by Elle Thorne
Jostling and a bump alerted Evie that she wasn’t alone. She turned toward the other seat.
Kait beamed at her. “We couldn’t just wait in the back.” She indicated Cassidy who’d taken the empty seat across the aisle.
Evie waved at Kait’s sister. “Hey, Cass.”
Cassidy smiled back with a quick wave. She was typically the shy and reserved one. Evie always thought it was amazing that she’d been so close to Kait when she and Cassidy were more alike in that regard.
Maybe opposites attract. Maybe that explained why she and Kait had been so close in college.
Cass leaned in, across the aisle. “So that’s Quake.” Her eyes were wide. “I’ve always wanted to visit. Heard so much about it.”
Evie looked out the window.
Quake.
She hadn’t been here in a long time. Last time was with Lézare, Alexa, and Valencia. They’d come one Escape Weekend. Every one of the Arceneaux siblings. Lézare had brought them and told them they were getting older and that Alexa would have to start taking some of the responsibilities of Escape Weekend, and shortly that Evie and Valencia would have to do the same.
Alexa had not stopped staring, open-mouthed, enchanted by the old building, the traditions, the rules. She’d said she wanted to be the one who organized the visits to Quake and to attend every year.
And she had.
Until this year.
What could possibly take Alexa away from Quake?
Evie realized she’d been way too withdrawn this weekend. It seemed her siblings had been busy while she was having conniption fits in her room.
She surveyed the building that enchanted her older sister Alexa to such a large degree. Balconies laced with cast iron architecture over each door and in front of many windows on the second floor lent to the illusion there were several buildings, not once giving any clue these original structures had been fitted into one restaurant. Not many knew that Quake occupied the entire block
Rumor had it, it took the original owners a few years to purchase all the buildings, and in some cases, with less-than-legal methods to persuade. More than two centuries ago, the owners had called a truce between the supernatural beings that lived in the territory. They’d held a meeting in the offices of Quake and made the decision that there would be hallowed ground where no being would harm a being of another type.
Evie had heard there’d been shifters there, and vampires, and witches, and elementals. She’d also heard there were others, but what others, she had no idea.
She studied the entrance they were to use in the building that was deceptively dilapidated. Shifters entered the blue entrance. The red building’s door was designated for witches. The green for vampires. Black for elementals.
The driver pulled into the parking lot across the street and took the microphone from its holder.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the bus will be departing in three hours. Enjoy your visit.” He pushed a button, opening the door.
Warmth and humidity poured in, beating the air-conditioned temperature into balminess. Humidity won the battle in New Orleans.
Every. Single. Time.
Evie felt her hair begin its transformation to springiness. Staying outside for any length of time would render her a tousle-headed mess. At the same moment, a sensation of sadness crept over her.
Mason used to love when her hair was curly and wild. She let out her angst in a deep breath and squared her shoulders, rising from her seat.
Next to her, Kait rose, giving Evie a smile, as if maybe, just maybe, she knew what Evie was going through.
“Ready?”
Evie steeled a smile. “Always.”
“Think I could interview the owner of Quake?” Cassidy freelanced for magazine articles.
Kait rolled her eyes. “Not even for one of our magazines.”
Our magazines meant the online, password-protected sites shifters accessed.
Cassidy pouted. “That sucks.”
Another eye roll from Kaitlyn. “She doesn’t know the rules yet.” She indicated to Cassidy with her thumb.
“They’ll cover the rules with all of us, in groups of no more than four, before they let us in.”
“Groups of four?” Cassidy frowned.
“Well, yeah.” Evie went on to explain. “They check for our identities. We get our own tables. No more than four per table. Some rooms have only one table, some have more.”
“Come on. Save the questions for later.” Kait prodded her sister along. “Everyone’s waiting to get off the bus.”
Indeed, the shifters were all out of the seats and in the aisles.
Evie adjusted the hat on her head, pushed her sunglasses higher on the bridge of her nose and made her way down the steps. The driver held his hand out, helping her, and all the other ladies.
Evie, Kait, and Cassidy crossed the street to the set of buildings that housed Quake.
She felt Mason’s gaze behind her. Felt him looking at her as the hairs at the nape of her neck lifted. She raised a hand to ease the tingling his being there caused.
The blue door was halfway down the block. They passed by the black door. Two beings stood in front. Just as Evie and her friends had passed the two, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky, then a clap of thunder sounded, followed by another burst of lightning in the distance.
Cassidy flinched, letting out a tiny gasp. “What the hell?”
“Keep walking,” Evie cautioned. Taking Cassidy’s hand and Kait’s in her other, she pulled them along.
Elementals.
Evie knew what they were, though she’d never met one. She’d heard of them. Creatures that controlled the earth’s elements, wreaking havoc.
She didn’t look back, ignoring the second crack of thunder.
She’d heard Maylene talk about elementals one day when she didn’t know Evie was listening. Elementals were to be avoided. It was one thing to shift and be super-strong and a tigress, but Evie knew she didn’t stand a chance when it came to battling lightning or windstorms.
Just as they approached the front door, and before Evie had a chance to pull on the knocker, a lion’s head in brass, the oversized door opened wide.
