by Sarra Cannon
“Thank you,” I said. I leaned in close to her ear. “What exactly do I do?”
She smiled and squeezed my arm. “Just dance,” she said. Then she reached into a black bag she’d been carrying and pulled out two tubes of clear liquid. She uncapped them, handed one to me and downed the other. “And drink that. Trust me.”
“What is it?” I stared at it, thinking about the shot from the other night. “Is this Red Dragon?”
“Mixed with a few other things,” she said. Her eyes were glimmering again. “This is Rend’s special brew for the dancers.”
“Rend made this?”
She cocked her head to the side. “Rend makes everything we sell in here. He’s the alchemist.”
“Alchemist?” I stared at the tube. Just how much did I still have to learn about this world? It seemed like there was some new surprise around every corner.
“Just drink it and enjoy it,” she said. “You won’t regret it.”
I took a deep breath and lifted the tube up in a kind of salute. “Here’s to no regrets.”
For some reason, an image from a dream appeared in my head. A hallway with a thousand doors, each one opening my eyes to some new secret. Some new mystery.
As I brought the shot up to my lips, I wondered just how far I could go before I lost myself to this new world. And to a man who was immune to love.
Episode 3: The Darkness
Chapter 1
So Much Darkness
The shot burned going down.
The heat started on my lips and flowed across my tongue, down my throat, spreading through my body like wildfire. I closed my eyes, drinking in the sensation of being lit up from the inside out. An intense energy filled me from head to toe, its power putting me on the edge of control, as if one more drop would have been too much.
“Good, right?” Lyla asked, smiling.
I opened my eyes and the entire room looked different. The light that flowed through the glass tubes running across the ceiling seemed brighter. The music seemed louder. Every wisp of air across my skin made me shiver. I felt it travel into my body and become a part of me.
“I never felt anything like it,” I said, my voice unsteady. It was different from the plain Red Dragon shot I’d had the other night on my birthday. This was intensified. I was less fuzzy and more awake. On fire.
I felt sexy.
Lyla flipped a switch near the base of the iron cage and the door swung open. “Climb up,” she said.
I gripped the bars and pulled myself into the cage with almost no effort. I had more raw energy flowing through me than I could ever remember in my whole life.
Lyla closed me inside. “Now all you have to do is dance,” she said with a giggle. “I’ll come get you when it’s time for a break. Do you smoke?”
I shook my head, having a hard time concentrating on what she was saying. It was like sensory overload.
“Okay, well, you can come outside with us when it’s time or you can go back to the break room or whatever,” she said. “See you in a few hours. Have fun.”
She winked, then made her way to a similar cage on the other side of the room.
The doors to the club must have opened, because there were suddenly all these people moving onto the dance floor and standing in line at the bar. A few minutes ago the place was nearly empty and just like that, it was packed.
If they were selling these homemade potions instead of liquor, it was no wonder there were so many people here. Damn.
I briefly wondered if anything going on in this place was even legal and how in the hell they had managed to stay open this long without getting into trouble. But my mind couldn’t focus on the question long enough to worry about it.
My body wanted to move.
At first, I was hyper-aware of my body. I judged every movement. Was I doing this right? Did I look okay? But then the music consumed me. It swallowed me whole, the beat controlling the beat of my own heart. I couldn’t fight it anymore. I let go, not thinking about how I looked or who was watching me. I just let my body move the way it wanted. I had never felt so free in my life.
Hours must have gone by like that and not once did the energy from the shot let up. Sweat coated the back of my neck and the skin on my arms. My hair caressed my face and shoulders. I could have danced forever.
But then, the dark feeling from the other night was back. It was like being sucked into a black hole. Or maybe more like having a thick, heavy black cloak thrown over my body, covering me in a veil of fear.
I reached out and grabbed hold of the iron bars, for the first time really looking through the crowd. He was here. Whoever had been watching me that first night was back, and his eyes were locked on me.
I turned around in the cage, searching for a pair of eyes staring back at me, but no matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find him.
As long as I was having fun, the potion that flowed through my system felt good. It gave me energy and made me feel sexy and beautiful. But adding in that taste of fear was like an amplified version of the worst panic I’d ever felt. I suddenly couldn’t breathe.
I turned my attention to the bar, searching for Rend. He had somehow sensed this darkness before. Did he sense it now?
He wasn’t behind the bar, though, and I couldn’t find him anywhere in the crowd. Was he behind the black curtain with his friends?
I knew I would look stupid rushing into their private room with fear written all over my face. And I didn’t want to give Azure the satisfaction of seeing me freaking out.
I glanced over and was relieved to see that she wasn’t paying any attention to me. If I totally lost it, though, she’d see it. Everyone would. They would think I was crazy.
I had to pull myself together.
I took a deep breath and forced myself to focus on the music. Whoever was out there in the darkness was just watching me. They couldn’t touch me here in this cage in front of everyone. As long as I worked for Rend, they couldn’t hurt me.
