Page 14 of Temptation
But all those good times seemed to be clouded by the things that were happening now, and instead of closing them, I kept my eyes wide open and trained on Lauren.
Lauren who wasn’t moving anymore.
Lauren who seemed resigned to her fate.
The ripping of fabric pulled my eyes down toward Lauren’s body, where Dylan’s hands tore open her dress, ripping it apart. Her bare chest and flat stomach came into view and I looked up at Judah, at his wild eyes and the look he wore so many times when he saw me naked.
I fought to stay in one place, to keep myself to this side, because I knew that if I didn’t, this dagger would be lodged in his throat.
My grip on the dagger increased and the deep breaths expanded my lungs, but nothing calmed me down.
Night after night spent in agony, while he ripped my body apart. Night after night where I wondered what I did wrong. Night after motherfucking night where I wondered why my father didn’t love me like a father should. Why he touched me and why he fucked up.
And this was why.
At least one of the reasons why.
Was Dylan the same as him? Did Judah Blackwood plant the seed of madness into his son as well?
I looked at Dylan, at the dried blood on his throat and then at the mask on the floor, and I knew the answer to that question.
Dylan was maybe even worse than Judah.
I could see Dylan’s lips moving, but I couldn’t hear him. I could see the urgency in his eyes, but I didn’t move. I could see his hands pointing toward Lauren, but I stayed rooted in the same spot, unable to move a muscle in my body, too afraid of what I might do if I did.
What would my destiny be if I slaughtered both of them here and now? There was an entire room of people who obviously worshipped the same sick desires like Dylan and Judah.
Who would help me? Who would save me?
No one.
But then you save yourself. My consciousness woke up.You save yourself by going along with whatever it is that they want you to do.
I came closer to Dylan and caressed his cheek, lovingly, tenderly, like how I used to when we were kids, when I was scared.
His eyes shuddered, and for the first time tonight, I saw the boy I loved with my whole heart.
It sliced me in half, this path he was putting me on. He decided to destroy me and no amount of love could stop me from hating him.
“She’s going to be our final sacrifice, darling,” he murmured, holding my head in his hands. “But you need to do it.”
You need to do it, echoed in my head.
They wanted me to be like them. They wanted me to be a murderer.
“Once it’s done, I will show you everything you were missing.” He pressed his lips against my forehead while I chanted to myself that he wasn’t my brother anymore. “Do it now, Sky. They’re waiting for you to do it.”
They, meaning their faithful followers. They, the faceless monsters chanting throughout the night. They, the people of Winworth who hid their snake’s skin during the day, only to become monsters during the night.
They, the fuckers that could’ve saved me by now, but decided to follow depravity.
I looked toward them, toward that one lonely person that stared at me, and I knew that what I was about to do wouldn’t be the end of me, but the beginning.
“Do it, Skylar!” Dylan shouted and grabbed my hand. “Do it now.”
Without thinking, without remorse, I turned around and looked again at Lauren. She wasn’t looking at me anymore. Her eyes were closed and her chest rose and fell with even breaths.
I wished I could be that calm.
