by Claire Adams
"You look wonderful," Owen said.
I was surprised he was talking to me. The black dress fit like a second skin and the neckline was lower than I was comfortable with. I had layered a few beaded necklaces on in order to make it feel more decent.
Owen, on the other hand, looked stunning in his fitted black suit. He wore a black shirt underneath with no tie and had left the top few buttons opened. I was about to tell him how handsome he looked when Anya whisked him away. I was left to follow with the rest of the ragtag gamers.
I stopped at the elevator, sure that I would have to wait for the second one, but Owen reached for my hand and pulled me in. I bumped against his chest in surprise. My eyes were riveted to his chest, revealed by the open buttons. He smelled like sandalwood and leather.
I was just coming around to feeling foolish when Owen slipped a hand around my waist and tucked me close to his side. "I'm glad you're here," he said and dropped a kiss on top of my head.
He had done the same thing for years, a quick squeeze and a light kiss on my head, but now there was heat. I felt more than warm all along where his arm encompassed me. His hand flexed against my waist, testing the curving of my hip.
I knew I was not imagining things, because I caught an angry flash from Anya's dark eyes.
"Me, too," I agreed and slipped my arm around his back. "How about this time drinks are on me?"
Owen smiled, thinking of the last time we had drank together. The elevator doors opened and we went out together, despite Anya stepping between us. She had made reservations at Mizumi, the Wynn Hotel's four-star Japanese restaurant.
She was obviously about to tell me I did not have a place at the table, when Owen said. "Good thing Scottie went off with Alison. We won't have to ask them to set an extra place."
Anya smiled at him, but her eyes blazed when they flicked over me. It was obvious Anya had planned more than fun and games for the tournament, and I was definitely in her way. She moved deftly between the red and white chairs, and somehow insinuated herself between Owen and I. When he pulled out a chair and smiled at me, she slipped into it and thanked him. His lips quirked in a quick frown and he moved to the other side of the table.
"Who wants to order some fugu?" Owen asked.
"No, no thanks," I said. "I've read medical studies on eating blowfish."
"Damn. And here I thought you'd be a sushi virgin," he squeezed my knee.
The sushi was ocean-fresh and the saki warm. Owen was telling stories punctuated by his friends, and I could not stop smiling. Finally, I excused myself to use the restroom and smiled all the way there. Until I realized Anya had followed me.
She slipped in while I was washing my hands and caught my eyes in the mirror. Anya smiled sympathetically. "It is so nice of Owen to bring you here, get your mind off everything. I know he feels like Sienna's death was his fault. You must be the best way for him to assuage his guilt."
She led the way back to the table, knowing full well she had poisoned my evening more assuredly than a plate full of fugu.
Chapter Nine
Quinn
I had assumed the gamers were night owls, but when we were still playing and it was 3 am, I was barely staying conscious. Owen was going full force, but he noticed and pulled me against him. I fell asleep on his shoulder as the party continued around me.
When I woke up in the morning, I was curled up on the couch under a blanket. Owen was stretched out on the floor beneath me, his arms tucked behind his head as he slept. I looked down and let myself have a long, leisurely study of him. Years of stolen glances were not enough.
Owen's blond hair was thick and he had it cut short enough to be effortless. Whatever happened, it was mussed perfectly. I was surprised by the sculpted contours of his arms. In between playing, he must work out. Then again, Owen had always looked like a quarterback, lean and hard. While he slept, his wide mouth was curled in a small smile, but his square jaw made him look like a warrior. I half-expected him to fly awake and draw his sword.
I squeezed my eyes shut. It was too easy to mix reality with Dark Flag. Especially after spending hours in the game and falling asleep still within its world. I had to remind myself this was the real world, albeit in Vegas, and here, things were different.
There was one similarity, though. In both worlds, I was still an outsider. Owen's friends had spent hours showing me their best moves and giving me all the insider knowledge I needed to navigate Dark Flag, but I was still a newbie. Half of the night, Anya had targeted me and I died countless times. She called it training, but it was obvious she was trying to get me away from Owen.
