Chapter 18

 

I stepped into the amphitheater. It was cold and the bleachers were empty. The floor was covered by some kind of massive tarp, one that spanned the whole floor and sat over a structure that was at least twenty feet high.

Where is everyone? Isabelle asked.

“No clue. I mean, we’re in the right place, I’m sure of it.”

“We are,” Brayden said as he approached me from behind. “Apparently Erzulie felt like the last trial didn’t do much for her image. She’s forbidden outside spectators for the second trial. Only students and the college Loa can attend.”

“For a woman with so many lovers, she sure is insecure.”

“Why do you think she has so many lovers?” Brayden asked. “Makes sense to me.”

I chuckled. “How did a boy so young become so perceptive?”

“Survival,” Brayden said as he retrieved his doll from his pocket. “You have to be perceptive to survive at this school. Especially when you’re several years younger than anyone else.”

“Is that supposed to be me?” I smirked. It was about as nice-looking as any Voodoo doll can be. Still, I looked more like a brunette Raggedy Anne than myself.

“It’s functional,” Brayden said. “And if the second trial is going to be what I suspect, being able to guide you will come in handy.”

“Have some inside knowledge on the trial?” I asked.

“Let’s just say my abilities give me some pretty impressive skills in subterfuge.”

“You snuck into Erzulie’s office, didn’t you?”

Brayden smiled wide. “Not the first time.”

“So what’s the scoop?”

“Under the tarp is some kind of maze,” Brayden explained. “Last one to reach the middle and ring the bell loses.”

“What the fuck does that have to do with dollcraft?”

Brayden shrugged. “Finding your way through a maze is challenging enough. But imagine if your competitors could redirect you, force you to turn around, take a wrong turn. Break your leg, even. Adds a whole different dimension to this.”

“Broken bones?” I asked. “Sounds extreme.”

“There’s a reason why the trials have claimed lives. The stakes get higher each round. The power we’re allowed to wield increases at every turn.”

I nodded. “Well, we’d better be careful. I already used my get-out-of-hell card once.”

Brayden cocked his head sideways. “I’ll make you a deal.”

I laughed. “With all the business going on with Kalfu, the talk of striking deals never sits as well with me as it used to.”

“Don’t worry.” Brayden smiled. “I’m not asking for your soul or anything. Just a pact. We get out of this thing together. We get out alive.”

“I can agree to that.”

Footsteps approached from behind.

I nodded at Dudley and Sauron. Sauron gave me a friendly smile. Dudley’s face remained blank and grim. He was the son of a bitch working with Kalfu, I knew it. Little did he know what I had in store for him. A few seconds later, Tressa approached. The sound of chains dragging along the cement made it clear that she had some of her man-slaves in tow. This time, she had three of them. Three of the whitest dudes I’d ever seen—even without much light in Vilokan, their pale skin was almost blinding. They all held their heads low, fixed on Tressa’s heels as she walked.

I shook my head.

“Hey there, Tressa.”

Tressa turned and gave me a sly grin before turning back to her three subs and snapping her fingers. Each of them hit their knees, and they formed something of a throne. One man leaned back, his knees in the air and his palms on the ground. The other two propped him up from beneath, their own knees forming something of a seat. Tressa took her seat on her fleshly throne.

“I really hope Ashley doesn’t end up like her,” I muttered.

She won’t, Isabelle said. Love is a powerful thing, and Erzulie’s influence is strong. But I don’t see Ashley using those powers in… that… way. Besides, she loves Roger.

“I’m all for girl power, but come on. Can that kind of thing really be fulfilling?”

Just depends on what you want out of life. Those men certainly seem fulfilled, in their own way.

“Probably doctors and lawyers, all of them. Men with power… this kind of thing is an escape.”

An escape from what?

“The need to be in control. The responsibility. I can relate in a very weird way.”

How so?

“All this power we have. The responsibility. So much at stake. Sometimes it would be nice to just let someone else take charge for a while, you know?”

Do you want me to take the reins?

I shook my head. “I’d do it. But my name was the one nominated. Erzulie would probably figure it out. Use it to disqualify us.”

“Hey, girl!” Pauli said as he appeared on my shoulders.

“I wondered when you were going to show up. I was just lamenting how it felt like I had the weight of the world on my shoulders.”

“Bitch, are you calling me fat?”

I laughed. “No, but I guess it isn’t fair to equate you to the weight of the world.”

“Not to mention, I weigh less than I did before. This form is quite slimming if I don’t say so myself.”

“I was just talking to Isabelle about how Tressa’s little cadre of men must be powerful men in their real lives, men who crave to be subjugated behind closed doors.”

“Oh you know it,” Pauli said. “Spend some time in my community and you’ll find lots of men like that. It’s sad really. Men are so pressured to be manly, to be in control, but that’s not healthy for anyone. Not without an outlet.”

“I wonder how she gets away with bringing them down into Vilokan. I thought you had to have an aspect.”

“Or get your mind wiped before you go,” Pauli said. “A partial wipe anyway. Erzulie and Brigitte are tight. I’m sure they have it worked out.”

“Pauli, you seen Mikah? I think Isabelle wanted to see him before this thing gets started.”

“He should be on his way,” Pauli said. “He was with Oggie last I saw. They were just leaving the Academy. Should be here any sec—”

“Hi, Isabelle,” Mikah said.

“Well speak of the devil!” Pauli exclaimed.

“Were you guys talking about me?” Mikah asked.

I nodded. “I knew Isabelle would want to see you before the trial. You know, just in case.”

“In case of what?” Mikah asked. “You’ll be fine, if that’s what you’re thinking. Worst case scenario, if something happens, she can heal you.”

“It would probably get us disqualified. You know, for using her power.”

Mikah shrugged. “Better disqualified than dead. I assume you have a plan for this one?”

I nodded. “Figured something out from the book.”

“Are you going to tell me, or are you going to keep me in suspense like anyone else?”

I bit my lip, considering it.

Don’t tell him, Isabelle said. He’ll just worry needlessly if he knows you’re using Nico’s doll. That thing was the start of all of this…

“Let’s keep it a surprise this time. I don’t want to spoil the show.”

Mikah laughed. “All right. Just remember, after these trials Isabelle and I get a weekend.”

“A whole weekend?”

“You agreed!”

I sighed. “All right, you guys get a weekend. But how about I focus on winning this shit first?”

“Deal,” Mikah said. “I’ll be sitting in the row behind Oggie.”

I nodded. Not like it mattered where he’d be sitting. Based on the size of this maze, still covered by a tarp, it was clear that no one from the outside would be able to see what was happening anyway.