by G. K. DeRosa
“Whoa, this place is incredible,” I whisper-shouted to my friends.
Cinder, Maxi and Alissa’s eyes were as wide as mine as they took in the huge nightclub and mob of supe partygoers.
“Look!” Scarlett pointed to the floating booth and waved at the gorgeous dark-haired DJ. Lucíano smiled back and wiggled his fingers in our direction, his onyx gaze as piercing as I remembered it from Hitched. Oh, swoon.
“Should we go to the bar before we hit the dance floor, ladies?” My body was already moving to the intoxicating rhythms. Cinder and Scarlett had been right. This was exactly what I needed.
Scarlett ticked her head up to the second level. “Oh no, girl. We’re not hanging out with the riffraff down here at the bar, we have our own private table upstairs.”
“Squee!” Cinder and the girls cried out as huge smiles lit up their faces.
Scarlett led the way to the glass spiral staircase just off the dance floor. The second level was much like the first with sleek and modern décor, except a ring of tables sat around the edge overlooking the dance floor below. A girl in a black corset and miniskirt escorted us to our table and placed an ice-filled tub in the center.
“This is amazing!” Cinder squealed.
Our server was back a second later, filling the bucket of ice with bottles of liquor. Some I recognized as human brands, but most I’d never seen before. The tall glass bottles were filled with exotic pink and blue liquids. As we settled into the table I couldn’t stop staring at everything. A glass barrier was the only thing separating us from the level below as I peered down at the wriggling bodies. The DJ booth dipped up and down with the music, and then floated over to us. Lucíano gave us a wave before soaring up to the third floor.
My gaze trailed upward to the level above, and a dark figure caught my eye. A flash of yellow lit up murky orbs, and my heart froze. Blinking quickly, I scanned the glass barrier for the shadowed form, but it had vanished.
“Cheers, girls!” Scarlett held up a flute filled with a pink fizzy liquid.
Glancing down, I noticed a glass had already been placed in front of me. Raising it, I clinked it against each of the girls’.
“To the best girls’ night ever!” shouted Cinder.
I plastered on my best smile and pushed away the flash of yellow emblazoned in my mind. It was nothing. This was a club full of supernaturals; there were bound to be a bevy of yellow-eyed guys. Gulping down the sweet pink beverage, I pushed all thoughts of Ryder to the dark recesses of my mind.
Tonight was about the girls and me, and I was having fun if it killed me. “Fill ‘er up!” I raised my glass to Scarlett, and she poured more of the delicious drink inside. “What is this anyway?” I asked, after a few more sips.
“It’s a sparkling wine from Aquatica,” said Cinder. “They infuse it with bubbles straight from Atlantis.”
“Whoa, that’s crazy.” I arched a brow at her. “Wait, is this like the faery wine?”
She shook her head. “No, it’s not as potent, but it’s probably stronger than the human stuff you’re used to. So don’t go too crazy.”
Scarlett downed the rest of her drink and stood. “You girls ready to head down there and show those wiggling idiots how it’s really done?”
A big laugh tumbled out as she swayed her hips and twirled in a circle. I’d never seen this wild side of my quiet roommate before. “Let’s do it.”
The dance floor was packed. It looked like supes from every realm had come to the grand opening of the vamp club. The five of us squeezed our way to the center and found some space between a group of mermaids and a shifter couple getting hot and heavy.
Like Aeria, the mers had the most gorgeous, brilliant hued hair in varying shades of teal, aquamarine and cobalt. The girls slowly gyrated to the beats as if they were dancing underwater.
My body moved to the rhythm and for the first time in a long one, I totally let loose. Throwing my hands in the air, I fist pumped with the best of them. The mesmerizing thumps took control of my hips and scooted my butt across the dance floor. Cinder and the girls looked like they were having a blast too, big smiles stretched across their glistening faces.
The DJ booth appeared above us, and everyone went wild. The girls in the crowd were screaming for Lucíano like he was the supernatural Calvin Harris. The gorgeous vampire’s gaze met mine, and he held out his hand. A metal ladder unfolded from the flying booth, and he pointed to it. “Come on up!”
