Caught in the hands of a cult, my tormentor might just be my salvation Loelle A smuggling job gone wrong lands me in deep trouble. Captured by the Order, ruthless inquisitors hellbent on purging any defiance. They unleash their most brutal enforcer - Finzar. He is a sizzling zealot, his allure hardwired to ignite rather than extinguish. At first, he's just their merciless disciple tormenting me. My unbreakable spirit stirs something feral underneath his scorching stare - the lost heretic he buried, blazing back to life. With each failed attempt to break me, I fan those smoldering embers until Finzar's conditioning detonates into ultimate heresy. Can I, a lowly criminal, sway this tormented enforcer to sacrifice the only existence he'd ever known and escape with me to freedom? Finzar I am the Order's dark blade until I'm tasked with neutralizing Loelle, an outlaw whose spirit awakens forbidden cravings for freedom I thought I purged. Her radiance dissolves my cruel indoctrinations, leaving only all-consuming devotion. This scornful hellion makes my body respond to unholy urges I've never felt before. So for the first time, I blasphemously claim this scorching criminal queen - to possess utterly, guard zealously, ravage without restraint. Any threats to our illicit union faces my feral fury. If we don't escape the Order's clutches, they'll sacrifice us to fuel an ancient god's return and we will both be extinguished forever. This novella is part of the Villains Do It Better series. This steamy sci-fi romance features a male virgin zealot, his defiant outlaw heroine, and a sizzling HEA.