Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 141556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 708(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 472(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141556 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 708(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 472(@300wpm)
“Did Calder tell you anything?” Elena asks.
I shake my head. “Nothing. I planned to ask him about it tonight.”
Elena is quiet for a long moment, staring into her coffee like she can read the future in its dark surface. When she speaks again, her voice is carefully neutral. “Okay. The ceremony takes place in the main barn. All the brothers will be present. Roman presides over it. You’ll be...” She swallows. “They’ll secure you. To make sure you don’t move while they press the iron into your skin. It’s important that the brand is clean. You don’t want it to blur because then they have to do it again.” First, they’ll secure me, then they’ll brand me, and if I move too much, they’ll do it again. It’s a miracle I don’t vomit all over the floor right now.
“How long does it take?” I don’t know why I ask that question. Branding another human shouldn’t even be a thing.
“The actual branding? A few seconds. Roman will heat the iron in front of you first. Let you watch it turn orange, then white. Build the anticipation up so you know what’s coming.” She traces the rim of the mug with her fingers. “Whatever you do, try your best to keep your fear hidden. Roman enjoys it more than he should.”
Of course he does. I’m not surprised. “What happens after?”
“After, you’ll be in considerable pain. They’ll bandage it, but there is always the risk of infection. Healing can take weeks, and the scar is ugly for a long time.”
I set my mug down before I drop it. “If you’re trying to scare me—”
“I’m not trying to scare you.” Elena interrupts. “Like I said, I came to warn you, to explain what is going to happen because I wish someone had done the same for me.” Elena’s eyes finally meet mine, and for the first time since she arrived, I see real emotion in them. Raw and painful. “I went into my branding ceremony blind. I thought it would be like getting a tattoo. Something uncomfortable but manageable. I was wrong. It’s nothing like that, Saint. It’s medieval. It’s cruel. And once it’s done, there’s no going back. You’ll carry that mark on your skin for the rest of your life.”
I wish I could close my ears. That this was all a bad dream, but it’s not. It’s my life now. My stomach clenches tight, and bile rises in my throat. Never in my mind did I think this would be a good experience, but hearing the details from someone who experienced it firsthand and survived? I can’t possibly see a path forward.
“I can’t refuse,” I ask quietly. “Can I?”
“No.” Elena’s answer is immediate. “Refusal is the same as betrayal. You say no, and Roman will find a way to kill you. It might not be that day, but it’ll happen. He’ll make it look like an accident or a disappearance. And you aren’t the only one at risk of dying. Calder will most likely be next for failing to control his wife.”
I press my palms against the counter, needing something solid beneath my hands to stop my knees from buckling. “There’s no choice then. I’ll have to accept it or face death.”
“Yes.” She picks up her mug again and takes a slow sip. “Just remember. The pain is temporary. The fear is temporary. The mark is what’s forever, and that’s all that Roman cares about. He wants a permanent reminder that you now belong to this family. That you’re his property as much as you are Calder’s.”
My throat feels too tight. “Is there anything that makes it easier?”
“Calder will probably offer you something. Pain medication before the ceremony. It helps, but not as much as you’d hope.” Elena stands and moves around the counter to stand beside me. Up close, I can see the fine lines around her eyes and the way her hands shake slightly. “The truth is, nothing makes it easy. You just survive it. And then you carry it with you forever.”
We stand in silence, two trapped women in a kitchen that smells of coffee and quiet desperation.
“There’s something else,” Elena says, and her voice drops even lower. “Something Roman will probably mention tomorrow night but won’t explain until later.”
“What?”
She turns to face me fully, and the look in her eyes makes ice flood my veins. “The wedding night ceremony.”
“The... what?”
“It’s a Bishop tradition. After the branding heals enough that you can move without screaming, they hold another ceremony. This one is...” She pauses, choosing her words carefully. “It’s meant to consummate the marriage in front of witnesses. To prove that the union is legitimate. That the woman has accepted her place in the family.”
The room tilts. “You’re saying I have to, with Calder, while people watch?”
Elena’s face is carefully blank. “It’s humiliating. It’s invasive. And there’s no way around it.”