Page 79 of The Court of the Dead
“Where are we headed?” Nico asked.
Hazel pointed to a building across the street from City Hall.
As far as municipal facilities went, the San Francisco Superior Courthouse looked unremarkable. Its gray stone facade was set with repeating arched windows. The entrance on the corner of Polk and McAllister had no grand portico, no steps, no fancy columns—just a door. It might have been any old office building, or a particularly grim branch of the Department of Motor Vehicles.
“I don’t get it,” Will said. “If you were some kind of powerful supernatural court, abducting mythics, why would you set up here? Why not over there?” He gestured at the much grander California Supreme Court building, just across McAllister, which took up one entire side of the plaza.
“Don’t know.” Hazel dug a hair tie from her pocket and tried to tame her curls. “We’re going to have to go in and find out.”
She pulled out Laverna’s court ID card and hung it around her neck. “Hopefully this opens some doors for us, but let me disguise us with the Mist. Just to be safe.”
She put her hand on Will’s shoulder and closed her eyes in concentration.
One moment, Will Solace looked like himself. The next, he looked like Will Solace, the director’s cut. He wore a sharp navy three-piece suit. His hair was much shorter, shorn close on the sides and styled on top with some sort of gel. His brown leather dress shoes practically shone in the morning sun. He even smelled different, like he’d spritzed himself with some high-priced cologne called Executive. The whole effect made him seem about ten years older.
Nico choked back a laugh. “You lookridiculous.”
Will raised his arms and frowned. “I don’t understand. I look the same!”
“To yourself, you do,” said Hazel.
“Say something about tech stocks,” Nico prompted. “Or adjustable-rate mortgages!”
Will winced. “Ew, am I wearing asuit?”
“You look very handsome,” said Hazel. “Justverydifferent.”
“Do Nico now,” Will said, practically glowing with giddy anticipation.
Nico was certain that wearing a suit would melt the flesh off his bones, but before he could protest, Hazel reached out and grabbed his shoulder.
Now it was Will’s turn to laugh.
“What?” Nico demanded. “What do I look like?”
There were actual tears in his boyfriend’s eyes. “Just do one thing for me, Nico. Hold up your briefcase and say, ‘I’d like to approach the bench, Your Honor.’ ”
“Briefcase?” He wasn’t holding anything in his hands. He appeared to be wearing the same grubby black jeans, T-shirt, and bomber jacket that he’d started the day with. He looked at Hazel in a panic. “What did you do?”
“Calm down, brother,” she said. “You can totally pull off baby-blue seersucker.”
“Seersucker?”
“We’re going into a courthouse,” she said. “So we’re all going to look like lawyers. Watch, I’ll do me now.”
She closed her eyes again. This time, Nico tried to pay attention. He wanted to see exactly how Hazel worked the change…but his mind wouldn’t cooperate. Or rather, it cooperated only withHazel. It kept telling him Hazel hadalwayslooked like this, even after she transformed. Only a half second later did Nico manage to rewind and think,Wait. How did she do that?
His half sister now wore a burgundy pantsuit with black high heels that made her a few inches taller. On her ID tag, the photo showed Hazel’s face rather than Laverna’s. Her hair was braided in an elegant updo, and her lipstick and eyeshadow were tinted warm gold.
Nico shook his head in amazement. “Hazel, you look like you’re about to deliver the best closing argument the world has ever heard.”
She grinned. “You know, gotta look the part.”
Will wasstillfocused on Nico and struggling not to laugh. “Seriously, dude. Just say, ‘I’d like to make a deposit, sir.’ ”
Nico scowled. “I’m going to shadow-travel you back to Tartarus and leave you there.”
“All right, get used to each other,” Hazel chided. “We have to stick close together, because I haven’t quite mastered long-distance illusions.”
