“Maeve, what’s wrong?”
“Can’t you feel it?” I glanced around, searching for the first sign of the fissure tearing through the earth. “The fae are here. They’ve followed us!”
My heart pounded.We have to get the others. We have to?—
Corbin laughed. “No, Luv, it’s just the music. We’re right above it.”
The music? What’s he talking about?
Arthur pulled tickets out of his pocket. We followed him to a narrow staircase leading down below the street. A bouncer at the door stopped us. “You’re just in time,” he said. “I think they’re starting now.”
What’s starting?
After checking our IDs and tickets, the bouncer waved us through and we descended into the gloom. I ran my fingers along the graffiti-covered walls, wondering what the hell Arthur and Corbin had got me into. Hot air swelled up from below, and music pounded up after it, a thumping bassline that drove right into my heart, making my bones jangle and my teeth clatter together. A very familiar bassline…
Holy shit.
We emerged in a cavernous room, packed with people surging toward a long stage that was shrouded in fog. No wonder heat rose from the crowd like an inferno. I was already sweating under Blake’s jacket, but no way was I taking it off. Corbin was right – in the sea of black-clad fans, my lilac sweater would stand out a mile.
We pushed our way through long-haired guys dressed like Arthur and girls in corsets and PVC miniskirts. No one turned to look at us. All eyes focused on the swirling fog while the bassline hummed in the air. A few moments later, a guitar joined in. Hundreds of arms raised in the air, their fingers formed into a two-fingered symbol I remember from a bible study group being the ‘sign of the devil.’ For a moment I thought the guys had taken me to a satanic ritual, and my stomach flipped at the thought I might soon be witnessing a goat sacrifice. Then I saw a figure emerge from the fog – a black guitar swung low on his hips, long dark hair draped over his face. His fingers whipped along the strings like he was caressing a lover as the familiar riff soared over the crowd.
Blood Lust.
Arthur’s favourite band – the band we blasted together to drown out our fear – were standing right in front of me. I’d played their latest album on repeat on the plane to Arizona, losing myself in the music. It made me feel like I wasn’t helpless.
And here they were, in the flesh.
The drums came in with a violent crash. The bassist swung his enormous, muscled body across the stage. A soulful, tremulous note reverberated through the venue as the instrumentalist struck the bow against his cello. The lead singer leapt into the centre of the stage, dressed in his trademark frock coat and cravat. The spotlight caught his porcelain skin as he wiped a strand of wavy dark hair from his eyes and ripped into a bloodcurdling scream that sent a tremor through my whole body, right down to my toes.
The pillar of magic inside me flared to life. A thousand needles of pure energy darted through my skin, trailing threads that reached to the stage, stitching the music to me, and me to the musicians, and to the other fans in the crowd.
Arthur and Corbin sandwiched me between them, the warmth of their bodies feeding the fire inside me. Arthur flicked his head forward, his hair whipping around as he thrashed his head in time with the pounding drums. It looked painful, but also…my body itched to copy him. I settled for nodding my head, unable to keep a smile from creeping across my face.
Corbin threw his arm around my shoulders. Arthur followed, trapping me between them. They jerked their bodies forward and I copied them, thrashing and jumping in time with the music. Corbin’s face shone with pleasure and Arthur’s wild smile melted my heart. For both of them, the music helped them drive out the pain and rage and guilt that hovered over their heads like a sword of Damocles. Corbin looked more relaxed than he had in weeks, and Arthur…he shone with happiness.
People in the crowd banged their heads like Arthur. Long hair flew in all directions. Others jumped up and down or rocked their whole bodies in time to the unrelenting drums.
“I’ll get us some drinks,” Corbin yelled when the first song finished. He disappeared off towards the bar area along the side of the crowd. Arthur grinned and gripped my hand, pulling me deeper into the crowd, toward the stage. The closer we got, people pressed tighter, brushing up against each other with careless familiarity. Normally, this would make me nervous, but the thick, damp air surged with raw energy, and it swept me up with the vibe. In front of us, right near the stage, a savage pit of wild animals whipped into a maelstrom, bodies crashing against each other and even flying through the air, held aloft by the hands of their comrades, boats adrift on an ocean of chaos.
Corbin returned to us, holding three drinks. He handed me something fruity with a strong taste of rum. I sipped it, holding the glass tight against my chest so no one would knock it with their elbows. Arthur tossed his head back and downed his beer in a single gulp.
After a couple more songs, Arthur squeezed my hand and yelled in my ear. “I’m going up front. You want to come?”
My eyes widened. He was going in there? Into the pit of crashing bodies? “I think I’ll stay here!” I yelled back.
Arthur nodded and then disappeared into the crowd. His large frame pushed through the other patrons until he was sucked into the churning, whirling maelstrom.
Corbin shifted so he stood behind me, his arms wrapped around me. His body shifted, bouncing in time to the furious beat. I let my body slacken, allowing my limbs to fall into rhythm with his. We moved together, caught up in the thrill of the powerful music. Corbin’s lips brushed my neck and my whole body lit up.
My heart hammered against my chest as his kisses drew out something wild and unbidden inside me. I wanted to find a room to ourselves, blast the music, and fuck until this swelling in my chest burst out of me like a supernova. I leaned back and whispered in his ear. “I want you.”
“What?”
“I want you.Now.”
Corbin looked confused. “I don’t think they’ll play ‘Falsehood Disavow’, because it’s from their first album?—”
Jesus Christ, he’s hopeless.“Let’s go somewhere and fuck!”
