Owned to Be Saved (The Sinner’s Touch #4)

Prologue

Past

“Run, Amber!”

“I’m scared, Elodie! They’re going to catch us, and it will be so much worse when it happens!”

My younger sister’s hand trembles in mine, also slick with sweat.

I know I need to take a stand or she’ll never understand that this is real: either we run, or we’ll end up like the others.

“They won’t catch us, but if they do, give me your word that you’ll obey me. If they corner us, you run while I distract them.”

“No. I’ll never leave you. We’re a team. I don’t care about being safe if you’re not with me.”

I want to swat her stubborn little butt, but I also want to pull her into a hug, because even young as she is, Amber is the best sister and friend a girl could ever wish for.

I hold her face.

“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say,” I tell her, knowing the time has come for my sister to understand that there’s no turning back from our decision to escape our community.

“There are no second chances for us, Amber. What you saw them do to that girl will seem like nothing compared to what Father will do to us if they drag us back.”

She pales, her golden eyes, so much like mine, widening. “He would never. . .”

“Yes, he would. I’d be next.”

Tears spill down her cheeks. Then she stumbles back, dropping to the ground to vomit.

When she finally rises minutes later, I see the change in her.

The girl that was left in Amber is gone. She has crossed the bridge for good, leaving her innocence behind.

“I will never let them take you, Elodie. I’ll protect you just as you protect me. Just tell me what to do. I won’t question you again.”