The Sifting by Azure Boone Page A

for. She preferred to live and be with Micah, and she’d let God know that as well. And trust him with what was best.
    Sarah broke from his hold and went back to her corner and scanned the pages, needing to read. She read out loud, her voice shaking. “For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.’
    She scanned the Bible and devoured verse after verse, feeling stronger with each one. “Micah, here.” She handed him the book and pointed to the passage. “This. Read it.”
    He looked at her, silently begging she leave him to think of a plan. She shoved the Bible into his chest. “Please Micah. I’m not asking you to trust God, but I need you to read this.”
    Micah stared at the Bible for endless seconds. As if it were her head on a platter, he finally took it, appearing sick. With every passage Micah read, warmth spread in Sarah. She soon realized what the warmth was. Desire. Hearing God’s word on his tongue was creating an insane passion inside her. Was it the trauma? Was this a coping mechanism? She wasn’t sure, but she was sure the fire was growing as she listened. He seemed to be losing himself in the power hidden in those passages, his voice taking on a curious strength of rough heavenly silk. Sarah suddenly pulled him to her with a gasp, kissing him with a savage hunger.
    Her fire immediately lit his and the Bible fell to the floor as his hands hurried to answer her need, devouring all the secret parts of her. They were all his, marked with his touch.
    Her dress was large enough that he lifted it and her onto his waist, sinking himself deep inside her. Sarah stifled her cry and pulled his hair, desperation mingling in their every gasp. Micah’s fingers bit into her hair and pulled her head back. “I love you,” she whimpered as his mouth became a vortex of heat on her neck. He began moving inside her, faster, deeper, overwhelming her senses. For a timeless moment, she was some place safe, in Micah’s tight embrace, making love in a faraway place, a small country house on a hillside with a sultry summer breeze and a million more tomorrows.
    The sound of the exterior door jolted them back to reality and ended it all. They both scrambled to get decent, Micah, double checking her dress was in order even as the inner door to the room opened.
    Sarah’s body trembled from the buzzing pleasure still humming through it as they led her to another cement room. She got a dejavu sensation, like she’d done something similar before. No, seen something similar. Her sister. When she’d gone to have her first baby. The first stages of labor were fun and carefree, but they both knew that very soon, there would be lots of pain and agony since she’d chosen to go natural despite everybody saying she shouldn’t. It seemed foolish, but she had her convictions. Not even Sarah understood it. But she remembered how they joked and laughed while things only hurt a little. And then later, twelve hours of hard labor later, Sarah had to holler at her just to get her sister to focus. She was exhausted and crying. But she refused to take anything. Foolish woman.
    And now Sarah’s hard labor loomed around the corner for her. And she just hoped that Micah would be able to help her through it. Her biggest dread was not making it. Caving. Renouncing God. And Micah begging her to.
    To her, that was the nightmare she never wanted to live.
    Micah’s grip on her hand tightened when they entered the next room. A scary looking table with straps sat in the middle beneath a lone light. Fear hit Sarah at the wires leading to the machine next to it. She recognized that type of machine. They had a similar one in the hospital for electric shock treatments. Oh God.
    Micah suddenly grabbed the man’s shoulders. “Please Zane, please don’t do this,” he begged, his voice breaking.
    “Master Seven.” The torment in those two words said it all. The man was torn. And stuck. Just