Page 36 of Death Trap

“What if you humor me and see for yourself? I say we find her, and you can tell me if you think she belongs here. How’s that?”

“I’d rather not waste our time on her, honestly,” he said callously. “We need to put all our strength and effort into getting out of here in one piece.”

“That’s kind of harsh for an angel,” I retorted.

“Guardian,” he corrected, making sure to put extra emphasis on the word so I’d understand. “We’re not the same as the Firsts. And even they aren’t the nicest to deal with.”

Well, going off the fact that Azrael must have a hand in the rogue censor and was out to get me, I’d have to say I agreed with that statement. Completely.

My gaze hardened on him, my mind made up. “I’m going to find her. Whether you follow me there or not. That’s not really up to you.”

“Jade…” he said, tone lowering in warning.

“Don’tJademe like that. I don’t answer to you.” Annoyance flared. What was with men always trying to tell me what to do? This wasn’t the eighteenth century here, and I sure as shit wasn’t some lady in a petticoat ready to jump at the first marriage proposal I got.

“And from what you’ve been able to explain to me so far, you’re supposed to bemyGuardian. You followmearound. Me. So buckle up, buttercup. Because I owe Wyatt a huge debt for helping me and Kay out, and I need to get him his wife back. Besides booze and cigarettes, she’s the only thing that will make the afterlife Heaven, and the old man deserves that.”

After a moment, Eli’s shoulders fell in defeat and he sighed.

“Fine,” he snapped.

He might not like this little game we were playing, but oh well. I was not one to take orders from anyone. Not even my boss.

“But you said there was another reason we were here. I’m afraid to ask, but what is it?”

“I need to find the reaper who came before me. Only he knows about my life before this. Heck, he may even know why Azrael is targeting me.”

Eli was quiet for a few moments as he considered this one. Then he finally said, “That reason makes more sense to me. But how do you know he’s here? I thought reapers were Released when they were let go or retired.”

Sounded like he was more on board now. Good. I didn’t want to have to go through him if I didn’t have to.

Briefly, I gave him a rundown of the folder Simon found in Azrael’s desk and how Benjamin’s soul also hadn’t come up in the soul database like it was supposed to.

Again, he stayed deathly silent as it all sank in.

I gave him some time to respond, but when he didn’t, I walked up to the microphone again and said, “Lisa Gail Michaels” into it as clearly as I could.

The room around us spun like a tornado, and I gripped onto the microphone’s stand for balance. Wind stirred up, tossing my hair all over and whistling by my ears. Colors and shapes blurred past, but the walkway where we stood remained still.

When the movement slowed and then eventually came to a halt, the walkway became another long stretch of hallway, and the walls were lined with plain white wooden doors. By the looks of it, the name “Lisa Gail Michaels” was scrolled across a nameplate on each of them, too. All five hundred of them.

Okay, I guessed that number, but I must have been close. Especially since the hall and doors stretched farther than I could see.

I smoothed down my hair and looked at Eli. “Why so many doors?” Was this some form of torture? One of these doors contained Lisa behind it and the others had horrible monsters or whatever? Like some horrific game of hide-and-seek.

“You have to remember. Human life has been on earth for hundreds of thousands of years. Even though they’re in Hell, there have been many—many—people with that combination of name.”

“So, you’re telling me every one of these doors leads to a Lisa Gail Michaels?”

“I would assume so.”

My guess had been half right, then. But still, how was I supposed to find Lisa? Search behind every one of these doors until I found the right one? I didn’t even know what she looked like. This was going to be like finding a needle in a haystack.

“Maybe there’s a way to narrow down the search. Maybe I could say more specifics into the microphone?” I leaned closer to it again and cleared my throat before speaking. “Lisa Gail Michaels. Maiden name Benton?” Would that work?

The sudden pickup in wind and spinning walls around us said it very well might.

When everything all settled down again, we stood in the long, slender hallway with just three doors total, all spaced out against the walls.

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