Hypnotizing Beat

by Katherine McIntyre

  Danica couldn’t help how her gaze strayed to the empty space beside the hunter, or the hopeful bounce in her chest that fast deflated.

  Trevor was supposed to be out of her mind by now. That was the whole point in their extracurricular bathroom activities. However, the past couple of days she kept catching his hickory and leather scent. She could still feel the way his big hands had gripped her hips and how his long fingers curled into her skin.

  It hadn’t helped that the banshee gave her one of the best orgasms of her life. Sort of difficult to forget the way he’d wrung her dry. Even though she’d attempted all business afterward, it took every ounce of her composure and focus. She just wanted to melt into her bed, or better yet, take him along for the ride.

  “You sure heading to the fae watering hole’s a good idea?” Liz asked, once Danica reached her. “I’m pretty sure if Alberich’s guys are in there, they’ll be gunning for you first.”

  Danica lifted a finger and touched Liz’s nose. “Come on now. Do you think I’m amateur hour here?” Liz wrinkled her nose and gave Danica an arch look, which made her bare her teeth in a wider grin. “First off, we’ll be in a public sphere for the Seelie court, which will give my evil ex-lender room for pause. Secondly, Alberich’s men stationed here are guards, not bounty hunters. We’re there to figure out how to get them to leave their post.”

  Liz heaved a sigh but slipped an arm through Danica’s. “Joy. Well, let’s get rolling to Poseidon’s Lounge, where drink’s pretty much off limits for me.” They strolled down the bright corridor, high, carved arches leading the way through Mandalay Bay.

  “Let me guess, Kieran put up a fit in case strange fae tried to trick you into owing them a favor?” Danica grinned. “You know I can always buy you a drink.”

  Liz arched her brow. “Yeah, like I’m going to get myself indebted to you. Sorry Maslanka, but you’re still on my shit list.”

  Danica’s smile never left her face as her heart crushed a little. Even the obvious attraction between Trevor and her had been tainted by her actions. Just once, she wished she could afford morals, that it wouldn’t cost her those she held dear, or her freedom.

  “Damn, you saw through my dastardly plan,” she responded, snapping her finger. They headed downstairs, bypassing the never-ending clink of machines that rang from the casino. “Are the boys heading on soon?” Probably better she wasn’t watching the show. If she sat through a performance of Trevor’s talented fingers strumming away at his guitar, she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from seducing him again.

  “They’ll be strutting their stuff on stage any minute now,” Liz said. They wandered through the maze of chic restaurants in this darker section of Mandalay Bay, closer to their infamous shark reef. As much as this place oozed glitz and glamour from its pores, the humans missed out on Poseidon’s Lounge, the most swankified joint in the place.

  The entrance was an unassuming glass door, one her kind would be drawn to in a heartbeat, yet humans would never notice. Liz’s shoulders tensed the closer they got to the entryway.

  “Hey,” Danica said, tugging at Liz’s arm. “I know you had to fight mother hen Kieran to come here with me, and I don’t blame him. I abandoned you guys when Kieran was hanging in Jessa’s coffee shop of horrors, and that was a shit thing to do. I won’t abandon you to a horde of fae here. We’ll either get out together, or not at all.”

  Liz pursed her lips, her freckles even clearer under the fluorescent overheads. “I want to believe that.” Except she clearly didn’t. Still, Liz’s shoulders relaxed the slightest fraction, and Danica would take anything she could get.

  They strode through the glass door, which led to a darkened corridor featuring neon blue lighting that rippled like water. Each step echoed as they came closer and closer to the pocket into the Otherworld. This one emptied into Seelie territory, with Poseidon’s Lounge square in the center of the underwater realm. Even in the desert, the water fae found their escapes.

  Danica’s nerves buzzed at this point. By her lonesome, she would use every literal weapon in her arsenal to survive—her abilities weren’t much use in a fight. However, this time, Liz was by her side, and if anyone happened to target them … well, she hadn’t been lying. The idea of screwing over the Discord’s Desire crew made bile rise in her throat. The air shimmered around her when they stepped into the Otherworld midway through the tunnel. It formed a slick coat over her skin, like jelly, and then vanished in a blink as she stepped into the other side.

