Page 99 of The Reaper's Vice

And I am the one who holds the strings.

Because the sacrificewasperformed—I still have the blood of that Table Member on my hands, and all of the Masks know it—and now, I have all the power.I am their Madam.

My gaze flits toward Orion, at the awestricken look etched across his face. He looks reverent. He looks spellbound.

He looks delicious.

“Orion.” I hold my hand out at my side. “Stand by me.”

He nods, grabbing the Venetian mask and stalking to my side, his eyes smoldering as he places the hefty mask into my hand. Before I put it on, he leans forward, placing delicate kisses against the apple of my cheek. “Anything for you, my queen.”

My heart flutters at his low rumble, a flush creeping up my neck as I turn my gaze back to the crowd. I don’t know if I can do this—if I would even be agoodMadam—but I have to try. For the good of this city and all the innocent people in it, I have to try. My hands shake as I place the mask on my face, but when I speak, my voice holds nothing but authority.

“You do not know me, just as I do not know any of you. But I know the thing that raised us, and I know it well. I know what you have been taught, and what you have been made to believe. But most of all, I know what you havelost.”My voice echoes across the amphitheater, nothing but the gentle rustle of clothing to interrupt me. I square my shoulders, projecting my voice so that all will be able to hear me. “The men who pretended to rule you—who gave you orders in my absence—are traitors to the good of the world. They have infected you with their lies and abused the power you possess. I will be doing no such thing.”

“From today, and all the days to come, you will no longer do harm. You will stand at my side, and you will follow the orders I give—but it will be nothing like it was. In return, I vow to lead you all withmercy.Not cruelty, or with fear, but with kindness. With understanding. I will not let the atrocities this organization profits from continue. Things will be different. They will be hard at first—maybe even impossible—but I know that in time, we can make a better world than we were given. If you agree to follow me, we can make thingsgoodagain.”

When I’m through, silence is the only thing that greets me. My heart clenches, believing for one horrible moment that my speech meant nothing. That those hundreds of men are about to storm the balcony and take my life.

But then, slowly, one by one, each of the Masks takes a knee. It starts as a ripple that grows to a wave, until eventually, each one of the men is on the ground, heads bowed low in loyalty. Loyalty tome.

Orion slides his hand up my back, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest. “Looks like they agree with you.”

“Congratulations,” Ghost pipes up, stepping to my other side and bumping his shoulder against mine. “Now, you just have to figure out how to rule this bunch of maniacs.” His eyes twinkle as he meets mine. “Luckily, I know a thing or two about that.”

Kain clears his throat, drawing all our attention back to the man with the half mask. He gestures to all the dead bodies lying around us, a flabbergasted expression twisting his features. “This is great and all… but who the fuck will clean up this mess?”

I turn to the balcony, a smile lighting my face. “I’m going to need three volunteers…”

50

ORION

“LUNCH BREAK”

1 week later…

My steps echo throughout the gold-hewn hallways, pounding in tune to my rapid heartbeat as I hasten toward Seraphina’s office. Since Seraphina took control of the Sanctum, we’ve been living here, in their new headquarters. The building is quite large—though tiny compared to the Sanctum’s former dwelling—but it does allow just enough space to house the Masks and for Seraphina to have a small office, so it’s perfect.

She’s been working tirelessly this past week to get everything under control, and to make good on her promises to the Sanctum. She’s been so focused, she often forgets to eat, sleep, or have any fun.Which is where I come in.I look down at the bag of greasy takeout in my palm, a smile eating my face as I hurry my pace.

Halfway down the hallway, I pass by a man in a red mask—a Disposer—that I now know as Adam.

“Hey, man.” I give him a little wave, brushing past him as I continue my mission.

“Hey, Orion.” His bright blue eyes snap down to the greasy bag in my hand. “Are you going to see Valez?”

I stop short at the mention of Seraphina’s last name—a name all the masks refer to her as now, seeing as she abolished the whole “madam” title as soon as she came to power.

I turn to face Adam, my brow raised in question. “I am.”

Adam reaches into his pocket, pulling out a rolled note and passing it to me. “Could you give this to her? I would, but I have to take a shit like you wouldn’t believ?—”

“Too much information, Adam,” I deadpan. “Is it something important?”

Adam looks at his feet, his face flushing. “Well, she had asked for all the Masks’ birthday cake preferences… so kinda?”

I bite back my chuckle, imagining my little dove poring over the list until the wee hours of the morning, making sure every Mask gets the type of cake he wants. “I’ll guard it with my life.” I hold the paper to my chest, pulling my shoulders back with a mock salute. “Now get out of here before you shit yourself.”

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