“Kate,” Morales said, his voice strained from pain and fatigue, “hurry.”
He looked like he’d aged ten years. I gave him a weak thumbs-up and turned back to the task.
Volos, knowing what was coming, stepped back. I turned my back to everyone and closed my eyes. I heard him say something to the others in a low tone, but I actively blocked everything out after that.
Inhaling a deep breath, I scanned down my body, focusing on relaxing each limb. I willed my cells to tune into the vibrations of magic running through my body. When everything was humming, I finally opened my eyes.
The potion looked different now. Instead of the simple red liquid from earlier, it now glowed iridescent and thrummed with power. Above the glow, I saw the red dragon of Yü Nü’s magic. Next to that were two crowned serpents swallowing each other’s tails in an infinity symbol. I realized with a start that this image was supposed to be my magic mixed with Volos’s power.
Swallowing hard, I focused on the images again, looking beyond the surface markers that identified the wizards who’d created the magic and beyond to the heart of the potion. There, circling in the air over the potion, was a soaring red phoenix.
I released all of my energy at once, nearly collapsing from the rush of power. Volos caught me and steadied me. “It’s good,” I gasped. “We did it.”
Suddenly, there was a rush of movement around us. Gregor and the other guards ushered all of us onto the platform.
“Wait,” I yelled, “we did what you asked. Let us go.” I pointed at the blood coating Morales’s torso. “He needs medical attention.”
Aphrodite had that mask back on, a leering sun burning in the dark. “The proof will be in the pudding. No one is free until the rites are complete.”
A guard dropped Morales at my feet. I knelt down to support him. “Hang in there, okay?”
He was paler now and his skin was coated in a fine sheen of cold sweat. I grabbed his hand to help him rise and Volos looped his arm under to support Morales’s weight on the other side.
On the other side of the platform, Duffy and Yü Nü huddled together. Aphrodite climbed onto their crucifix. They seemed to have dismissed the unconscious Harry Bane in the corner. I’d seen him twitch a time or two, so I didn’t think he was dead. In fact, he was probably the safest of all of us at that point because he wasn’t going up to the stage for whatever horror show Aphrodite had planned.
“All right, kiddies, smile. It’s show time.” Aphrodite threw their head back to look up at the trap door overhead. “Send up the guards.”
Half of the armed men left the basement. Presumably, they were going up to the stage to ensure Aphrodite’s safety if any of the law enforcement agents in the audience decided to try to play hero.
From somewhere in the theater, trumpets blared. A cheer rose from the crowd.
Gregor placed a headset on the Hierophant’s head. A moment later, when they spoke, the sound echoed from above, as if they were being broadcast into the theater.
“Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between, thank you so much for attending this sacred occasion tonight. In a moment, we will begin the rites. You will notice that some of my personal security staff are posted on the stage. Don’t be alarmed. They are there to ensure the safety of everyone involved. We have also taken the liberty of locking the doors to the theater.”
Gasps filtered down. Aphrodite smiled. A murmur of alarm rose in the theater.
“Again, this is for your own protection. Assuming everything goes to plan, no one will be harmed. Now, let the show begin!”
The pulley system squeaked and groaned. The platform lurched and then we were rising steadily toward the hole in the ceiling.
I looked at Volos, whose expression was uncharacteristically anxious. Morales squeezed my hand. I looked at him.
“That potion going to work?”
I nodded. “Looks like.”
“How do you know?”
I sighed. “Because it’s what I do.”
“Meaning?” He frowned.
Time to come clean. “I can read magic. Tell who made it and what it does.”
His face tightened. I braced myself for the recriminations. Defensive retorts already began to form in my head. But then his expression cleared and he leaned into me. “Jesus, Kate. I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m so damned sorry.”
“Don’t.” I closed my eyes and enjoyed the solid weight of him against me. Close by, I could feel Volos watching us, but I didn’t care. “It doesn’t matter right now. Just save your energy. We’re going to need to be strong and fast to get out of this.”
“Actually,” Volos said, “if bullets start flying, it’s going to take a fucking miracle.” He glanced at Morales and me. A tight smile appeared on his lips. “But strong and fast won’t hurt, either.”
When Morales didn’t try to get the final word in, I realized he must be in worse shape than I realized.
Shouting from up above echoed down to us. Guess the crowd hadn’t been as reassured by Aphrodite’s words as they’d hoped.
“When we get up there, Kate will stay with me,” Aphrodite commanded. “Everyone else don’t move, or my guards will not hesitate to take you out. No one must interfere with the ascension rites. Am I clear?”
We all muttered our understanding of the terms. I didn’t bother asking why I was the only one required to stay with them. I was their insurance. Morales and Volos wouldn’t go after them with me at their side, and the MEA and BPD in the building wouldn’t risk shooting a cop.
Next thing I knew, we were emerging from the darkness and into the intense stage lights. They blinded all of us temporarily. After blinking several times, my vision cleared enough to look out over the packed theater. I couldn’t make out distinct faces, but I had the impression of hundreds of worried faces watching the drama unfold onstage.
It didn’t take long for people to start noticing the wounded among us, or that the mayor was one of the hostages. Shouts and screams came from the crowd. The sounds of confrontation reached us as some people tried to get through the exits.
A gunshot ripped through the theater.
“Enough!” Aphrodite screamed into her headset. “You came here for a show, didn’t you? How often in your life do you get the privilege of witnessing a Hierophant ascend to the higher plane of existence? Do you think this process is pretty? Do you think magic is neat and tidy?” They laughed. “Children, I assure you, it is not.”
They spoke from their perch on the crucifix. Fontina appeared and pulled the robe from their body. Now, Aphrodite wore a simple loincloth. The breast on the left side of their chest was exposed along with the pectoral of the right side.
“Take a good look. This earthly body is about to transmute into a sacred vessel of immortality!” They threw off their masks and removed their loincloth. Fontina clapped and cheered.
Gasps rippled through the shocked crowd. A flaccid penis sat just above a hairless vulva. I didn’t find the display grotesque or shocking. It was all…just flesh.
Aphrodite was revered as some sort of mysterious figure, but really, they were just a person. I realized with a start that maybe in some ways, they were more human than the rest of us, being one of the few humans who knew what it was like to live inside the skin of both a man and a woman. Unfortunately, that knowing hadn’t translated into wisdom.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Morales leaning into Volos as two guards pointed the muzzles of machine guns at their midsections. Across the stage, Yü Nü and Duffy were receiving the same treatment.
I looked out into the glow of the lights that created a barrier between us and the audience. Somewhere out there, Gardner and Mez, and, by now, probably Shadi, McGinty, and Dixon, were watching this profane tableau play out. Their guns were probably in their hands too.