I slipped out of my covers and climbed over the back of the couch so as not to disturb Owen. The truth was I had come to Vegas to be close to Owen, but the more I saw of the gaming world, the more I knew it was the place for me. In a way, Anya was right – if I wanted to be there, I could not slip in on Owen's good will. I had to earn my place.
I grabbed my bag and changed from the wrinkled black dress into a pair of dark jeans and a black tank top. I threw the layers of beaded necklaces on again because the low-cut tank top was revealing, but it was also my only other piece of black clothing besides my black sandals. Once I was dressed, I headed downstairs to the registration desk.
The smile I got from the young desk clerk was encouraging. "Good morning," he said.
"It is," I smiled. "Good morning to you too. Is there any way there is a room available?"
He typed furiously on his computer, but I had the feeling it was all for show. "Actually, it looks like one just came available. We had a few cancellations last night. Single?"
"Yes," I said.
He grinned again and took my driver's license and credit card to fill in the information. "Is there anything else I can do for you? Anything at all, Ms. Thomas?"
"You can call me Quinn for starters," I said, thinking Sienna would be proud of my easy flirting. "Actually, there is. Do you have the registration forms for the Dark Flag tournament?"
His jaw dropped open in a wider smile. "You play? I play! I mean, I'm just a newbie, my avatar has barely evolved, but I love it. There's actually a side event for newbies this afternoon. You should totally sign up for it."
"Is it that easy to see that I'm a newbie?"
"No, not at all. It's just the pros have all signed up online. Speaking of the professionals, I saw you with Light Slayer last night. Oh my God, I think they must have used some of his DNA when they made the game. Either that or he has a mind meld with it, am I right?" the desk clerk asked.
"Yeah, he is pretty amazing." I collected the room key he gave me.
The desk clerk turned his monitor towards me and handed me his keyboard. Within a minute I was signed up for the event. He gave me a map of the Wynn and marked the location. On the back, he wrote his name and phone number.
"Thanks, Dave," I said.
"Are you going to hear Light Slayer talk? He's on in the LaTour Ballroom in 10 minutes," Dave said. "Take notes for me, please. I need all the help I can get."
I promised I would text him any gems I heard and headed for the LaTour Ballroom. I had just enough time to load up a plate with fruit salad and a bagel and grab a coffee when the tournament organizers began to introduce the weekend's events.
"Welcome, Flaggers! We are so glad to welcome you to the first in a series of Dark Flag tournaments. This weekend is all about fun and games. We want to get to know you and to see you get to know the game better. Some events are qualifying rounds, but mostly, this is just a meet and greet. So we encourage you to mingle and have fun. That said, we know many of you are hungry to know more about how to conquer the world of Dark Flag and we could think of no one better to speak to that than Light Slayer himself!"
Owen had not shaved, but he had changed into a dove gray suit and white shirt. I felt a sizzle in my stomach as I saw the top buttons still undone and the hint of dark chest hair in the opening. Even from across the ballroom, his presence was like a fire.
I was not the only one to feel that way. The crowd greeted him like a rock star and his wide smile was crooked, a sure sign he was happy but uncomfortable with the attention. It only made people love him more. He cleared his throat a few times as the crowd quieted down, and I wondered if he was nervous to speak. Then, his agate-blue eyes caught mine. He started to talk and it felt like it was just the two of us in the room.
After he finished to thunderous applause, Owen made his way around the outskirts of the room and found me. "Thank God you were here. I forgot to tell you I had to speak and when I didn't see you this morning, I got nervous."
"Nervous about what?" I asked. "You did great."
"It was easier when I spotted you," he said. "Hey, something's different about you." He grinned down at my name tag.
I smiled. "Yeah, I decided to join the newbie tournament. You know, after I was completely annihilated time and time again last night, I figured I can handle losing."
"You won't lose. I know you." Owen reached out his hand. "And speaking of that, there are a bunch of people I want you to meet. Scottie, Alison, this is Quinn."
