Em walked me into Dev-Tech’s main lobby. The previous night’s lovemaking had taken a severe toll on our bodies, and we both hobbled a little. Who knew engagement made women so fucking horny? A few people sat in the uncomfortable plastic seats, reading honest-to-god in date tech magazines.

“We’re here to see Malcolm Reeves,” Em said.

“Do you have an appointment?” the receptionist said.

“Come on, Jane,” Em said. “You know who I am. Just let him know we’re here.”

“Sorry, Emily,” Jane said. “He’s pretty pissed off, and I don’t want to get on his shit list, ya know.”

“Yeah,” Em said, her words dripping venom, “who knew that dropping one of the best coders from an already understaffed project would backfire so horribly?”

Jane punched a few keys on her keyboard and handed us our visitor badges. We sat down and waited for Malcolm to deign to see us.

“You can still change your mind,” I said. “It’s not like they can afford not to take you back.”

“We agreed,” Em said. “It’s more important for me to be by your side right now.”

I held up my hands. Em spent the whole previous day getting her affairs in order. She officially resigned from Dev-Tech and cashed out her 401K and stock options. Her boss was pissed, of course, but it was nothing compared to the nuclear meltdown from Malcolm.

And, if thy speaketh the devil’s name, so shall he appear. The thunderhead that was Malcolm Reeves stormed across the small lobby. He held out an envelope to Em, which she took without a word. We both handed our laptops to him, and he turned to leave.

A compression wave tore through the building. Those of us who were seated fell from our chairs. Malcolm slammed into the wall, and his body exploded between the force of the wave and the concrete wall. We all got bathed in his gore.

“Genie, protect us,” Em said.

Her words came just in time. I erected a barrier over the entire lobby seconds before the following heatwave blew through. The building groaned and shook.

“We need to get out of here!” I said.

Em staggered to her feet—she was still clutching the envelope with her final settlement in it. Moans and curses came from everywhere.

“No, he’s dead,” I said when she moved toward the hamburger that was once her boss. “Help the others.”

I couldn’t do more than crawl along the floor. My ears rang, and I could no longer orient myself. I panicked. “Em! I can’t do anything! I don’t know where I’m going.”

Debris rained down from the ceiling, and the groaning grew louder. I scrabbled and clawed my way somewhere. The cries and pleas pulled me in every direction, and I turned left and right at random. I tried to focus on just one request for help, but the cacophony overwhelmed me.

A hand found mine. “It’s me,” Em said. “Open your eyes.”

I hadn’t even realized I’d closed them. Once I opened my eyes again, I saw bodies strewn across the floor. Some moved, but most didn’t. Jane’s body leaned over her desk; she could be taking a nap.

Em pulled at me. “It’s that bitch, Jinn. I saw her.” She pulled at me some more. “Dammit, David! Get it together.”

“I’m good,” I lied. “Help me get the survivors out of here.”

We helped each other drag the living from the building, but there wasn’t time to retrieve the dead. We sat on the road while the building collapsed. A plume of dust engulfed us and stuck to our coating of gore, caking us in bloody mud.

The next few hours flew by in a haze of pain. Emergency vehicles littered the area, and a hazmat team arrived to deal with the issue of cleaning the medical waste. Namely, the viscera covered survivors.

“Mr. Jinn,” a voice said.

I turned to see an Austin P.D. officer walking toward me. He was the same officer from the bus explosion, and he was reaching for his handcuffs. Em followed closely behind him; another officer trailed her.

“You’re arresting him?” she said.

“Ma’am, “ the trailing officer said. “Stand back and let us do our jobs.”

The lead officer, his nametag identified him as A. Morales, held out the cuffs. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back.”

I complied. I couldn’t say I didn’t expect this—two explosions in nearly as many days, and I was at both of them. What else were they going to think?

“David Jinn,” the officer said, “I’m placing you under arrest” He read me my rights. “Do you understand these rights as I have read them to you?”

“I do,” I said.

Motherfucker, I should be saying those words to Emily at our wedding. I craned my neck, and what I saw disgusted me. Dev-Tech was a ruin, and a massive crowd of onlookers pushed against the police barricade. White sheets with spots of blood on them lay neatly in a row near the coroner’s van. Those fucking ghouls were taking pictures and video with their phones.

Something tickled my mind, something Em had said when we were still inside. Oh shit, Jinn. I scanned the crowd, but every time I tried to get a better angle, Morales shoved me.

“If you don’t be still,” Morales said, “I’m going to knock your ass down.”

Even if Jinn wasn’t still out there, waiting to strike, I’d had just about enough of this piece of shit. It wasn’t hard to find Em. She stood to the side, arguing with the other cop, probably on her way to getting arrested too.

“Hey! Em!” I said. “Don’t you wish we could just up and leave?”

Her wicked smile soothed my troubled soul. “You know what hon, I do wish we could leave.”

I felt the compulsion of the wish wash over me. The violent tendencies I’d ignored since becoming a genie felt more right than ever. “We leaving the easy way, or the hard way?”

Her smile faltered. “Um, the easy way, please.”

Our conversation had a profound effect on the two officers. Both of them pulled their guns and screamed at us.

“Get on the ground now!” they shouted over one another.

I let the scene sit for a minute. The officers called out again. I’d like to say I ignored them just to fuck with them, but it took all of my restraint to avoid killing them. Not hurting them…killing them.

“David,” Em said. She was down on her knees now. “Any time you’re ready would be just fine.”

I reinforced my muscles and broke the handcuffs. The officer fired, and I wove a barrier that absorbed the bullets. I didn’t allow them to ricochet, though, as I didn’t want to physically harm any bystanders. The second officer trained his weapon on me and started shouting commands.

I walked past him and held out my hand to Em. She took it with a grateful smile. “You know, we’re criminals now,” I said.

“I know,” she said. “But my husband’s a genie, so eh.”

I liked that she was already calling me her husband. We walked arm in arm away from the shouting police.

“I hope that isn’t going to cause misery for some poor soul,” Em said.

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” I said. Glee tinged every syllable. “I learned a little something tonight. Those ghoulish hangers-on will soon be getting everything they fucking well deserve.”