  The sign for Poseidon’s Lounge buzzed in blue neons at the end of the hallway where two selkie bouncers stood guard on either side of the entrance.

  Danica flashed them a grin before striding through the swinging double doors while Liz kept her gaze focused ahead. Between her status on the bounty hunter shit-list and Liz being one of the hunters her kind warred against, their team-up was a cocktail of danger. However, word on the street was Mandalay Bay’s fae staff kicked back with a beverage here, and the multitude of side entrances headed to almost every sector of the hotel casino.

  They stepped inside, and Danica hid her smile as Liz’s jaw dropped. Cerulean water stretched out all around them, the rippling surface backlit to cascade throughout the restaurant. A thick, translucent casing was all that separated them and an endless expanse of water. Chances were, this restaurant had been carved straight into one of the many seas throughout the Otherworld.

  Fish of every shape and size darted overhead and around the sides, but they weren’t the only creatures swimming in this sea. Mermaids drifted along, their iridescent scales glimmering while they cast curious glances to the denizens inside. Kelpies, selkies, and any other patrons who’d slipped out the back door also swam through these waters, gliding by. Polished black tables and two seaters stretched across the ivory tiled floor, and every manner of Seelie fae filled this place from a sulking naga along the bar to the gaggle of succubi at a table, kicking back with martinis.

  Even though Liz would never let the uncertainty flicker on her face, the hunter moved a touch slower, caution gripping her limbs.

  Danica stepped forward, leading them to the open seats along an expansive fish tank bar filled with a rainbow assortment of jellyfish. A barnacled, distinguished man in a black suit slung the drinks, his grey skin the consistency of mottled slate.

  “Are you sure you don’t want a drink, Obiwan?” Danica murmured as they took their seats. “They make a killer mart-indebt-ini.”

  Liz rolled her eyes in response. “Your sales pitch is impeccable.”

  The bartender sauntered over.

  Danica made a drink motion with her hand before pointing to the gin amidst myriad bottles of different liquors, some that shimmered, some ethereal and not quite liquid.

  “What’ll you have?” he asked, reaching for the stacks of glasses kept in the drawers framing the fish tank bar.

  “Gin and stardust.” While she had well adapted to life amongst the humans and preferred their realm most of the time compared to the wilds that comprised the Otherworld, she still appreciated some indulgences.

  Liz’s brow lifted. The boys of Discord’s Desire veered away from most fae-centered businesses because the lot of them hadn’t pledged their patronage to a side, so this was new territory for the hunter.

  The bartender placed her drink in front of her, and she handed over the coin they slung here. Most Otherworld business operated on barter, favors, or the occasional precious metals since the exchange rate to dollars had gotten obscene as of late. The drink glittered before her, a miasma of shifting silver suspended amidst gin. Danica took a sip, and joy burst through her like a live grenade, sparking all the way to her fingertips and toes.

  “Maybe I’ll try a sip,” Liz said, craning her neck to get a better look at her cocktail.

  Danica’s lips twisted in a grin, and she passed over the drink. She missed this camaraderie with Liz, or hell, anyone. Operating by her lonesome had its disadvantages.

  Here at the bar, they had
the best viewpoint, and Danica scanned for the posh and pressed uniforms of those working the floor of Mandalay Bay.

  The look on Liz’s face when she took the first sip was priceless. Her hazel eyes got impossibly bigger, and she placed the drink on the bar with reverence. “I want to drink that for the rest of my life,” she said, tugging on the end of her ponytail. “Think Ky can nab me more?”

  “Come on now, your boy would pluck the moon from the sky if you asked,” Danica said, circling the pad of her finger around the rim of the martini glass. “Let the rest of us seethe in envy of your epic love.”

  Liz snorted even as her gaze landed on the back part of the bar. It led to another long corridor with a stretch of doors, some heading to a pressurized chamber and out into the sea beyond, while others led back into Mandalay Bay.

  “It’s more like lots of great sex and fighting over toothbrushes or who used the last of the coffee and didn’t brew another pot.” Liz’s fingers tapped along the glass surface of the bar while she continued to scan the room.

