Returning to work was a mistake. I knew it with every fiber of my being, but I still decided to do so after last week’s budget meeting. I was hugely successful, securing my team a significant amount for next year, and I let that success go to my head.
I shouldn’t have let that happen. Always trust your instincts.
Nobody has said anything to me directly about my failure to execute Mammon, but I’m sure they’re thinking about it. I occasionally overhear whispers, which only confirms my worst fears.
The doors swing shut behind me. I take a cautious step inside the large room, still confused by what I’m seeing. The office is in chaos, with people scurrying around and talking hurriedly over one another. It’s unusual, and I don’t trust it.
I can recall only one time the office was this energetic. It was the day my useless brother’s coronation was announced, and even then, there wasn’t this much buzzing energy.
I instinctively straighten my shoulders, not wanting to appear confused or unprepared in front of my employees. I’m not getting the inkling that something bad has happened. Ihope not. My bracelet has trapped me within the Wrath and Lust borders, and I highly doubt my fathers will feel inclined to remove it.
If something badhashappened and people find out I’m leashed and unable to help, my life will effectively be over. I’ll never be respected within Wrath. It would be the nail in my coffin.
“Cassia!”
I turn, locking eyes with Jassy. She’s in long, black clothing today, every inch of her body covered. The fabric swishes as she approaches. I listen intently to it, a habit I’ve developed in recent days. Focusing on my senses helps ground me, and I need all the grounding I can get.
“Was it you?” Jassy asks.
Waswhatme? She sounds excited—giddy, even. It makes me feel inclined to lie and confirm my involvement, but I hesitate to take credit for something I know nothing about. What if it has something to do with David? I would hate for people to think I voluntarily worked with my brother on a project.
He’s dead to me.
I attempted to trust him with my plan to execute Mammon, and he fucked me over. I know he’s the one who told our parents my actual whereabouts, and he did nothing to stop Silas from putting that bracelet on me. He’s useless, and I’ll never trust him again.
Valeria is on thin ice, too, especially since I learned she had her bracelet removed. The whore told our parents that she needed to travel to fulfill her ‘fate duties’—whatever the fuck those are—and Silas jumped to remove it for her.
She’s a sneaky bitch, and I’m angry I don’t have nearly as good of an excuse. I report directly to Aziel, so I can’t lie and say I need it removed for work. My team deals with internal affairs, and I rarely need to leave Wrath. He knows that.
“Well?” Jassy urges. “Did you have something to do with it?”
I let out a quiet sigh. “I’m not sure what you’re referring to.”
It’s painful to admit, but I have no choice. I immediately regret it, though, as Jassy’s eyes widen and her jaw drops. She’s shocked, maybe even horrified, by my lack of knowledge. Whatever she’s speaking about, it’s expected that I’ve already been made aware.Wonderful.
I blame Aziel. I turn off all communication with the outside world when I leave my office at the end of the day. I teleport home, make something borderline edible for dinner, and crawl into bed for a solid fourteen hours of sleep.
My family knows this. I make no attempts to keep my miserable life a secret from them. If something eventful happens, I expect them to come and tell me. I trusted my family not to let me show up to work looking foolish, but that was clearly too much responsibility to give them.
“You haven’t heard?” Jassy asks.
Obviously not.
I eye the smooth column of her throat, wondering how easy it would be to snap her neck before she goes around informing people that I came into work not knowing whatever it is everybody is running around about. It would probably be easy. Jassy is a strong Wrath, and she’s several centuries older than I, but I’ve inherited Aziel’s strength.
I like to think I’m just as strong as he is, or that I at least have the potential to be. I haven’t shared that particular suspicion with anybody, though. I did once when I was a teenager, and Valeria was all too quick to inform me that if that were true, the fates would’ve cursed me as they had Aziel.
I’ve fucked many men in my twenty-seven years, and I share a bond with none of them. The fates didn’t find it necessary to curse me, which I consider an oversight on their part. They don’t know what I’m capable of.
“Mammon’s dead,” Jassy blurts out. “She was murdered early this morning.”
Every muscle in my body grows taut. What? Blood rushes through my ears, and I gape at Jassy like an absolute fool. Mammon’s dead? Murdered? Did I hear her correctly? I shut my eyes and focus on the even beating of my heart, trying and failing to settle my bubbling anger. Mammon has been murdered, and not by me. Somebody stole my fucking kill.
I take several seconds to level out my emotions before speaking. “How? Who?”
“We don’t know,” Jassy says. “Mammon’s children are trying to keep everything under wraps, and we’ve only heard whispers. All communication within Greed has been shut down.”
Was it a Greed? A Wrath? Did somebody hear of my plans and sneak inside to complete what I failed to do? There aren’t many species strong enough to murder a demon, let alone one as powerful and protected as Mammon. It had to have been done by a demon.
