Audrey lifted her glasses over her head and glared. “Aren’t you going to swipe your card?”
I hadn’t paid much attention during my last visit when Viktor was talking with the front desk, so they must have given him special access as a guest, something security could probably enable with a click of a button at their computer station.
“I’m meeting a friend in the lounge,” I said, leaning against the far wall, hands in my leather coat pockets. “Do you mind?”
Surely the common areas didn’t have access codes.
Her eyelids fluttered as she turned away and pushed a button ten floors higher than hers. When we finally arrived on her floor, she sauntered out and muttered something to herself about talking to management. While I couldn’t go up to Lenore’s floor, maybe she was walking around somewhere. Doubtful, but in any case, it gave me an excuse to get a drink.
When I walked into the lounge, the first thing I noticed was a massive chandelier unlike any I’d ever seen before. It hung over the oval bar, which was in the center of the room. A tightly woven grey carpet blanketed the floor, giving it a cozy and quiet feel. Looking away from a long row of columns, I admired the winding black staircase on my left.
There weren’t many people. I did a slow walk around just in case she might be sipping a martini somewhere. Finally I approached the bar and ordered a double tequila. When the bartender asked for my card, I paid in cash.
I took my drink and went upstairs to have a look around. A bevy of people stood near a fireplace in the center of the room. The left and right sides had intimate tables and low lighting, but I was drawn to the long row of windows straight ahead. After selecting a table that overlooked the skyline, I took a seat.
Man, what a view. I swore I could feel the building move while I stared at the city below.
I looked up each time the blonde by the fireplace bubbled with laughter. I had a feeling it wasn’t her gift of storytelling that enchanted the four men around her as much as her generous cleavage stretching out her black halter top.
My nerves settled after I downed my drink. At least Lenore would no longer have access to all that money. Wyatt would probably change the passwords and make sure everything belonging to the oligarchs was untouchable. But Viktor asking Ronald to move payment from Lenore’s account into ours? That part was gold. I could only imagine the look on her face when she finally noticed her withered account balance. She always claimed she didn’t have much cash on her. Ronald had undoubtedly helped her sell property or move around her physical assets that she kept hidden. Older immortals believed in stashing their wealth since they didn’t have any trust in currency long-term. He must have been one smooth-talking guy to have made a living off immortals who were timid about the times we lived in. Was this his first endeavor in criminal activities? Not that it mattered anymore.
“Mind if I sit?”
When I glanced up, my mouth opened.
Houdini was still wearing the same gothic-style outfit he’d had on at Lenore’s winter ball. The outfit he was cursed to live in forever: a long burgundy jacket over black pants and a black shirt. His lapels and cuffs were also black, and though it looked ridiculously old-fashioned, immortals often dressed outlandishly in outfits of a bygone era. Because Cognito was considered a mecca for weird people, he wouldn’t have much trouble blending in.
When he sat across from me, he admired the view. “It always looks better from above, doesn’t it?” He put his elbows on the table and tugged on his earlobe. “The one unfortunate thing about my predicament is I can’t change my hair.”
Houdini had dark roots, his bleached-white hair shaped in attractive chunks that spiked out in different directions like an anime character. He was the only one still affected by Godfrey Sparrow’s curse, which banished him to the world between the living and the dead.
“Still enjoying your situation?” I asked, staring at my empty glass. “I remember how much you were gushing about all the perks of being dead.”
“Everything comes with pros and cons. Shifting back to human form fully clothed—that’s a game changer.”
“I bet. Is that how you followed me here?”
He lifted my empty glass and attempted to smell it. “I do miss the little things. Tequila? That seems to be your brand. Strange drink choice, if you don’t mind my saying. Even when we first met, you went for the hard, cheap stuff.”
“This wasn’t cheap.”
“Nothing here is,” he remarked. “Except maybe the dame over there who’s been shaking her tits at those men for the past hour.”
I furrowed my brow. “Do you live here?”
“This place isn’t my style.”
“Then you’re following me. But I haven’t been here for an hour.”
Houdini flagged down a server who must have been Breed since the woman could see him. Humans couldn’t—that much I remembered about my former situation. He ordered another tequila and potato-cut fries with some kind of fancy sauce.
“I’m assuming you don’t have to be anywhere,” he said. “We haven’t had a chance to catch up.”
“Can I ask you something without getting the runaround?”
Houdini settled his hazel eyes on mine and rested his chin in the palm of his hand. “You can try.”
“We didn’t find any jewelry that would belong to you. Sparrow’s power is gone, which means you’re gonna stay this way forever. Doesn’t that bother you?”
