He whispered words the color of love,
painted with jewel tones
and golden-tinted kisses.

He murmured words of desire,
regaling her beauty
and calling her his own.

But she was not.

Those words were poison.
They dripped from his tongue like acid
and with every blow,
she was forced to her knees,
subjugated by the fists he swore
were love incarnate.

She ran, 
Prayed to she who would save her,

begged for release,
to take away her pain
and shame
and make him pay
for stealing
that which could never be returned.

But gods are cruel.

She was cursed,
scorned by her supposed savior
doomed to a serpentine existence.
The first snake of a woman,
the reason men have to come to fear our sex
our power
all because
one woman
had the audacity
to say
No.