Reality Check, PT. 4

“Have faith,” Lynne encouraged as she started down the aisle to join Dad.

Someone came up behind her. Her heightened senses told her who it was, even though he didn’t speak. She had so many questions, but this was neither the time nor place. They would deal with that later when they could speak freely. First, they had to smile and maintain their image as a loving, Christian family.

She moved through the crowd and entered the pew her parents were sitting on from the opposite end. Jessie settled beside her. She nodded to those who greeted her and wasn’t able to avoid several hugs from that made her feel even worse. They thought she was one of them, that she was still pure and good, and… she wasn’t. Not by a long shot. One impulsive mistake had led to another and another, until she had a list a mile long, all accumulated within a matter of days. She felt sick to her stomach.

“Today’s message may be difficult to hear, but I think we can all learn from King David’s mistakes, which is why we’ll be discussing his adulterous affair with Bathsheba and the heavy price David paid for his sins.”

Pastor Sonny went into great detail about King David’s infamous affair, which led to Bathsheba becoming pregnant. David tried to cover up his sin by having Bathsheba’s husband killed in battle and claiming her for himself. David thought he’d gotten away with it until a prophet told David that his wicked deeds hadn’t gone unnoticed by God and that he would be punished, beginning with the death of the child that had been conceived during the affair.

It took great effort for Violet not to squirm as Pastor Sonny listed the myriad consequences of King David’s sin. The one that struck her the most was the incestuous relationship between David’s children, Amnon and his half-sister, Tamar. Amnon was so obsessed with his sister that he faked being ill to have his sister feed him and then raped her.

“It says here in verse fifteen that after Amnon had Tamar, he hated her more than he once loved her.” Pastor Sonny paused so the congregation could take that in. “Can you imagine wanting someone so much that you risked everything to possess her, only to discover your all-consuming love was just fleeting lust? Amnon wanted her purely because he shouldn’t have her, and he paid for that sin with his life when his brother, Absalom, struck him down to avenge her.”

Pastor Sonny held up a finger.

“One sin by the father led to so much pain and suffering. Rape, murder, and his children rising to overthrow him. Nothing that begins in sin will be blessed by God. In Luke 8:17, it says that all secrets will be brought to light and made known to all. If you think you’re going to get away with your sin, believe me, you won’t. It may take years, even decades, but everything will be brought to light, I assure you.”

Convicted to her core, Violet closed her eyes. The urge to drop to her knees and repent was a compulsion she fought with everything she had. She didn’t realize her hands were trembling until Jesse placed his on top of hers. She yanked her hands away and would have scooted closer to Lynne if it wouldn’t bring unwanted attention to them.

Jesse couldn’t touch her like that anymore. They could never repeat what they’d done this week. For as long as she could remember, she longed for a family. God had answered her prayers and given her a mother and brother who gave her the love and affection she longed for. They made her feel special, wanted, a part of something. What if her carnal recklessness destroyed their family, as it had King David’s?

Dad wouldn’t kill Jesse, but it could turn Dad and Lynne against one another if they defended their own child. Or, maybe they would realize she was to blame. Her nails sank into her palm. If she hadn’t allowed Tucker to touch her, Jesse wouldn’t have attacked him, and she wouldn’t have kissed him to snap him out of his temper. Jesse may have paid her midnight visits, but he’d never gone beyond that. If it wasn’t for that impulsive kiss, Jesse never would have gone as far as he had. She had initiated it, and she hadn’t stopped him when he undid her shorts or placed her on his bed. The fault lay squarely on her shoulders. She hadn’t stopped Tucker or Jesse. Her curiosity and lust overcame any reservations. When she was younger, she’d been terrified Lynne and her dad would break up. What if she was the cause of her worst fear coming true?

Discovering that she and Jesse engaged in a sexual relationship would devastate their parents on multiple levels. Mom and Dad hadn’t gotten them purity rings, but they made it clear they expected them to save themselves for marriage. And although she and Jesse weren’t blood siblings, they had been raised as such. Once they crossed into sexual territory, there was no going back, which is why blended families tried to discourage it from happening in the first place. If she and Jesse ended badly, it would take a toll on the family. It was better to stop now before they irreparably damaged their relationship… and the family.

As Pastor Sonny hammered home the severe repercussions of sin, she silently pleaded with God not to unveil hers. She promised to right her wrongs and stop what was happening between her and Jesse. She’d pay whatever penance for her conduct. Punish me in whatever way You see fit, but please keep my family intact. I’ll do anything.

**This is a raw draft of the prequel for Corrupt Idol. Please do not share or distribute.

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