Keri Lake

I’m not the pretty delicate thing who flirts and minds her manners. I’m a crude thief, a former street kid, one who does what she has to in order to survive.

“Of course. But do not be fooled by stories of the afterlife, child. One way, or another, we all burn for our sins. Dominus vigilans.”

“Dominus vigilans. What does that mean?” I’d studied enough Latin to know it’s literal translation, but not its significance in the conversation.

“It means, watch yourself, for you are watched.”

“My point is that beneath the earth lies the roots, dirt and worms, where everything decays in order to feed the beauty you find so perfect. In order for something to live, something must rot.”