"I totally recognize you from your avatar. Bold move. I thought only the Light Slayer was brave enough to show his own face," Scottie said.
"He's an Orcan and Alison is a Nocturne," Owen explained.
Alison shook my hand. "I've seen lots of newbies pick a human and not make it past the first week. I'm impressed."
"No wonder the Light Slayer lets you hang around," Scottie said. He wagged his eyebrows at Owen and got a slap on the shoulder from Alison.
"They are part of the Light Clan," Owen said. "We play as a team, but this tournament is individual skill alone. I'm a little worried Alison might take me apart in the spells duel."
Scottie beamed with pride. "She's a killer."
"Isn't that hard?" I asked. "Playing to defeat your own team members?"
"Not at all," Owen said. "The clan would be weak if we all tried to help each other. Winning individual events strengthens the avatars, and that strengthens the clan."
"Spoken like a true clan leader," Anya said as she came closer. She slipped an arm through Owen's. "That's also why Owen is here mostly to give pep talks and sign autographs. And, apparently, help you cheer up, too."
"Cheer up?" Alison asked.
"Yes. Didn't you know? Quinn is Sienna's baby sister. Owen's taking care of her for a while," Anya said. "By the way, Owen, you and I have that panel discussion."
Before Owen could say anything else, he was led away.
Alison put a hand on my arm and said, "I'm so sorry to hear about your sister. She wasn't right for Owen, but that doesn't mean any us of wished her ill."
I shrugged off her hand and sympathy. It felt exactly as if Anya had cast a Frostbite Spell over me. The rest of the Light Clan gathered to discuss lunch, and it was clear that Anya had spoken to them all.
"Dear girl, want to join Tony and I at the spa after lunch? Owen's got a full schedule and we don't want you to feel lonely," Milan said. He brushed my hair back over my shoulder.
"Lonely? No, I'm fine. In fact, I have to go get ready for my tournament," I replied.
"You're going to play? That's great. Owen tried forever to get your sister interested. I mean, good luck," Artemis bit her lip at the mention of my sister.
"It’s okay," I said, facing the group. "My sister and Owen were over before the rest of it. You can stop treating me like the sad little sister. Owen doesn't. He and I have known each other for years, and our friendship had very little to do with Sienna. I don't know what Anya told you, but I'm not here to be taken care of or pitied, and that's not why Owen invited me."
They all nodded, but I could tell by their looks I had more to prove than my playing ability.
I left the ballroom as fast as I could and was glad the desk clerk Dave had given me a map. I found the conference room just in time for check-in. Dave had saved me a seat.
"Quinn, over here," he said. "Sorry, can I call you Quinn?"
"Do you really think I'm going to make you call me Ms. Thomas?" I asked. I slipped in to the chair next to him.
The conference table was set up with two rows of six computers, one down each side of the table. There were headphones, controllers, and keyboards for each of us. The rules were posted on all four walls and Dark Flag was paused until the overseer started the game. We each had the same quest, and points were awarded for speed, dexterity, creativity, and skill.
"What's your avatar name?" Dave asked. "I'm Davon the Orcan. Though you can't really tell yet 'cause, like I said, I'm still evolving."
"I'm human," I said. "My avatar's called Arrowa because the first weapon I earned was a quiver of poison tips."
"Seriously?"
I looked up from my monitor and realized half the room had stopped to look at me. "Yeah, wait, what's wrong?" I asked.
"What's wrong? You're all over the chat rooms. No one's seen a player evolve as fast as you. No wonder Light Slayer is trying to recruit you to his clan," Dave said.
I sat back in my chair and let the compliment spread through me like honey. Arrowa was fully evolved before I even ran into Owen's avatar during the game. I had done that on my own. It felt as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I was not just here on Owen's good will. Anya was wrong, and I was going to prove it.
