PRAISE AND PASSION PART 6 The camera flashes exploded like gunfire, each one searing Bukola’s vision with white-hot judgment. She could feel the crowd’s hatred like physical blows—the hissed prayers, the iPhones thrust in her face, the way Pastor Adeleke’s smirk deepened as her fingers trembled in Tobi’s grip. "Repent now!" a woman shrieked from the mob, waving a Bible like a weapon. "Confess your sins before hell claims you!" Tobi’s arm tightened around her waist. "Keep walking," he muttered through clenched teeth. But then— "BROTHER TOBI!" A voice sliced through the chaos. A young woman in a ripped choir robe fought against security, her braids wild around a face streaked with tears. "You promised!" she screamed. "You promised he’d pay for what he did to me!" Tobi went rigid. Bukola felt the shift in him—the way his breath stopped, the way his fingers dug into her hip hard enough to bruise. "Tobi? Who is—" Pastor Adeleke’s microphone shrieked with feedback as he stepped between them and the girl. "Another deceived soul! But we must focus on the sinner before us!" He gestured grandly at Bukola. "Will you repent, Gospel Girl?" The crowd roared. Bukola opened her mouth— CRACK. A sound like lightning split the air. Every head whipped toward the hotel’s giant LED screen. Where Bukola’s face should have been, there was… Audio waves. And then Pastor Adeleke’s voice, slick with sin, filled the lobby: "You’ll sleep with me, or your brother loses his scholarship. Unless you want his blood on your hands?" The girl in the choir robe—Tobi’s sister—burst into fresh sobs. The crowd’s fury turned like a tidal wave. "Liar!" Adeleke shouted, but the recording continued: "Such a pretty little mouth. Open it for your pastor, eh?" Silence. Then— Chaos. Tobi moved like a man possessed, shoving through the now-enraged crowd, dragging Bukola behind him. Mama Nkechi materialized at their side, shoving car keys into his hand. "Take her. Now." Bukola barely had time to process before she was thrown into a black SUV, Tobi peeling out as fists pounded on the windows. "Who was that girl?" Bukola demanded, her voice raw. Tobi’s knuckles whitened on the wheel. "My baby sister. Adeleke raped her three years ago. When I confronted him, he had me thrown out of three churches." A muscle jumped in his jaw. "I joined your tour to get close to him. To destroy him." The confession hit like a slap. "So I was… what? Bait?" Tobi swerved down a dark alley, killing the headlights. Then he turned to her, eyes burning. "At first." His hand cupped her cheek. "Then I fell for you. Hard." Bukola wanted to pull away. She couldn’t. The abandoned church on Lagos’ outskirts smelled of dust and old hymns. Moonlight bled through stained glass, painting Tobi’s skin in fractured colors as he backed her against the peeling altar. "You used me," she whispered. "I saved you," he corrected, hands caging her hips. "That recording was mine. I’ve waited years to ruin him." Bukola’s pulse pounded in her throat. "You lied." "So did you." His thumb traced her lower lip. "All those pretty sermons about purity. While you moaned my name in the studio." A whimper escaped her. Tobi’s mouth crashed down. This wasn’t love. This was war. His teeth scraped her neck as he lifted her onto the altar, her legs wrapping around his waist. The wood creaked beneath them, a blasphemous counterpoint to their ragged breaths. "Tell me to stop," he growled, hands tearing at her dress. She arched into him instead. When he entered her, it was with a groan that sounded like **prayer and punishment** tangled together. Each thrust was a vow— lied, I want you, I’ll burn for this. Bukola clawed at his back, her cries echoing off the vaulted ceiling like a corrupted choir. Above them, a broken stained-glass angel watched, its face shattered. She came with a sob. Tobi followed, his forehead pressed to hers, their sweat mingling like holy water and sin. After, as they lay tangled on a pew, Bukola’s phone buzzed. A notification from Mama Nkechi: "Adeleke arrested. But he has powerful friends. They’re coming for you both. RUN." Tobi sat up, muscles tense. "We need to—" Sirens wailed in the distance. Bukola’s blood froze. Tobi grabbed her hand. "Back door. Now." They barely made it to the car before headlights flooded the parking lot. As tires screeched into the night, one question burned hotter than guilt: Who betrayed them this time? TO BE CONTINUED… WILL THEY TRUST EACH OTHER—OR WILL THE PAST TEAR THEM APART? #fictionalwritter #fictionalstories #africanstoryteller #africantales #talesmoonlight #africanlovesaga #hotromancedrama #storytelling #Storytime #kenyanfolktales #ghanianfolktales #zambianfolktales #gambianfolktales #nigeriafolktales #ugandanfolktales