After a few minutes, I was able to push the dark feeling to the edge of my consciousness and focus on the music again. Still, all sense of freedom was gone now. I was in survival mode, which was much more like my normal state of being. Instead of giving myself up to the potion running through my veins, I was fighting against it.
When Lyla finally came to tell me it was time for us to go on a break, I nearly jumped out of the cage and kissed her on the mouth. I wanted to get out of there and off display for a while.
“You doing okay?” she asked as we pushed through the crowd and made our way through the front doors and out on the street. “You don’t look like you’re having fun.”
I bit my lower lip. Should I tell her about the strange feeling? She seemed cool, but Azure had seemed fine at first too. I didn’t want her telling everyone the new girl had some panic attack over nothing.
“Do you ever get the feeling someone is watching you?” I asked.
She laughed. “Everyone is watching you,” she said. “It’s part of the job.”
“No, that’s not exactly what I meant,” I said, trying to figure out how to put words to the feeling. “I’m talking about someone… specific. Someone dark.”
Evil. The word was on the tip of my tongue, but I didn’t dare speak it.
She lit a cigarette and took a long drag. “Did someone talk to you? Try to get inside your head? You have to just ignore those guys. They’re harmless, really. No one would dare lay a hand on one of Rend’s girls,” she said. A smile crept across her features. “Not without permission, anyway.”
“No, no one came up to me or anything,” I said.
“What then?”
I wrapped my arms around my body. Despite the late summer air and the heat of the shot running through my veins, I was shivering.
“Nothing, I guess,” I said. “Just a feeling I got when I was up there.”
“You want another shot of Dragon’s Breath?”
I laughed. “Is that seriously what it’s calle
d?”
She rolled her eyes and smiled. “Yeah. All the drinks here have crazy color-themed names,” she said. “You’ll eventually learn what they all are and what they do. The base drink is Red Dragon, but Rend’s special mix for the dancers is called Dragon’s Breath.”
“Can I ask you something else?”
“Sure,” she said, finishing her cigarette and immediately lighting another one.
“How long has this place been here? I tried looking it up online and it’s like it doesn’t even exist at all.”
“Oh, gosh, Venom has been open for about sixty years, I guess?” She looked up, as if the answer were written on the sky. “Maybe sixty-five?”
“Oh,” I said, surprised. “I got the impression this was Rend’s place. You know, that he started it. How long has he owned it, then?”
She shook her head and tossed her cigarette onto the ground, stomping it out with her heel. “Girl, you have so much to learn, I can’t even begin to know where to start.”
I tried to ask her what she meant by that, but before I could, she was leading us back into the club.
Selena gave us a wave as we walked past the crowd waiting to get in. I smiled at her, but that smile was wiped right off my face the second we walked back inside. I hadn’t realized it, but the darkness was gone when we were outside. Walking back in was like walking into a cave of fear.
I shivered.
“Maybe you should go rest in the back for a little bit,” Lyla said, her face creased with worry. “Something’s really got you shaken up.”
“You really don’t feel that?” I asked. “That darkness?”
She shook her head, the smile fading from her face. “I’ve been surrounded by so much darkness my whole life, it’s the only thing I know how to feel.”
Lyla patted my shoulder and made her way toward her spot on the dance floor, leaving me with an overwhelming feeling of sadness.
Chapter 2
More Than You
I wasn’t sure I could face another three hours in that cage.
Not with someone evil watching me. What did he want with me, whoever he was? Was he the one who had sent the black roses? I wished he would just show himself. Tell me what he wanted. I couldn’t take the not-knowing of it.
I should find Rend. He’d told me to find him if anything happened. I looked toward the bar again, but there was no sign of him.
I glanced toward the black curtain. I could just walk back there with a confident smile on my face and tell him I needed to see him for a second. No one would know I was a mess on the inside. He would be able to tell me if I was in danger or if this was all in my head. And if I was in danger, he would be able to help me.
I hoped.
I made it more than halfway to the curtain when a tall, thin man stepped in front of me out of nowhere. I knew him by the look in his eyes and the shadows that seemed to ooze from him like dark smoke.
I stopped cold, my chest constricting.
“I’ve been watching you,” he said. His voice was oily.
“I know.”
He tilted his chin and smiled a thin, papery smile. “Beautiful and intuitive.”
“Are you the one who sent the roses?” I asked.
“Roses?” He lifted a long finger to his lips. “Perhaps.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. What kind of an answer was that?
“I was not aware of any roses, but perhaps my associate sent them,” he said. “You see, my associate is very interested in you, Franki.”
His voice sent a shudder of disgust through me. “Your associate?”
“He sent me here to get a look at you,” the dark man said.
“Who is he?” My voice hitched on my fear. If this guy was just some lackey, how dark was the man he worked for? And what the hell did he want with me?
“You’ll find out in due time,” he said. “For now, it’s good your eyes have finally been opened to this world.” He moved a step closer to me and I fought to stand my ground, no matter how badly I wanted to turn and run. “You belong in this world. You always have. Too bad you will soon have to leave it.”
