Page 15 of Dead End

“You’re being liberated,” Posy said. “Take the win.”

“I’d rather take his head. Point me in his general direction, would you?”

“Posy…” I began, but she cut me off.

“Straight out the door, turn right and follow the path tothe main building. Second floor. Gabil’s too cowardly to fight, but too arrogant to hide in the bunker.”

The god bolted before I could intervene. “You said chaos, not murder.”

“We both want the same outcome, to destroy The Corporation, only I want more carnage with my outcome.”

“They didn’t give you the promotion you deserved, and your answer is bloodshed?”

She smashed another urn. “The bloodier the better. What? It isn’t like they’ll die forever unless they’re obliterated. We both know how it works.”

Another god formed in front of us and was set free.

“What about you? If you stay here smashing urns, someone’s bound to catch you.”

“If I play my cards right, they’ll all be gone by then.” She flexed her fingers. “If you don’t want to be a party to mass murder, I suggest you go now.”

“I thought you wanted my help.”

“Your heart doesn’t seem to be in it.”

There was only one place my heart belonged, and if I didn’t hurry, I might miss my one and only chance to get there. “What’s the quickest way to the lab from here?”

A bold smile ripped across her features. “Now you’re talking. Destroy their new avatar program before it begins. If they manage to unroll it, every realm is screwed.”

My world tilted on its axis. “What?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s their new big plan for worlds domination. They’re planning to use supernaturals instead of humans. More bang for the buck. I considered volunteering, but this beach body isn’t big enough for two bossy bitches.”

Thinking of Belphegor, I nearly corrected her assumption but quickly realized how foolish that would be.

She smashed another urn as she offered directions fromthe barracks. “Burn that lab to the ground, Melinoe. I’m rooting for you.”

My brain felt like a pinball machine as her news bounced around without finding a spot to settle. “Good luck, Posy.”

Heart thumping, I raced out of the warehouse. The sounds of battle rattled the buildings. I dashed between them until I spotted the hill Posy had identified.

I scrambled to the top and dropped to my stomach to get the lay of the land before I continued. Smoke billowed in the distance. Apep was giving them hell. I only hoped that the good gods didn’t get caught in the crossfire.

I ran down the hill and across the field and hopped the fence that surrounded the lab. There was no sign of security. No doubt everyone had been called away to deal with Apep’s army. Bless that reptilian nightmare.

The main door had been left ajar in their haste to flee or join the fight. I kept my back flat and slid along the wall until I reached the small lobby. There were two corridors to choose from, the first one behind a normal wooden door and the second one protected by a set of thick metal doors. It didn’t take a genius to choose the second one.

The doors were unlocked. I hurried along the corridor and peeked in every room, scanning the contents until I found the one most likely to house my DNA. Equipment had been knocked over and protective gear strewn across the floors. The building had cleared out in a hurry.

None of the rooms I passed had storage facilities—until I reached the very last one. Vertical storage carousels lined the walls. I expected them to be refrigerated or frozen, but according to the sign on the wall, the contents were preserved by magic. Of course they were.

There was no database. I hit a yellow button, and the shelves began to rotate. Labels with unfamiliar names passed by. They weren’t in any obvious order.

Then I spotted mine. I hit the yellow button again and the carousel stopped. I grabbed the slides off the shelf and carried them to the front of the room.

Alarm bells clanged again, whether for me or the invaders, I couldn’t be sure. Either way, the sound lit a fire under my butt.

As I stood in the center of the room, I experienced a sharp sense of deja vu, except it wasn’t this lab I was remembering; it was the one that belonged to the vampire Vincenzo Magnarella. I’d destroyed the work in his lab, yet I found myself once again faced with the same task.

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