adored was revered as the actual devil. It wasn’t just a nickname. I felt like I’d taken acid and was still on a trip.
“He has you now, sweetheart. I can already see the web he’s woven around your poor little soul. One minute he adores you, the next you’re scared shitless he’s going to kill you for blinking wrong.” She tossed her cigarette down and snuffed it with the heel of her shoe.
“Whose fucking idea was it to give him something so pure? Your corruption was unquestionably going to happen.”
“I was never pure.”
“You have a heart, darling. That’s good enough.” She brushed past me and walked into the crowd.
“Goddamn it.” I dropped my head and closed my eyes, pressing my hands to my temples. I didn’t fully yet understand what did any of this meant.
Lifting my head, I locked eyes with his and like a tethered ball and chain he pulled me to him. People openly stared at me as I walked by, eyeing me with curiosity.
“What the hell is this?” I wasted no time asking as he turned me around and sat me on his lap, pressing my back to his chest.
“It’s a celebration.”
“Of yourself? When did you have time to do all this?”
“I told you, I have connections. This celebration is for you…us.”
“Why would we celebrate with your cult? What are we even celebrating?”
I tried to stand up but he locked his arms around my waist.
“I thought you’d be happy about this. I’m letting you in.”
“I am…I think. I need a minute.” I kissed his cheek as a reassurance that I wasn’t all the way freaked out—yet. I went to stand again and this time he let me, only to motion two robed men over to take hold of me.
My heart lurched into my throat as I found myself on the ground, my arms and legs each secured to a wooden stake in the pentacle.
“What are you doing?”
I tugged at the rope around my wrists but couldn’t break free of it. “Rome?”
I wriggled around in the dirt as hooded figures surrounded me, all wearing the silver leviathan cross around their necks.
I looked all around me but could no longer see him. A man stepped forward, holding a wriggling baby ram in his hands.