“Enter.” A light-skinned woman with hair the color of white gold held the door open.
Evie tried to glean what type of creature she was, but couldn’t.
Much like vampires had no scent, the woman had none, but also didn’t have the crimson-to-black eyes of a vampire.
She also didn’t have the luminescent eyes of an elemental.
She didn’t give off the vibes of being a witch. Then again, she could be a witch, perhaps. Maybe one skilled in hiding her identity.
The room their group of thirty shifters was ushered into was a large waiting area. Unlit and without windows—not that this mattered to the supernatural sight of shifters, because naturally, they could see in the dark. The center of the room was empty, the ceiling high. The seating was composed of benches shaped more like pews that lined the walls. Behind the benches, black curtains hung.
“Please be seated.” The pale woman’s voice didn’t bounce off the curtains, adding to the hush tone of the room. “A hostess will be out shortly to escort you to your assigned tables after an identity check.” She turned on her heel, black dress that seemed fashioned of the same fabric as the curtains swirling behind her as she vanished around a corner.
Evie sat next to Kait on the hard, upholstered pew-like seat. Cassidy sat on Kait’s other side.
Evie was completely aware of Mason’s presence. Mindful of his eyes on her. Wary he was not averting his attention from her.
“What did she mean by identity check?” Cassidy inclined closer, her voice a tiny whisper.
Keeping her gaze down, certain not to look up and meet Mason’s dark eyes, Evie answered her. “You’ll need to prove you’re a shifter.”
“Prove? The only way to prove that is to shift.”
Evie nodded. “Partially so, at least. Everyone
who comes here has to prove what they are, so they can be sat in the appropriate areas.”
“What if…” Kait tucked a stray lock behind her ear. “What if they are more than one kind?”
Evie pondered the question. “I don’t know anyone that is.” She shrugged. “I’m sure that sort of creature exists, but I’ve never met or heard of one.”
Cassidy drove her fist into her palm, though she did it lightly. “See? This is exactly the kind of thing that would make a great article.”
Another woman came out. Similar long black robe, but with dark hair and dark skin. She pointed at Evie, Kait, Cassidy. “Follow me.”
Then a different woman came out, again, robe similar. She pointed to the next four in the group, indicated they should follow. Several more robe-clad women came out and the bus full of shifters was escorted out of the room, one small party at a time.
Evie, Kait, and Cassidy were led down a short hallway to another room. The hostess pulled the dark curtain aside, indicated for the trio to enter, then followed them in, allowing the curtain to close behind them. The room wasn’t much larger than a photo booth. No place to sit. No decorations on the black walls.
“Identities, please?” She gave them a small smile.
Evie remembered this part of the visit from the time she came with her siblings. She concentrated a brief second, allowed her tigress to take over and gave way to her claws extending and canines dropping, while her face began a shift.
The hostess nodded, and Evie’s tigress pulled back, allowing Evie to return to full human form. The hostess then turned to Kait, followed suit, a brief moment later she’d extended her claws, opened her mouth to reveal her canines, as her face began a swift morph into her leopard. The hostess nodded, her gaze swiveling toward Cassidy.
Cassidy’s face was one of wonder. She was clearly thrilled by the process. She enthusiastically began an immediate shift, claws, canines, her own leopard’s face emerging.
The hostess nodded.
Cassidy morphed back. “Miss?” She placed her fingers on the hostess’s arm. “A question if I may?”
The robed woman looked down at the hand as if it were an insult to be touched. A barely disguised grimace crossed her aristocratic, high-cheek boned face. She pulled her arm away slowly. “No questions. I’ll be presenting the rules.” Her voice was without accent, not giving away her origins.
Cassidy’s hand dropped. Her throat worked as if she wanted to say something, but couldn’t quite get it out. She nodded.
“No interactions with other types.” The woman glanced at each of them individually, not turning her piercing gaze from Evie until she’d nodded her acquiescence, then doing the same with Kait, and finally Cassidy.
“No questions about Quake.”
Evie, Kait, and Cassidy nodded.
“No fighting between types, species, or individuals.”
Three more nods.
“Wait here.” She flipped an abrupt 180, then was through the curtain and out of sight.
“This is like that movie,” Cassidy said. “You know, Fight Club, what with all the rules.” She released a nervous giggle.
“They don’t play. Don’t do anything,” Evie warned her.
“I won’t. Trust me, I won’t.”
And yet, there was something about the glint in Cassidy’s eye and the stories that Evie had heard from Kait that made her nervous. She’d have to make sure she kept her eyes on the younger Byrne sister… just in case.
The last thing I need is her screwing up and pissing off Lézare. He’ll blame me, for sure.
Chapter Seven
Within moments, the hostess returned. “Follow me.” She led the way down an empty hallway with blue walls. “Stay where the rooms and halls are blue. Other areas are forbidden without a Quake hostess.”
She then turned left and held her hand out with a flourish, indicating they should enter. The room was small, had four tables, each table with four chairs, except one that had three. This was the table the hostess led them to.
Evie chanced surveillance as the hostess led them toward their spots, since she hadn’t been to the place in a long time.
