Page 2 of My Forever Sin

I know I’m pushing her. I’ve learnt with her that if I don’t stick around, she won’t have the opportunity to threaten me. If I refuse to sleep with her, she’ll run and tell the only person capable of delivering physical pain—my father. She’ll withhold my weed. So, I choose the option that hurts less. I’ve given her what she wants and I don’t have to take her on a date like she’s my girlfriend. I let her have too much power, and I don’t know how long I can let her keep doing this. She knows she’ll successfully pull me into bed with her every time, no matter how much I resist. But how else am I going to get drugs?

Heath’s voice stops me in the middle of the polished, burgundy foyer with chequered flooring. “Where are you off to, son?”

My temples throb as his much shorter frame ambles towards me, bringing a lingering darkness that makes the cleaning staff scarce. Hazel eyes—the same shade as mine but reflecting nothing of me in them—scrutinize me like he might find the devil hiding in my pocket. His shirt matches the colour of the walls, completed with black slacks and his hair is almost entirely grey now. Heath’s lost all resemblance to me and Dorrian now with his weathered face and wrinkles lining every inch.

“None of your business, old man.”

He laughs, clasping a hand onto my shoulder like I just told a joke. “I think you’ll find it is. You’re in my town.” He shakes me gently, silently reminding me he owns me.

I rip away from his grip, taking a step back.

My father is hiding secrets; he has been for a very long time. I’m not fucking blind. Ambulances from outside the town never get called under the pretence that we have more than enough capable residents in the town who have studied to become doctors. Police never get called. Criminals get to walk free after the clergy beats them within an inch of their life— “God is the only fair judge”. And of course, not in front of the whole town. It’s a wonder how Lacey and co haven’t been found out yet.

Recently, the town has been more united than ever. There’s been more town events, more fundraisers. Lacey’s parents have started donating more of their wealth to keep the church going and keep themselves top of the list for our future marriage. With other families—mainly the clergy—in this town donating money, they’re not exactly clutching at straws. They’ve now generated enough money to build a second church to extend it since it’s not large enough to hold a growing town. There hasn’t been any movement in expanding the Blackcastle border, but new residents have been arriving with the promise of a better, more secluded life outside of the big cities. So, it won’t be long until they do expand. Exactly how they planned before they practically ripped Jordie away from me.

Dorrian has been no more cooperative in answering any of my questions about her, no matter how much I press and use my knuckles. He takes every hit on the chin. I think he's become immune to my incessant interrogating. He’s so far up Heath’s ass he can almost see through his eyes and yet he refuses to crack. Vivian has been trying to reassure me she’s been in contact with Jordie, but I don’t believe her. It’s just to divert my thoughts. They don’t want me to find out what they did to her.

But I haven’t given up.

I narrow my eyes. “You’re missing a few residents, aren’t you?”

He mimics my gesture, folding his beefy arms over his chest. He knows who I’m referring to and what. “Give it up, sinner.”

My fists clench at my sides, fingernails digging into my palm. “Never.”

“There’s a celebration after the sermon today. I trust you’ll attend both. We have a special guest arriving,” he tells me before he begins making his way up the grand staircase.

Now he’s piqued my interest. “Who?”

“Someone special.” He shrugs, and without another word, he disappears down a hallway.

My heart stalls in my chest. Could it be Jordie?

No.

But still, a little glimmer of hope flickers in my chest.

However, my bets are on another corrupt fucker pulled in to help them pollute the town.

“No one’s heard from Logan for two weeks,” Asher muses, curled, dirty blonde hair sticking to his forehead with sweat as he curls a twenty-kilogram weight, bicep flexing with every pull upwards.

A squirrel rushes past our feet, flicking dirt and debris over our shoes, while birds rattle the branches above us.

Today’s been another long day of clearing out our abandoned warehouse for renovations with my two best friends, Blake and Asher. It’s overgrown with foliage and well secluded—more towards the edge of Blackcastle’s border—so if anyone happened to come by, they wouldn’t find it easily.

“Another missing person,” Blake comments, before dragging cannabis smoke into his lungs. His sharp jaw tightens with the movement, and then he lets it out in a dense cloud while simultaneously twisting his small weed grinder.

I shake my head. More and more people have been disappearing recently and it’s like the town doesn’t even care. Something about it being the Lord’s will and it not interfering with his plan for others.

“What about his family?”

“They’ve apparently sent out a search party, but no luck so far,” Asher says.

Blake sniffs before his dark brown eyes glance in my direction. “They won’t find him. The same way they haven’t found any of the others over the years. Chances are they’ve done the same thing they did to Jordie.”

I suck in a breath at the reminder of her, but really, when am I not reminded of her? She started breaking through my intoxicated brain and it’s getting harder and harder to give into that sedated state of mind like the first time I started smoking. I’m running out of time. Hell, I ran out the second they took her.

“Sorry,” Asher murmurs before grunting and letting the weight drop to the forest floor. Blake watches intently as Asher picks it up with his other arm, exposing his veined forearms and it’s like he’s hypnotised by the movement. Asher is built like a tank and stands four inches taller than both of us, so I don’t blame him.