My eyes bulged out of my head like some crazy cartoon character.
Scarlett elbowed me in the ribs and pushed me toward the metal rungs suspended over my head. “Go!”
I stretched for the last rung and pulled myself up as a horde of girls rushed around me, screaming Lucíano’s name. The spotlight swam over me as I climbed, the tops of the crowds’ heads growing further below me. When I finally reached the top, the handsome vampire took my hand and helped me into the booth.
“You must be the famous Luna Hallows,” he shouted in my ear, his thick accent cutting through the cacophony below. His dark eyes sparkled beneath the small disco ball that dangled over the platform. He lifted my hand to his lips and dropped a chaste kiss. “Cillian was right. You do look a lot like your sister.”
I squirmed beneath his penetrating gaze. “Thanks,” I yelled back.
He lifted his headset from around his neck and brought it over his head. Grabbing another set from beneath the table, he placed it on my ears.
“Now we won’t have to yell.” His voice came in loud and clear through the headphones, his lilting Latino accent as intoxicating as I’d remembered it from the show.
“Thanks for getting us in tonight.” I glanced down at my friends who were dancing away just below us.
“It was my pleasure, amor. Scarlett is one of my favorite younger sisters. When she told me you were rooming together at the academy, I’d hoped I would eventually meet you.”
Kimmie-Jayne hadn’t mentioned the vampire bachelor to me at all since my arrival in Azar. I wondered if they still kept in touch.
“Well, this place is great, and we’re having a lot of fun. It was just what I needed after all the craziness going on lately.”
“I can’t imagine it must be easy for a human to adjust to our world. Not to mention all the extras that come along with being Garrix’s daughter.” For a second my heart staggered. I’d forgotten that if he knew K.J. was my sister he’d also know about my bio dad. Cillian must have trusted the vampire to spill that big secret, but then again he probably already knew about Garrix being the president because of Kimmie-Jayne.
“Yeah, it’s been a pretty wild ride for the past year.”
“How’d you like to take another ride?” His gaze flickered up to the rainbow ceiling.
I smiled, and he flicked a lever. The hovering platform jolted upward and the massive crowd below us grew smaller. We soared over the second floor and past the third until we reached the very top. Industrial metal rafters stretched across either side of the domed ceiling. I squinted. The lights were so bright from up close they were nearly blinding.
“Perhaps I should take us down a little. I’ve become so used to the strobe lights, they don’t bother me anymore.”
“No, this has been great, really. Thanks for taking me up here. The view is incredible.”
“Anything for Kimmie-Jayne’s little sister.” He smiled and pulled the lever, and we began to descend once again.
As we passed the second floor, a dark shadow by our table caught my eye. I squinted again to focus through the rainbow of lights bathing every inch of the space. The form stood against the glass barrier for a moment before retreating into the shadows.
My entire body tensed, the hair on the back of my neck prickling. I grabbed Lucíano’s arm and pointed. “Do you see someone over there by our table?”
Lucíano’s eyes narrowed as he followed the line of my finger. “There’s no one there, amor.”
My whole body sagged as if the strings holding me
up had been snipped. “But I could have sworn there was a second ago.”
“Perhaps, but whoever it was is gone. Would you like me to go check for you? Do you feel unsafe?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m sure it was nothing. If you wouldn’t mind taking me down, please? I have to use the ladies’ room.”
“Of course. I’ll see if one of your friends would like a ride.”
“I’m sure they’d love that.”
When the platform reached the ground floor, I climbed down to find Scarlett and the girls. Cinder’s eyes were wide as she glanced up at the vampire. “That looked like so much fun!”
“Why don’t you go up next? Lucíano said he’d be happy to give you all rides.”
Her golden eyes met mine, that inquisitive gaze trying to read my thoughts. “Are you sure you’re okay? That vein in your forehead is twitching.”
I pulled my best friend into a sweaty hug. “I’m fine. Now go up there. I’m just going to run to the bathroom.”
“Okay.” Her lips curled into a smile as she stared up at the DJ booth and grabbed the ladder.