“I don’t know what you or your boss want with me, but I’m not interested,” I said. I sounded a lot more confident than I felt.
He laughed and the sound grated on my insides. Even his laughter sounded ominous and devoid of joy. “How cute,” he said. “You think your opinion matters.”
I swallowed down my terror. I didn’t like the fact that he talked about me as if I was already part of someone’s plan. I didn’t like for anyone to talk about me as if my life was out of my own control.
“You look so much like your mother,” he said, lifting his bony finger to my cheek.
I pulled away, barely restraining myself from slapping his hand away. “What do you know about my mother?”
“More than you, my dear. So much more than you,” he said.
Anger flared within me, amplified by the potion still working its way through my veins. A sudden breeze blew across my skin and the man’s eyes widened.
“So much power inside that heart of yours. So much passion,” he said. “It’s a shame you’ll never really have the chance to explore all that talent.”
My heart thundered in my chest. I clenched my teeth and tried to force deep breaths. The last thing I needed to do was start a tornado with all these people in here. I squashed my anger as best I could, but it took everything I had just to keep my power from ripping this place apart.
“Your mother worked so hard to keep you from ever discovering this side of yourself,” he said. “It’s a shame she had to die before she saw your powers at work.”
Tears sprang to my eyes and I cried out, forcing them back. I would not cry. Even if he was telling the truth, I would not break this promise to myself. Especially not for a woman who had long since abandoned me.
“Such control,” he said. “Astounding. Truly.”
“Just tell me what you want.” I said. “Stop playing games.”
“Sweet child,” he said with a smile. “The games have only just begun.”
Chapter 3
The Devil’s In The Details
I couldn’t move.
Anger, fear, and intense sadness pulsed through my veins as the dark man turned and disappeared into the crowd of club goers.
It took all my willpower to hold back the tears and rage I wanted to unleash.
Just who did he think he was, coming here and threatening me? Telling me my mother was dead and then walking away?
I wanted to kill him. I wanted to shove my hands inside his wide mouth and rip him in two, straight down the middle.
I turned to look for him in the crowd. This couldn’t be it. If I let him get away now, he’d just keep finding me. Watching me. Toying with me until I’d lost my damned mind.
I sprinted after him, pushing people out of my way and not even bothering to stop and apologize.
I finally caught sight of him going through one of the doors Azure had told me was off limits. His movements were slow and deliberate. He slipped through the door as though covered in oil.
I pushed my way through the last group of dancers and followed him through the door, only taking a second to look around and make sure none of the other staff were paying attention to me. When I didn’t see any eyes looking my way, I moved inside.
The room was nearly pitch-black, and I stopped as the door closed behind me with a thud, blocking off the only light.
Laughter rang out, echoing in the space.
“You really are something,” the dark man said. “Ninety-nine out of a hundred girls wouldn’t dare follow me. They’d still be out there shaking in their boots, but not you, Franki. You are special in every way.”
I could hear him several feet away, in front of me, but I couldn’t see so much as an outline of him in the blackness.
“I don’t like games,” I said. “If you want something from me, I’d rather know what it is now than go back and forth wondering wh
en you’re coming back for me.”
“In this case, it’s not up to you, I’m afraid,” he said. Had he moved closer? I tried to mentally estimate the space between me and the door back into the club. Could I reach it in one or two steps?
It was stupid to have followed him. Impulsive.
In my fear, I reached for the only card in my hand. “I work for Rend now,” I said. “I’m under his protection.”
More laughter that cut me to my core. I had been hoping for some sign of fear, like those guys in the alley.
“Yes, that is a minor bump in the road for us, but Rend’s protection only extends so far,” the dark man said. “Rend would be a fool to deny my associate anything he asked. If he wants you, he will have you.”
“So why tell me and then walk away?” I asked. “Why not just take me now if he wants me, whoever he is?”
“Because you’re not ready,” he said. This time he was definitely closer. I hadn’t heard any footsteps, but his voice was inches from my face. Could he see me in the darkness? “When the time is right, he’ll come for you and there will be nothing you can do about it. You are a very special girl, Franki. Your sacrifice will change the world.”
“Sacrifice?” The word tasted sour on my lips.
He moved so close I could feel his clothing brushing against the bare skin on my arms and shoulders. His leg pressed against mine and one very cold hand snaked around my middle.
“Your death is inevitable.”
My body shivered violently as he pulled me against his thin frame. I grew colder, warmth leaving me as if his very touch was draining my body of its will to live. My knees went weak and my head felt fuzzy.
“Don’t touch me,” I said, my voice trembling.
“Or you’ll what?” he asked, amused.
Behind me, Rend’s voice came out as a low growl. “Or I’ll rip your goddamned arms off,” he said. “Let her go.”
The dark man’s body slid off me like a shadow, more cloud than solid form.
I backed toward Rend’s voice. The door to this room hadn’t even opened. How had he gotten inside?
