Unfinished Muse Read Online Free Page B

Thebes, we passed through
the lobby. Phyllis still sat on a table next to the rubber tree
plant, both of them waving their leaves in animated conversation.
Patrice looked my way, and I ducked my head.
    At any moment, I’d wake up from this bizarre
dream, late for work at my crappy call-center job, knowing I still
needed to break up with Freddy over lunch. That had to be the
answer, because none of this was real. It couldn’t be.
    I averted my eyes as a winged lion with the
head of a woman sauntered past pushing a mail cart.
    Nope. Not real. Not possible.
    And yet, with no other plan, I continued
forward, following my new acquaintances back to the conference room
labeled Thebes. Because, why the hell not? If nothing else, the
nasty mac and cheese had left a very real taste in my mouth to
prove its existence.
    We all returned to the seats we’d been in
earlier, and Mrs. Moros waited while we got settled.
    “For the rest of today,” she said, “we’ll
watch a filmstrip that gives a history lesson. You need to be
acquainted with the gods and goddesses in order to understand the
various departments.”
    Filmstrips? What year are we in, 1960? What
are we, twelve?
    She swung around and glared at me. “That’s
two.”
    I slunk down in my seat. I didn’t know what
happened at three , but it couldn’t be good.
    Mrs. Moros scowled and paced as she spoke.
“Tomorrow you will return here to receive the first of your
placement tests. Throughout the week, you’ll be assessed for your
knowledge, abilities, and intelligence.”
    She stopped pacing and managed to glare at
the entire room at once. “I don’t expect all of you to make the
cut.”
    Without another word, she flipped a switch.
The room went dark, and a movie started.
    It wasn’t a Hollywood blockbuster, but it
wasn’t an actual filmstrip, either. I really did feel like I was
back in high school. Mrs. Moros left, and we watched a movie. If I
were in school, I’d assume she went for a smoke.
    Since I wasn’t in school and this place was
weird as hell, I thought it was more likely that she’d left to
trick us and was actually in the room, invisible, watching to see
who paid attention.
    Paranoid? Sure. But a snake lady served me a
vile lunch, and I walked past a sphinx coming back to the room. A
little paranoia was warranted.
    The movie went over all the basic Greek
gods, which I mostly remembered from school and stories Mom read to
me when I was little. Then it explained the mission of the Mount
Olympus Employment Agency. First, to guide humans to their greatest
good. And second, to provide a life purpose to the bastard children
of the gods.
    Bastard. Nice. I’d thought that word had
gone out of style other than as a general name for people who cut
me off in traffic. I’d have to try it out in front of Mom and see
if it helped me get any more information out of her about my
father.
    I didn’t know what I’d expected. More call
center work, I supposed. General office drone stuff. Maybe
placement in a retail location. I didn’t know for sure. When I
heard employment agency , I assumed it would be temp work.
This was something else altogether.
    The departments were familiar, but only from
stories, not as actual jobs. The Furies department dispensed
justice. The Fates department was responsible for planning—though I
was hazy on what they planned. The Muse department provided
inspiration. Graces, Oracles, Dreams, Cupids…my head spun with all
the possible jobs I might be placed in. None of them seemed
inviting. And the sad truth of it was, I wasn’t particularly good
at anything.
    Chances were, I’d wash out and be assigned
to the cafeteria. If that happened, Phyllis was getting a good
pruning.
    When the movie was over, the lights came on
by themselves, and we all looked around. Mrs. Moros wasn’t in the
room, and she’d given no instructions as to what to do. We waited.
Gradually, first in whispers, then a little louder, the crowd grew
restless.
    Hal was the