I nod slowly.
“Good. Remember not to speak. Otherwise the others will catch on quickly.”
Okay. He seems to be on our side.
Guess I’ll have to just assume that’s the case for now. If anything goes south, I know who to blame.
I tuck myself back into my corner when the bombastic voice of Rouge Montrose fills the entire club.
“All cards on deck! The doors are open!”
I peek around the corner and get a glimpse of the woman who’s turned my life upside down over the last few days. She’s dressed in the same green monstrosity of an outfit that she had on the other night. She’ll at least be easy to spot. Her wide ballgown will cut through a crowd like Moses parting the Red Sea.
Members spill in. I catch a glimpse of Bianca as she walks up to the stage. She makes eye contact with me and gives me a tiny nod. Within minutes, she’s started singing and the club is hopping.
I emerge from my makeshift haven not as Harrison O’Rourke, but as the Ace of Clubs.
Within seconds, a male patron is poking at my shoulder. “Hey, Ace!”
I turn around, keeping my head bowed.
“You’re new here, aren’t you?”
I slowly nod, keeping my eyes glued to the floor.
“Hey. Look at me when I speak to you.”
I pray it’s not someone who will recognize me as I slowly raise my head. It’s a middle-aged man with a gray mustache, thinning silver hair, dressed in a sleek black suit.
“That’s more like it.” He grins, looking into my eyes. “You’ve got a gorgeous face, Ace. Why hide it from these good people?”
I bow my head once more, indicating that I’m ready to take his order.
“Bring me a whiskey, neat. Should pair nicely with my cigar. Where’s the old man?”
“Right here, Mr. Rose.” Mr. Night walks in front of me. “What’s your selection tonight?”
“Dealer’s choice, Night.” Rose claps him on the shoulder.
I take that as my cue to leave. I head to Spades, where Dudley is tending the bar.
But shit. How do I tell him what Rose’s order is? I can’t speak. Dudley doesn’t speak either. He’s not a waiter, so I’m not sure if it’s by choice or not.
Then a waitress—the Ten of Hearts—scurries up to the bar. She takes a slip of paper, writes something down, and then whisks away back to her section.
Guess that’s what they do here. I cross over to the piece of paper that the Ten was writing on. She’s written her own number and suit on the top-left corner as “10H,” and then below it the drink order.
I grab another slip of paper, write the letters “AC” on the top corner and then the words “Whiskey, neat.” I glance over my shoulder. Rouge is holding court in the Hearts section, so I look around Spades while Dudley is preparing my drink.
Writing raven… Writing raven…
I’m not sure what I’m even looking for. There’s some art on the walls, but none of it depicts a raven of any sort, never mind one that’s writing.
Of course, the way that Alissa explained the “river of tears,” the actual meaning was more abstract. It referred to raindrops running down the window of Maddox’s car, which led them to a key. The key opened a safe in Rouge’s office. There’s no way I’m getting in there, and I don’t have the key to the safe anyway. I’m guessing Rouge took it back when she brought Maddox and Alissa to the Caterpillar Hotel.
What else could the raven in the riddle be referring to? The poem by Edgar Allen Poe? The football team in Baltimore? The Hogwarts house? A woman’s name? I know people with dark hair are described as having raven hair…
This is getting me nowhere. I glance back to the bar. Rose’s whiskey is ready.
