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Executors dragged the man on stage. He had an average build with blond hair and glasses. He shoved the Executors off and hurried over to Meredith. The eye tattoo near his elbow marked him as a Seer.
He fell to his knees and reached out for Meredith. “Please reconsider.”
She pulled away. “I cannot return to this marriage, Scott. This is what Mother Miriam wants, and I must listen to my Goddess, even if it breaks my heart. If my goddess wishes me to marry Max, then I will. Max is a member of my own Cast, as well as one of the Chosen, as am I. You and I must go our separate ways now, Scott. I have faith you will find your perfect match within your Cast, if you choose to follow the Goddess and join Miriam’s Chosen.”
“How can I put my faith into a deity who would have us torn apart?” Scott demanded. “You are the love of my life, Meredith. What Mother Miriam is asking us to do is not love!”
“We cannot question our Goddess, or apostates we become,” Meredith insisted. The words didn’t seem like her own. It sounded like she was repeating a phrase she’d heard many times before. “Join us, Scott, for you cannot understand the true nature of Mother Miriam’s love until you choose to surrender to her will. I see it all so clearly now, and you will gain insight once you join us.”
“You know I can’t do that,” Scott insisted.
“Meredith has made her choice,” Lilian sneered. “Give up your wedding ring and join her.”
“You can’t do this!” Scott raged. “Our marriage is legal in the state of Connecticut.”
“Your marriage is not recognized in Octavia Falls,” Margaret bit back. “Miriam’s Chosen will find you a new wife, one whose magic is compatible with your own. Mother Miriam gave us a revelation. Our magic is dying, and we must preserve what we have by making new matches.”
Grant lowered his voice and growled, “Cast magic isn’t inherited. What do they think they’re protecting? This is nonsensical.”
I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “I think that’s the point. If they can control people on this, they can control them on anything.”
“Intimacy brings us closer to our Goddess,” Margaret announced. “To strengthen your magic, you must copulate only with members of your own Cast.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “They can’t be serious.”
“They’re punishing Scott because he hasn’t joined Miriam’s Chosen with his wife. They’re making him an example,” Nadine said hollowly.
Priestess Margaret raised her hands. “Let us pray for those with little faith.”
“Mother Miriam,” the crowd spoke at the same time, making me jump. This prayer had obviously been spoken many times, because the entire coven knew it by heart. Their voices came together as one. “We pray to you to bestow faith upon the non-believers. May their hearts be softened, and their love abound, as they surrender their doubts and embrace your blessings. So shall it be.”
Scott took a step back, obviously not wanting to be a part of this.
“We must multiply our numbers to defeat the fae!” Margaret added. “Show your devotion to Mother Miriam, and disavow your marriage.”
Scott stood tall. “I will not. Meredith, please…”
He reached for his wife again, but she took several steps back. She took Max’s hand, driving in the knife of betrayal. “You could have been happy, Scott, but you chose the path of an apostate instead,” Meredith said. “I will pray that Mother Miriam grants you mercy in the Abyss.”
Lilian wore a mask of indifference. “If Scott chooses the path of an apostate, then he deserves his fate.”
I wasn’t sure what fate she was talking about.
“He doesn’t deserve this!” a man in the crowd shouted. “He’s only acting on love!”
A chorus of agreements rang throughout the crowd, though it wasn’t as loud as the opposing protests. I didn’t understand what the priestesses had in store for Scott, but the rest of the crowd seemed to understand. They’d certainly seen it before.
The Executors quickly found the person who’d spoken up and forced him onto the stage. He had the same blond hair as Scott and similar features. They looked like they were brothers.
“You shouldn’t have spoken up, Simon,” Scott insisted. “I will accept my fate, but I will not have my brother suffer the same.”
Simon turned toward the priestesses. “Let my brother live and take me instead. I proclaim myself to be an apostate, and I will suffer the consequences in my brother’s place.”
“You have brought this on yourself,” Lillian accused.
The Executors locked Simon’s arms behind his back as the priestesses came forward. Margaret withdrew a potion vial out of her cloak and forced the liquid down Simon’s throat. He gurgled and tried to spit the liquid out, but the poison had already taken hold. His body started to convulse as red veins spiderwebbed across his skin. The Executors dropped him, and his body slumped to the ground, yet a ghostly imprint of his features remained standing.
There was no life in those ghostly eyes, no indication that the soul of the man remained at all. The ghost moved forward like he was being controlled. He grabbed Scott and held him firmly in place. The potion was obviously very powerful, because his ghostly form was able to materialize to solid form.