I signaled to Scarlett, Maxi and Alissa that I’d be right back and dipped into the thick crowd. Weaving my way to the back, I headed for the glass staircase. Maybe I was imagining things, but I had to find out for sure.
When I reached the second floor, I scanned the tables scattered around the balcony edge. More supes had filled in the VIP section since we’d arrived. I’d have to make a circle to inspect each one more closely. I passed by our table first, which was empty. I did a quick check to confirm our purses were still there and nothing seemed out of the ordinary before moving on to the others. I didn’t even want to consider who’d been lurking around our table if it hadn’t been Ryder. What if some other demon was stalking me?
I shook off the ominous thought as the scent of musk and sandalwood tinged the air. Every single nerve ending stood on edge as I crept through the narrow pathway that ringed the VIP area.
A dark blur darted out from behind a table full of supes, and I sprinted behind him. He raced down the stairs, and I quickened my pace to keep up with the figure’s supernatural speed.
Dodging a swarm of partiers down the steps, I muttered apologies as I ran. When I reached the first floor, my heart in my throat, I whipped my head around the crowd. Crap. Where did he go? The slam of a door jerked my attention to the emergency exit a few feet away.
I hurdled over a few more supes as I barreled through the door and pushed my way out into a dark alley. My head whirled to the left and the right, straining to make anything out in the dimly lit backstreet.
“Go back inside,” a heartbreakingly familiar voice snarled.
My heart flip-flopped, and my hand flew over my mouth to muffle a gasp. I stepped forward, and a shadow coalesced into the man that starred in my dreams at night and plagued my waking days.
“Ryder?” My stilettos propelled me forward.
“No. Don’t come near me, Luna.” He stepped back, nearly fading away in the darkness.
The sound of my name from his lips shot a stab of pain through my heart. “Why not?” I muttered. “Where have you been all this time? What are you doing here?” I had about a million questions scrambling for dominance in my mind.
“Go back inside. It’s not safe for you out here alone.”
Invisible bands clamped around my lungs, and my breaths came in ragged spurts. “Because of you?”
“Yes. But I’m not the only thing you should be afraid of.”
“Then what are you doing here?” I inched closer, needing to see him. Craving to make out more than just a shadow.
“Don’t get any closer, Luna. I mean it.” He shuffled back a few steps, and I stopped short.
“Just tell me why you’re here, and I’ll go.”
“Out for a night on the town, like everyone else.” His voice was his and yet it wasn’t. There was a jagged edge to it that had never been there before.
“And in D.C., outside of the White House, that was you too, wasn’t it? You saved me from the gorabora demon.”
He shook his head, the motion so slow I wasn’t sure I’d actually seen it.
“Why did you leave me, Ryder?” The words burst from my lips before I could stop them, my voice trembling.
Thick silence permeated the air. The frantic beats of my heart roared across my eardrums. For a second, I thought he’d disappeared. I inched forward, and I could still make out his dark shadow leaning against the wall.
“Ryder, please, answer me. Why did you go?”
“Because we never should’ve been together in the first place. I lied Luna; I never loved you. It was one meaningless night, and you need to move on,” he whisper-hissed before spinning away. “Don’t come after me again,” he growled over his shoulder before he vanished down the alley.
Invisible claws tore my heart into ribbons, sucking all the air from my lungs. My hand shot out to the wall to keep myself from collapsing. My knees trembled, and bile crawled up my throat as I sank down to the cold cement floor.
Ryder was gone. He was really gone.
Chapter 7
I stumbled down the alleyway toward the main street in a haze. I couldn’t go back inside the club. I needed to get out of there—now. My magic bubbled to life, heat filling my chest. But if I left, the girls would be stranded. I reigned in the fury and pulled out my phone as I trudged toward the front of the club. Shooting a quick group text to the girls, I informed them they had five minutes to meet me outside if they wanted a portal out of here.
The snaking line of partygoers was gone, as was the burly vamp bouncer guarding the entrance. The music still thrummed through the blacked-out windows of the building, but all the appeal was gone. I leaned against the wall by the entrance with my arms wrapped around my torso, hoping to keep my broken insides from crumbling. I just had to keep it together until I got back to the academy. I clenched my jaw as I waited, willing the tears back.
