“K bar?”
“Karaoke bar,” I explained. “It’s like… a tavern. An alehouse, where you can drink, but you can also get up on stage and sing a song. There’s usually a half-dozen or so people like me down there, acting out their rock-star fantasies. It’s actually really sad,” I said, a huff of laughter escaping me.
“Why is it sad?” Cress sounded confused. “I have accompanied many a lute player with a lusty tune in an alehouse. It is a wildly enjoyable way to release tension after battle.”
I suppressed a smile. “That’s a good point, Cress. Anyway, I started going there on my lunch breaks. Hyacinth is always there. I don’t even think she has a job. She’s a stuck-up bitch, she hogs the microphone, and she acts like she’s the hottest thing to ever grace a stage. The others seem to like her more than I do.”
“Well, if she is a mermaid, then she will not be employed,” Donovan said. “And her magic will weave through her song, so she would appear to mortals as a beautiful creature. You would be immune to her siren magic, as you carry mer blood.”
The musty-smelling drunks in Karaoke Covedidseementranced when she sang. And she didn’t have a very good voice. I was no Mariah Carey, but I thought I had a better voice than she did, yet Hyacinth always got a higher score on the applause-o-meter than I did. Maybe she was a mermaid. It would explain a lot.
Reality smacked me in the back of the head. No. This was insane. I was delusional.
“We will go now,” Donovan put his hand on my shoulder again, and all my resolve disappeared immediately. “We must find this Hyacinth.”
What the hell. I might as well make time for my creative outlet. “Fine. I guess we’re heading into the Karaoke Cove for my lunch break.”
“Good. Make haste, woman. Gather your things.”
Chapter
Nine
Itook an abrupt left turn past Sammy’s Sandwich Shop, skipped down a flight of stairs that smelled overwhelmingly like pee, pushed open the heavy metal door, and walked inside.
The door shut behind me firmly, cutting off the sounds of the city, I waited until my eyeballs adjusted to the sudden darkness, and listened to someone murdering a rendition of an eighties power ballad. It was Gary, by the sounds of it. He was always partial to hair bands.
The Karaoke Cove was the epitome of a dive bar—a seedy old basement with a handful of rickety tables and chairs in front of a tiny corner stage and stained, sticky carpet that might have been red once upon a time.
Cress huffed. “This place smells atrocious.” She whipped off her cloak, popping into a full, blisteringly sexy vision beside me.
“What are you doing?”
“We only agreed to hide ourselves in your place of employment, Chosen. I’m not skulking under a glamor cloak in here.”
“But—” I cut myself off abruptly. It wasn’t like anyoneelse could see them, anyway. Just then, I realized that I couldn’t sense my other hallucination anymore. “Where the hell is Donovan?”
She sniffed. “He walked in ahead of you, of course. He is still upset with you for tricking him with the tiny moving office. He will be scouting this tavern for danger, to ensure you are safe.”
Tension simmered in my stomach; I forced my hands to unclench.Just pretend they’re not here, I told myself.Because they’re not. Get up on stage, sing a couple of songs, release some tension. Go back to work, finish your day…
And pack up your desk because you’re about to get fired, anyway.
I blew out a breath. “Fine. Before we go through to the bar, Cress, what is it you want me to do with Hyacinth? Should I just ask her for the stone?”
“Gods, Chosen, are you mad? A common mermaid will not have the spark stone. The sea witch guards the siren stone. She would never let it out of her sight.”
“So…” I raised my eyebrows. “You want me to ask Hyacinth to go and get the sea witch and come here?”
Cress reared back, horrified. “What iswrongwith you? Of course not! Why would you think it would be a good idea to invite the dark malevolent power of Jengrakenzlore into the human realm? Are youmad?”
“Yes, apparently I am.” I held up a finger and gave her a stern look. “If you have feedback for me, Cress, please make sure it is constructive. You need to remember I don’t have a clue about any of this, so you need to be clear with your instructions.”
She stared at me sullenly. “Find this Hyacinth. You will need to either strike a bargain with her or trick her into taking us to a Mer portal. Once we are in their realm, wewill need her to guide us to the lair of the great sea witch. She guards their spark stone.”
“Okay.” Easy-peasy, lemon-delusions. “Do I want to know what I’ll have to do once we get to the sea witch’s lair?”
“No. I do not wish to scare you.”
