Nebula

Fourteen

[manu militari]

Tessa clapped a hand over her mouth, suppressing the scream that was building up within her. Her turquoise eyes bugged out, glued to the door that was right under their noses for so long. The more she stared at it, the more she realized how faulty their searching had been to begin with.

Of course the Labyrinth entrance was somewhere near the Senate House. The explosion in the Forum had ignited a block away, offering a perfect amount of distance between the Regiment's battle and then escape route. The Labyrinth was hiding in plain sight, in a building that the Romans thought of as immaculate and sacred to their tradition.

"Tessa?" Kaya's voice echoed throughout the amphitheater above, her footsteps reverberating on the ceiling. "Are you here?"

Tessa lowered her hand, forcing herself to move. She made her way back up the stairs and down the hall, where she spotted Kaya searching the large room.

"There you are. I was beginning to worry," The praetor exhaled, but upon sight of Tessa's distressed visage, her face fell. "What's wrong?"

"I found it," Tessa spoke, the worries gripping her heart like a vice.

Kaya's dark eyes widened. "Show me."

Together, she and Tessa fled down the back hallway of the Senate House and down the steps. As soon as they step foot in the small, seemingly abandoned sector of the building, Tessa watched Kaya for any sign of recognition or surprise. She had the strangest feeling of regret, as if she shouldn't be down here alone with Kaya, right in front of the Labyrinth.

"Did you know?" Tessa asked, her tone sharp.

Kaya shook her head, her eyes still glued to the glowing blue delta on the door. "I had no idea." She took a deep breath. "This isn't good."

"Gee, you think?" Tessa snapped. "What are we supposed to do? The traitor's been traipsing back and forth right underneath our noses!"

Kaya tore her gaze from the door, searching Tessa's. "We go after them."

Tessa blinked. "You're funny."

"I'm being serious," Kaya responded brusquely. "We have a location pinpointed."

She stuck her hand in her pocket, and pulled out a Ziploc baggie that contained the small keycard they had recovered from Alcatraz. Written across the bag was a single city name: New Orleans.

Tessa plucked the bag from Kaya's grasp, turning it over in her hands. "New Orleans? That doesn't exactly narrow down a specific location, does it?"

Kaya shook her head. "The card was too corrupted to determine exact coordinates, but at least we have a set city." She peered down the hallway at the Labyrinth door, the faint sound of hydraulics running within it echoing off the walls.

"So what now?" Tessa asked. "We can't exactly move a whole camp through the Labyrinth to cut off the Regiment, can we?"

Kaya took a deep breath. She took the key card from Tessa, stuffing it back in her pocket. "We need to meet with the Senate. Then, we can decide what foot to put forward."

"Yeah, but where?" Tessa muttered under her breath. She shot one more hesitant look at the steel door as she and Kaya headed back upstairs, as if waiting for someone to walk through it at any given moment.