  Danica glanced to the entrance a couple of times, her nerves amplifying with every passing second.

  Liz’s gaze snapped her way. “With the scorching glances you and Trev keep passing each other, I’m surprised one of you hasn’t immolated yet.”

  Danica pursed her lips, trying to hide the amusement crinkling her eyes. They’d immolated all right.

  Liz’s mouth opened as her too-perceptive gaze put together the pieces. “No, you didn’t. When?”

  Danica tipped back another sip from her drink, but even stardust couldn’t compete. Warmth stirred in her chest at the memories of what had occurred in the restaurant bathroom between her and Trevor. “A few days ago. Figured we’d both get it out of our systems so we could focus on the task at hand.”

  Liz lifted a brow, disbelief painted on her expression. “Let me know how that works out for you. I’ve never seen Trev interested in anyone longer than a single night, and even after you fucked us over, he’s still looking your way.”

  Danica swallowed, hard, casting an errant glance toward the table of different fae in their uniforms, all sitting back with multi-colored pints. Focus on the task at hand. Liz’s words seeped in through her barriers, feeding the stupid core inside her that dared to hope. She thought she’d stamped it out years ago, but she’d always been a stubborn bastard.

  “Nice try, Obiwan, but we both know I’m pretty much a Terminator when it comes to relationships.” Danica cracked a lie of a smile before she drained the rest of her drink dry. She set the glass farther along the counter, which shifted with the rainbow jellyfish drifting by.

  Her gaze flickered to the front entrance. Any minute now.

  The bartender approached, tilting his head toward the drink, but Danica waved her hand to dismiss a refill.

  Liz shrugged, picking at one of the holes in her jeans. She continued to scan the room. “I used to say the same thing, but some people are worth the risk.” The serenity in her voice was one Danica envied. She’d clung to her mantra of survive at all costs to the point the hollowness stained her soul more and more with every passing year. One of these days, she’d cease to exist.

  Danica brushed her fingers over the handles of her purse, stifling the urge to root around and pull out her weapons. The staff who lounged in the back table glanced around the room on occasion, their careful eyes narrowing in on the selkie, dripping from his swim who took a seat at the bar or the succubi cheering at their table. A couple of times, the gazes rested on her, but she offered a winsome grin when their eyes met, feigning flirtation.

  Liz’s brows creased. “What’s got you so twitchy?” she asked, reaching into her own pocket for her platinum-tipped switchblade she must’ve picked up after the mess with Larsen.

  Danica’s heart pounded in her ears, the pulse deafening at this point.

  Any minute now.

  A creak sounded from the entrance, followed by a shout that echoed down the corridor. Danica straightened in her seat. The bartender and a couple of the other patrons sat up, paying attention to the sudden clamor.

  “We’ve got to go. Now,” Danica whispered as she rose from her seat, keeping her movements casual.

  Liz’s brows furrowed, but she didn’t argue. The girl’s survival reflex kicked in almost as fast as her own. Together, they headed in the opposite direction of the entrance, toward the side doors lining the back of the bar. Danica had never been scoping them out to get to Alberich’s treasure. The escape doors were for them.

  For this very moment.

  “Obiwan, we’ll find you a bathroom, since you can’t seem to hold your liquor,” Danica announced as they walked along.

  Liz clapped a hand on her shoulder and gripped tight, feigning a stumble. The dig of her nails gave the warning though. Liz expected an explanation, ASAP.

  Another shout sounded from behind them.

  Danica didn’t turn around, didn’t glance back, just headed for the one exit that would dump them out near the stage where the boys played. Glass shattered in the bar, and growls, shrieks lit the air.

  The hunters had arrived.

  Chapter Nine

  Trevor strummed away at the guitar, his fingers racing across the strings as if he could lose himself in the motions. For these precious moments, the anxiousness wasn’t prickling under his skin, and his insides weren’t being stretched and stretched until they snapped. His bandmates surrounded him, neon lights flashing around, and drops of sweat pricked his brow. He coasted away on the sound.

