Page 94 of Dead End

I set down the phone and surveyed the kitchen. “Do we have any snacks?”

Goran pushed out his chest. “I’m Nana Pratt’s worthy successor. Of course we have snacks.”

Half an hour later, the parlor room was crammed with assassins and werewolves. Probably not the party mix Joseph Edgar Blue III had in mind when the tycoon built Bluebeard’s Castle.

I stood in front of the fireplace and faced them. “First I’d like to thank you all for coming on such short notice.”

West’s mouth cracked into a grin. “You didn’t really think the pack would let you do this alone, did you?”

“You might want to get your vision checked, wolf-man,” Vaughn said. “There’s an entire guild sitting here.”

Anna directed a low growl at the assassin. “Careful how you speak to the alpha.”

“He’s not my alpha,” Vaughn shot back.

From behind the sofa, Gunther smacked the back of the mage’s head. “Put your ego back in the box. We have more important things to discuss.”

Josie sniffed the air. “Do I smell popcorn?”

Goran swept into the room carrying large bowls of popcorn. “Buttered and salted.” With a flourish, he offered a bowl to Josie.

I tried to keep the meeting on track. “I told you before that The Corporation was coming for me. I have reason to believe that’s no longer true. I think they want control of the crossroads so they can use it as a staging area for their supernatural armies to invade other realms.”

Vaughn twirled a knife between his fingers in an idle gesture. “Sounds good to me. What assassin wouldn’t want the chance to take down a god?”

“What about the rules?” Camryn asked. “How are we supposed to fight gods if we’re not allowed to kill on Fairhaven soil?”

“Technically you can’t kill them,” I said. “At worst, you’ll put them out of commission for a couple centuries.”

Alfonso glanced at Kane. “What do you think, boss?”

“This is somewhat unprecedented,” Kane said. “I think Lorelei makes an excellent point, though. I do not believe you would be in violation of the rules should you end up using lethal force against an invading deity.”

“Just remember,” I interjected. “The goal is not to kill.”

“Yeah, the goal is to keep them from killing us,” Josie said.

I gave her a firm look. “The primary objective is to immobilize them.”

“How are we expected to immobilize them without killing them?” Franco asked. “Seems to me that killing them, whatever that means for a god, is the only way to achieve that.”

“Do what you must,” Kane said, “by whatever means necessary.”

The assassins let the words settle. Finally, Camryn’s raised her hand, wiggling her fingers in the air. “I have a question.”

“I’m listening,” Kane said.

“What if we don’t want to kill anyone?”

Vaughn snorted. “You’re an assassin, Cam. It’s right there in the job title.”

“I’m serious,” Cam said. “I want to protect Fairhaven and all of you, but what if I want to do that without dealing death?”

“We already established there’d be no real death for them,” Justine told her.

Camryn offered a small nod. “I know. I guess what I’m really trying to say is, once this is over…”

“That’s a big assumption, sweetie,” Gun said.

---