An occasional supe staggered out of the club, but most were too drunk or high to notice me. I flicked through my phone, forcing myself to focus on anything but Ryder and my shattered heart. It meant nothing to him. It was all a lie. My heart didn’t want to believe it, but my brain wanted to smack some sense into my stupid organ.
“Hey, gorgeous.” A pair of green eyes appeared over the edge of my phone.
I glared up at the pointy-eared stranger giving him my most murderous stare. “I’m really not in the mood tonight, buddy.”
He ran his hand through his white-blonde hair, strands spilling out of his man bun. “But the night is still young,” he slurred. He reached for me, trying to grab my hand and I dropped my phone as I squirmed out of his grasp.
The sleek device bounced off the ground and landed a few feet away. Crap. The screen better not be broken. I darted over to get it, but the guy’s hand wrapped around my bicep.
“Where are you going, half-blood?”
“Let go of me!” I tried to wriggle out of his hold, but for someone two sheets to the wind he was strong. I was about three seconds away from going full warlock on him.
“Come on,” he spat. “Don’t you want a chance to mingle with a pure blood for a change?” His cold gaze ran over me, icing my veins. “What is it with you half-humans anyway?”
“What is with you stuck-up Fae?” I hissed. “Not every woman in the world—supe or otherwise—finds you irresistibly charming.”
“Well, then you’ve obviously never been with one of us.” His lips curled into a sneer as he backed me against the wall. The potent scent of faery wine seeped from his pores as he crushed his body against mine.
Fury unfolded in my core, and dark tendrils of magic danced over my skin. “You’re really going to regret this, a-hole.” Sparks of energy flickered across my fingertips, and I splayed my palms at his chest. Before I made contact, a dark blur whizzed by, hauling the faery’s dead weight off me.
The shadowy figure slammed the Fae to the ground only a few yard
s away. My eyes jerked to the broad shoulders and swirling black tattoos running down his corded arms. Ryder. The smack of bone against flesh reverberated across the quiet street and sent chills up my spine. My feet were planted to the ground, deep-set roots holding them down.
Clenching my fingers into tight little fists, I forced my legs to move. I darted over as Ryder’s fists continued to pummel the creepy dude. When I reached them, my jaw dropped at the sight of the Fae’s mangled face.
“Ryder, stop!” My hand clasped around his shoulder, and he spun at me. Brilliant yellow had completely eclipsed his irises and rage contorted his features into a terrifying mask.
“Leave,” he snarled, his voice barely human.
“You’re going to kill him!” I screeched.
A wicked sneer pulled at his lips, and he dropped down on top of the unconscious Fae. “I told you to leave,” he growled over his shoulder. “Or prepare to meet the real me.” He sucked in a breath, and a pale blue vapor bloomed from the guy’s mouth as his shoulders lifted off the ground. The cloud lingered in the air for a second before Ryder inhaled it. The faery’s skin paled, a tinge of ghastly blue coating his lips.
“Ryder, stop!” I shoved him in the shoulders as his head lolled back, the pale blue haze swirling all around him. He didn’t even flinch.
A second later, the Fae slumped back, and lifeless green eyes stared up into the night sky.
My stomach plummeted as bile crawled up my esophagus. “You killed him,” I murmured as my head began to spin.
He turned to me, his eyes vacant pools of citrine. “Do you still love me now?”
Acid churned in my gut as I stared unblinking at the man I thought I knew. It was a million times worse than a punch to the gut. I couldn’t hold the nausea back. I barely had time to turn my head before my stomach emptied its contents on the side of the road.
When I turned back, Ryder was gone.
I wasn’t proud of it, but I spent the next three days in my bed and refused to get out from under the covers except when nature called. Even then it was a struggle. Cinder, Scarlett, Cillian and even Drake had tried to coax me out, but my body refused to cooperate. My heart had been stabbed, bludgeoned and trampled on, and without it, nothing remained.