  The crowd writhed throughout the auditorium, most of them in some stage of undressed. Shirts and skirts littered the floor. Ky’s voice tended to stir the crowd into orgies, and with the way Renn channeled his lust-inducing abilities into instruments, every pound to the drums increased the fervor. Jett’s siren song channeled through his fingertips as he plucked away at the bass. Out of the guys, Trevor was the only one who didn’t need to feed off sexual energy but instead just the frenzy of the crowds. His true purpose when he started the band with Ky had always been the protection of ever-changing locations.

  His fingers danced across the guitar strings as he scanned the audience, unable to help the amused grin lifting his lips. His ego would like to think people came to their shows for their stellar music, but he was well aware of the reputation they’d garnered. Not like he cared. He’d take any excuse to continue this life on the road with the only people in the world he’d learned to trust. Each note that poured out of him was a reminder that no matter how dead he sometimes felt, he had a pulse on something real. Something alive still existed.

  His brows furrowed. Amidst all the humans who were making out, groping, and touching each other, a lone figure strode through, untouched by their melodies. One of their kind.

  Not like it was uncommon for fae to show up at their shows—Discord’s Desire had the reputation in the Otherworld too. However, they were in a fae-owned hotel, and men in Alberich’s pocket wouldn’t miss the opportunity. He couldn’t turn off his vigilance no matter how he wanted to surrender to the flow of the music.

  The figure in the crowd snared his attention, turning to look at him.

  Trevor almost missed the next chord.

  He knew those eyes.

  The man in the audience barely stood five feet tall, his hair wild and wispy, and his clothes threadbare, scuffed at the knees. He had knobby joints, sickly green skin, and dark brown eyes that belonged in woodland cabins—not locked away in Alberich’s prison with him.

  Jared Cragsmire was a brownie, a fae meant to tend to the home and hearth, but Alberich kept him as a personal slave like so many others in his collection. Crags had been an ally on some of his darkest days, but when the opportunity to escape arose, he stayed.

  It wasn’t coincidence he wandered into one of their shows. Only one man could’ve sent him.

  Repetition and practice alone had Trevor finishing out their final song with no missteps.

  “Thank you everybody,” Ky cal
led out, his voice rising to the rafters of the place. “We are Discord’s Desire!”

  At that, the sound cut out, and he slammed his mic back onto the stand. The crowd roared in response like a living, magnificent beast. Trevor’s fingers left the strings, and he gripped his guitar tight. His calves twitched, the need to bolt into the audience and confront Crags warring with the need to run, run, run, until he found some remote stretch of the world Alberich hadn’t reached.

  The lights dimmed, and Ky slapped a hand on his shoulder. Their lead singer always rolled on a high after a show, filled by adrenaline and all the lusty mojo he’d been absorbing from the audience.

  Trevor near jumped out of his skin at the touch. He clutched his guitar tight.

  “Are you okay, brother?” Ky’s brows narrowed, and his hand didn’t budge from Trevor’s shoulder.

  “Saw a familiar face in the audience,” Trevor murmured, scanning out in the crowds for another glimpse of the brownie. He’d lost Crags. Devil be damned.

  “Alberich?” Ky asked.

  Trevor shook his head. He unhooked his Fender to break down like the rest of the guys. They were just the openers, so the next act would be sliding in to set up in no time. He was headed toward the back of stage, guitar in hand, when Danica and Liz skidded into view.

  Danica’s shoulders heaved, strands of her hair plastered on her forehead, and her mouth hung open as she panted. He couldn’t help but recall their bathroom excursion. The memory was a punch to his chest and a pulse to his cock. He hadn’t seen her in days, but he’d be lying if the leannan sidhe hadn’t floated through his mind at least a half dozen times every hour. So much for eliminating distractions.

  Their eyes met, and for a moment, the electricity between them was all that existed.

  “Hunters infiltrated Poseidon’s Lounge,” Danica announced, the news splashing through the room like a bucket of ice water. “We need to hustle.”

  “She’s leaving out the major point that she’s the one who called them,” Liz said, irritation a red-hot brand in her voice. “Which would’ve been great to know beforehand.”