Page 7 of Crazy as Hell

To the left of the main building was a nightclub located in a spectacular glass-domed atrium. Its design allowed the space to transform effortlessly into an elegant ballroom or a concert venue whenever special events were held. Although it was only open on weekends, its remote location never seemed to discourage visitors. If anything, the isolated setting only added to its mystique, ensuring the club was almost always filled to capacity.

To the right of the main building was a fully equipped fitness and wellness center. Beyond its state-of-the-art gym and luxurious spa, the facility housed a large indoor swimming pool, racquetball courts, and a full-sized basketball court. Behind the building, the grounds opened into a recreation area featuring a seasonal pool, immaculate tennis courts, a golf course, beautifully landscaped gardens, and a small orchard that supplied fresh fruit throughout much of the year.

While membership was open to both supernaturals and humans, the upper floors of the main structure were reserved exclusively for those with magic. Certain areas were protected by powerful wards, discouraging human visitors from wandering where they didn’t belong. Most of the Manor’s employees lived on the premises, and there were more than enough rooms to provide sanctuary for any supernatural visitors needing a safe place to stay.

Naomi had taken advantage of that offer during the last cycle. When she had initially arrived at The Manor, she had only been planning to stay for a few days. Her main goal had been to speak to the enigmatic owner, but after seeing the place and learning about the people who worked there, she decided to stay.

She’d gotten a job bartending in the nightclub on the weekends, and helped out doing odd jobs whenever they needed extra hands. Whether it was helping with private events, assisting in the restaurant during busy evenings, or filling in wherever someone else needed time off, she quickly earned a reputation as a dependable stand-in.

Staying busy helped keep her mind occupied, which was preferable to dwelling on the ever-present countdown to her next death.

The employee benefits had been an unexpected surprise. Besides a generous salary, the staff received complimentary meals during their shifts. They were also allowed to enjoy nearly all of the amenities on the premises whenever they weren’t reserved for paying members or guests. During her time at The Manor, she had used the gym, the library, the pools, and many of the recreational facilities without spending a dime.

They even had several expert healers permanently employed at the club who provided everything from routine checkups to emergency magical and physical treatment. That had seemed a little excessive, until she learned Arson and his crew were also members of the Guardians of the Underworld.

The guardians were supernaturals who helped keep order within the Human Realm. Their primary responsibility was making sure magical beings obeyed the laws that allowed humans and supernaturals to coexist without chaos. Anyone reckless enough to expose magic, prey openly on humans, or threaten the fragile balance between the worlds quickly found themselves on the guardians’ radar.

Most people lived their entire lives without ever realizing such an organization existed. However, within the supernatural community, the guardians were impossible to ignore. Their reputation was legendary. They were respected for their strength, admired for their discipline, and feared for the way they dealt with anyone reckless enough to threaten the balance. Whether someone viewed them as heroes, protectors, or ruthless enforcers often depended on which side of an investigation they found themselves.

Since they were often injured during their duties, having a capable medical staff on hand made perfect sense.

Because her bartending shifts were limited to weekends, Naomi had most of the week free to continue searching for answers about the curse trapping her in the endless time loop. Every spare hour was devoted to research, interviews, magical experiments, or chasing down another theory that might explain what was happening to her.

She hadn’t exactly been subtle about it when she’d first arrived. In fact, she’d bluntly told Arson that the only reason she’d come to the private club was that she was trapped in a never-ending death cycle and believed someone there might be able to help her break it.

Unsurprisingly, they hadn’t believed her at first. Most people assumed she was either joking, delusional, or trying to manipulate her way into the restricted areas in the library for nefarious reasons. It took weeks of hard work, reliability, and proving she wasn’t a threat before Arson and the others were willing to help her.

Gradually, they stopped seeing her as a crazy girl with an unbelievable story, and started treating her like one of their own. A handful of them even agreed to assist with her investigation. Sharing old records, introducing her to friends who might know something, or pointing her toward magical experts who occasionally visited the resort.

The idea of someone cursed to die over and over while time itself reset around her was fascinating to them. They rightfully claimed it sounded more like the plot of a fantasy novel than a real situation. As far as they were concerned, she sincerely believed what she was saying, so that was enough for them. They’d seen enough magical weird shit that they had learned to go with the flow when the unexplainable happened.

Since visitors weren’t allowed to teleport directly into the buildings without causing a security issue, Naomi appeared out of view in a small clearing near one of the permanent portals that was available for visitors to use. She hitched her backpack higher on her shoulder as she started to hike down the long driveway leading toward The Manor.

By the time the buildings came into view, there was a valet standing by the front entrance waiting for her arrival. She knew he had been aware of her arrival from the moment she had teleported onto the property. He looked like a nice, respectable young man, but few people could guess he could rip someone’s throat out before they even realized he moved.

“Hello,” he called out cheerfully. “Welcome to The Manor.”

“Hi, Sully.”

Well, shit. Two seconds in, and she had already made a mistake. She realized she wasn’t supposed to know the falcon shifter yet, but it had become a habit to greet whoever was working at the entrance of the club. And since he also worked at the nightclub on the weekends, they had gotten to be friends.

He blinked at her in surprise. “I’m sorry. Have we met before?”

Not in this lifetime, she thought with a sigh. “We have. Briefly.”

“Oh.” He shot her a sheepish smile. “How can I help you today?”

“My name is Naomi Locke, and I need to speak to Arson. Tell him it’s a matter of life or death.”

His friendly expression turned serious since that was the code the guardians and their allies used for urgent matters. “Come with me.”

She silently followed him inside, then took a seat in the elegant lobby while Sully left to go check where Arson was to see if he could meet with her. It was still early enough that the main floor was pretty much empty except for a few staff members. Glancing around, she realized that the lobby was still the epitome of modern elegance and old-world class, but something had changed since the last time she’d been there.

For her, it had been only yesterday.

But now, it was months before her last reset.

It took her a moment, then she realized the marble floor was a lighter color, and the area rugs were completely different patterns. While decorating on a whim was possible, it was more likely that something had happened in the lobby that had made renovating the area necessary.