Monday Afternoon – Church Courtyard
Bella returned to the church alone.
She wore a soft cream dress, modest — but the way she carried herself made it feel dangerous. Like silk over a blade.
She approached Father Elijah as he tended the garden behind the chapel.
"You water flowers?" she asked, tilting her head. "How holy."
He smiled politely, brushing dirt from his hands. "Even priests like peace."
"I could help," she offered.
He hesitated — then nodded.
She stepped beside him and knelt, the dress hugging her curves as she dug her fingers into the soil. Silent. Graceful. Unnatural.
Father Elijah glanced sideways, trying not to stare.
Bella smiled to herself.
She'd caught him.
---
Inside the Chapel – Days Later
Bella began visiting often.
Sometimes she asked about the Bible.
Sometimes she asked about him.
> "Were you always so good?"
"Do you ever want to take the collar off?"
"Do you ever feel… human?"
Father Elijah remained calm, measured.
But he was listening.
She sat in the front pew during evening mass, always alone. Always watching. Afterward, she'd help him clean, tidy, lock up.
And each time, she got a little closer.
A brush of the hand.
A whisper in his ear.
Once, she even adjusted his collar for him. Her fingers lingered.
> "It's too tight," she murmured.
"You don't have to wear it around me."
---
Confessional Booth
It was empty when Bella stepped in.
Father Elijah's voice came through the screen.
"What do you wish to confess, child?"
Bella leaned forward, lips brushing the carved wood.
> "I think I'm in love with someone… forbidden."
The air grew still.
> "And he's holy. Untouchable.
But I want him to fall — just once —
So I can catch him."
"Bella…" he whispered.
She smiled.
"You remembered my name."
Priest's Quarters
Father Elijah sat alone at his desk, the Bible open… but unread.
He could still feel her breath in his ear. Her eyes. Her calm.
She wasn't just a temptation.
She was something older. Something worse.
But part of him didn't run.
Part of him... ached to know more.
He shut the Bible and whispered:
> "God, forgive me."
---
Bella's Bedroom
Bella sat on her bed, brushing her hair in silence.
Behind her, the preserved jars gleamed faintly in the moonlight.
She stared into the mirror and whispered:
> "Let's see how long it takes... to make a holy man beg."
Then she smiled.
---