It was still sleek, sexy, and dark, with lighting that was diffused and subtle. The walls’ colors matched the type of paranormal, but in a subtle nonobtrusive way. They were devoid of artwork that could have been deemed controversial, dotted rather with occasional abstract oil paintings.
Stopping at their table, the hostess held out the chair for Evie, then Kait, and finally Cassidy. “Enjoy your visit at Quake.” She produced three black-covered oversized menus from a holder attached to the wall.
“Wow.” Cassidy looked around, then opened her menu. “So basically, right now, there are witches, elementals, shifters, and vampires in this building? Talk about a place to start a brawl.” Her voice was low and awed.
“Bite your tongue,” Evie hissed under her breath.
“For fuck’s sake, Cass,” Kait murmured. “Don’t say shit like that.”
“It’s true. This would be the perfect place to start a supernatural world war.”
Evie gave Kait a look. “One of these days, I may kill her.”
“Only if you beat me to it.”
Cass winced and Evie realized Kait had kicked her under the table.
“I’m not planning. Jeez. I’m just saying.”
“Don’t.” Evie’s tone was final.
The hostess entered the room followed by four shifters, all guests of Escape Weekend who’d been on the bus. They nodded at Evie, greeting her with a quick smile then followed the somber black-clad woman to their table.
Two different hostesses followed, accompanied by shifters. She turned her attention back to Kait who was quietly chastising her younger sister.
“Evie? Evangeline Arceneaux?”
She glanced up at the sound of her name spoken by a male voice that sounded oddly familiar.
She studied the man. “Todd?” She cocked her head, not completely sure because this was a very different Todd than the one she knew years ago. “Todd Scanlon?”
He was buff, clearly spending a lot of time in the gym. The brown bear shifter had gained a lot of muscle since the last time she’d seen him.
The memories of that day. The sheer agony of seeing the evidence of Mason cheating on her was too much. She felt faint and her face grew cold. Her body began to follow suit, the chill spreading throughout.
She glanced at Kait and Cassidy who were looking at her strangely. Or were they? Maybe she was seeing things, maybe she was losing it because all she could visualize was the sight of Mason as she left him in the snow in Colorado.
“Yes! Imagine seeing you here.” He put his hand out.
She rose, then took his hand, thinking they’d shake, when he pulled her into an embrace that was tighter and stronger than she wanted.
“It’s good to see you,” he whispered in her ear.
“Thank you. You, too.” Not really, considering the last time you saw me, you showed me something that broke my heart.
She should be appreciative, really. If he hadn’t, then she’d never have known the cheating bastard that Mason was.
But still…
Something about Todd Scanlon creeped her out. Again.
She forced a smile to her face. “It’s good to see you, Todd.” She pulled away.
Todd gave her an odd look, one she couldn’t read, then stepped back. “Yes, I’ll be lunching over there.” He indicated the table where the hostess waited for him to join the rest of his party. “Perhaps coffee later?”
“I’m afraid I’m on a tight schedule today. I have to get back to Arceneaux Point for the ball.”
“Ah, yes. The famous—or is it infamous—Arceneaux Escape Weekend. When will I get an invitation to an Escape Weekend?”
When hell freezes over. Like I want to see a constant reminder of that picture. “I’ll talk to Lézare so he can look into it for next year.”
Todd nodded. His thin-lipped,
cruelly handsome face held a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Time to go.” He glanced at Kait and Cassidy. “Good to see all of you.”
No sooner had he walked off than Cassidy released a breath as if she’d been holding it. “He’s intense.”
“I don’t think he recognized or remembered me,” Kait noted.
“Because he was full-on focused on Evie,” Cassidy said, glancing at Todd’s table. “In a creepy way.” She shuddered. “How do you know him?”
“He used to room with my ex-boyfriend, back in college.”
“You mean Mason?” Cassidy asked Kait, then quickly slapped her hand over her mouth as soon as Evie’s head snapped in Kait’s direction.
Kaitlyn looked down, hiding a sheepish expression, but not before Evie caught it, and narrowed her eyes.
“I was just catching Cass up.”
“No problem.” It shouldn’t have been a problem. Really it shouldn’t, but the wound was raw all over again.
Seeing Mason.
Seeing Todd.
Not-so-gentle reminders of betrayal and what she’d lost.
Suddenly the idea of getting lost sounded better and better. The bathroom stall could provide a haven, at least during lunch.
“I’m going to play hostess for a bit. Order me whatever you’re having,” she told Kait.
“Wait, Evie.” Kait laid her hand on Evie’s arm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t—I wasn’t trying to hurt you.” Her eyes were filled with genuine pain.
“I know.” She patted her friend’s hand. Kait’s kindness made tears threaten to flood Evie’s eyes. “I’ll be back after a while.”
Kait nodded. “Want me to go with you?”
Kait clearly remembered Evie’s penchant for running and hiding, especially in bathrooms, when there was nowhere else to go.
“You’ll be back in time to eat? To get on the bus?”
Evie gave a sideways nod, not really saying yes, though she knew that was what she should do. She should eat her lunch. She should get on the bus. She should pretend none of this mattered.