#
The quest was to retrieve a spell from a Green Witch named Ayaan. She turned out to be very fast and very combative. The strength of Dave's Orcan avatar helped him, but only for so long. From the corner of my eye, I saw his screen go black after 15 minutes. One by one, other competitors leaned back in their seats. They watched the progress of the tournament on a projected screen at the far end of the conference room, but I did not dare look at it.
I could not defeat the Green Witch in combat, though I was able to disarm her long enough to make her listen. We struck a deal – I gave her one of my poison-tipped arrows so she could create an antidote, and in exchange, she gave me the quest spell. I was so engrossed in the deal that I did not hear the applause.
"Congratulations, Quinn. That was amazing," Dave said. He helped me out of my chair and raised my hand up in victory.
I was so shocked that I hugged him. Over Dave's narrow shoulder, I saw Owen in the doorway. His jaw was tense, but when he saw my eyes he smiled.
"This calls for a celebration," Owen said to the room. "Ayaan the Green Witch would like to invite you to happy hour." He gave out the number of the villa and the 12 newbies erupted with excitement.
"Are you going?" Dave asked.
"Yeah," I said. "I've got to pack, too. By the way, thanks for getting me that room."
"No problem," he said, his head cocked to the side.
I lost Owen in the rush of excited people. Dave stuck close though, and we made our way together through the Wynn's opulent lobby to the elevators and up to the villa. It was already crowded, complete with waiters serving drinks and two bartenders. I was glad my suitcase had been stashed on Tony and Milan's bed in the second room.
"Whoa, you were serious," Dave said, following me into the bedroom.
"Light Slayer and I grew up together," I said. "But that has nothing to do with my playing. Arrowa was evolved before he and I started playing together."
"You don't have to convince me," Dave said. "Remember? I was sitting next to you. I saw you play and that's not something you can learn."
"Thanks," I said. I zipped up my suitcase and led Dave into the main room to get a celebratory drink.
Owen was at the bar with Anya. She had both arms around him, her hands tucked into the back pockets of his pants. His hand was light on her shoulder, but even that casual touch ignited a fury of jealous in me. I pushed away the ridiculous feeling. Of course, they were perfect for each other. She was the opposite of Sienna in every way and just what Owen needed.
Dave waved a champagne flute in front of my eyes. "Snagged these from a waiter. I may not have made it to the second round, but
at least Davon evolved a little farther. Let's celebrate," he said.
I forced a smile and clinked my champagne flute against his. "Definitely a reason to celebrate. Thanks for saving me a lucky seat," I said.
"Now isn't this cute," Anya interrupted. "Two newbies. You're the Orcan, right? That's perfect for you, Quinn. A human and an Orcan make a great team in Dark Flag. Come on, Owen, let's leave these two to strengthen their partnership."
Owen did not move. "I didn't get a chance to congratulate you, Quinn. Actually, the tournament committee gave me something to present to you. Can I steal you away for a moment?"
He laced his fingers through mine and pulled me into the second bedroom. Before he could say anything, he blinked at my suitcase closed and ready to go. "Are you leaving?"
"Yeah, actually, I got a room for myself. It was feeling a little crowded around here. Plus, I got the feeling that you and Anya might want a little space."
"Me and Anya? What about you and the skinny desk clerk? What's with that?" Owen asked.
"Are you kidding? I'm not the one with my hands all over a Green Witch. Do you have any idea how awkward I've felt?"
Owen rubbed his forehead. "Let me guess, Anya's been making you feel like a third wheel. I thought you knew me better than that, Quinn. I'm not with Anya and I don't want to be. So don't use that as an excuse. If you don't want to stay here, you don't have to."
"I love it here, but I haven't earned my place. This is your party," I said.
Owen took both my hands and pulled me closer. "No, this is your party. You're the one that just won your first tournament."
My cheeks got hot. "Thanks. So you understand how that makes it even more important for me to strike out on my own, right? I have to earn my place, especially in Light Clan. Otherwise, I will never earn any respect in this world."
Owen picked up the room key that I had left on top of my suitcase. "Does that mean I'm not allowed to visit?"
