Page 9 of His to Keep

There’s a shuffle of footsteps and then nothing. Lifting my hand to wipe the sweat off my forehead, I take another step, cautiously peeking over the banister to see if they’re still there. The hallway’s now empty, and I try to keep my movements steady as I descend the stairs. As I put my foot on the last step, my heart stops when it groans beneath me.

Coldness licks my spine, as I almost expect Father Aaron to be standing there with his arms folded when I look over my shoulder. He isn’t there—no one is.Taking my chance, I dart forward. Once I’m at the door, I grab the handle to wrench it open. But the moment I do, a hand slams against the wood next to my head. Screaming, I whirl around, coming face to face with Father Aaron. “Going somewhere?”

There’s movement behind us, and Callum stops on the bottom step, his chest rising and falling, like he must’ve finally noticed I was no longer in the room and ran to get me.

“I want to go home,” I say, but Father Aaron isn’t listening. Instead, he’s pointing his glare at Callum.

“You weren’t watching her.”

“The door was unlocked,” Callum says through gritted teeth, the accusation clear. Had Father Aaron left the door open on purpose? Inching forward, Callum’s fingers clasp around my arm. But Father Aaron grabs his neck and slams him into the wall. I scream when Callum’s head bounces off the cement and he falls back with blood gushing from a cut on his forehead.

“Maybe that will knock some fuckingsenseinto you,” Father Aaron growls menacingly. “I left it unlocked because Iknew. Like how I knew last time. Take her back and do what you’re supposed to.”

Grabbing my arm again, Callum smears blood across his forehead as he wipes it with the back of his hand. There’s no emotion in his eyes, and it’s strange. He doesn’t seem in pain. Almost like he’s used to it.

Taking me back upstairs, he shoves me into the room. As I stumble inside, he slams the door behind us, shoulders stiff.Without expecting it, he whirls around, and I’m surprised by the anger in his eyes. The first real emotion I’ve seen from him so far.

“Don’tdothat again.” His voice is blunt, and I stare at him with wide eyes. “There’s no escape.”

Turning his back on me, he walks away.

Chapter Five

Hours pass slowly. After what happened, the hope of leaving painfully drifts away, and all I do is sit on the bed and cry. Callum hasn’t spoken another word to me since we came back. After cleaning the blood off his face, he sat at his desk and has ignored me since. When seven makes an appearance on the small clock on the wall, my insides clench with unease. Footsteps sound on the stairs, and when the door opens, John bounds inside, a force that makes the entire room shudder.

“Dinner. Get up.”

My body tenses, knowing having dinner is the last thing I want. “Please let me go home. Or at least let me call—”

“Shut up, bitch.” He glares at me. “I don’t give afuckwhat you want. Get up or starve.”

Moving across the room, Callum stands beside me, a silent warning flashing in his eyes.Move.Letting out a shaky breath, I shuffle forward.

“Come the fuck on.” Grabbing my arm, John forces me quickerout of the room. We go back downstairs, past the lounge, and down another dark, slender hallway. The scent of food hangs in the air as we enter a dining room lit with candles. Blood-red walls and the dark floor make it look hellish. A long wooden table sits in the middle of the room with a clashing centerpiece of white roses. What adds to the strange room is Father Aaron himself, sitting proudly at the head of the table, like some powerful king.

“Do you like the roses?” He looks directly at me as John pushes me to the seat that’s next to him. He’s smiling again, and I visibly shudder. “They reminded me of you.”

I want to tell him I don’t care about the roses, but I look down uncomfortably. The roses are as out of place as I am. We both don’t belong here.My shoulders shake, more tears splashing down my cheeks as Callum takes the seat beside me and John opposite. Penny comes into the room from another door, hair wild and frizzy around her small, flushed face. I watch as she carefully places a hotpot on top of the table and takes off the lid. Craning his neck, Father Aaron peers inside with a raised eyebrow. “What is it?”

“Meatloaf, my Lord,” she whispers, and I lift my head.

My Lord?

“Yum,” John grumbles under his breath, and Penny sneers at him from behind her hair. With a roll of his eyes, Father Aaron holds up his plate first, and she takes it from him, filling the dish with a slob of food first. After placing it in front of him, he takes my plate next and shoves it at her. Once mine, Callum, and John’s plates are filled, Penny sits opposite and stares down at her lap, not making one for herself.

“Let’s say grace,” Father Aaron announces, drawing his hands together in prayer. The rest follow suit, and not wanting to draw attention to myself, I put my hands together, only to realize how badly they’re shaking. “Bless us, O’ Lord, and these thy gifts which we are about to receive, through Christ our Lord, amen.”

There’s a chorus of murmured“amen”around the table, and John’s the first to pick up his fork. Cutlery scrapes against the plate as he stabs into the meatloaf and shovels it into his mouth. His face scrunches with disgust, and he dramatically spits it back out into a napkin. “Disgusting.”

“Shut up,” Penny hisses back, eyes abnormally wide. Twisting her head, she faces me, and I cringe away. “Try it, Ava. Go on.”

Vomit balls in my stomach at the sight of the stodgy cutting of meat before me. Father Aaron hasn’t taken his eyes off me, not once, and my stomach rolls. I’m not sure if it’s my imagination when Callum tenses beside me, the room remaining silent as I bring the fork to my mouth. The moment the meat hits my tongue, something disgustingly sour explodes in my mouth. Gagging, I spit it back onto my plate as John bursts out laughing.

Father Aaron drops his fork, the clatter cutting the tension like a knife. Eyes shining with irritation, he turns to Penny, who has her head bowed and a smile stretched over her lips.

“What is the meaning of this?” She giggles when he stands, the chair scraping back against the floorboards. Slamming both hands on the table, he roars, “Answer me!”

Her shoulders shake with laughter, her teeth bearing like a crazed animal. “Satan disguises himself as an angel of the light. Satan is among us, my Lord, and he willcondemnyou.”