Nothing. There was nothing. Not so much as aflashof green.
You didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?
She turned, shoulders slumping, and swore when she stubbed her toe—again. What the hell did she keep tripping on in here? Stupid room—it was like it was out to get her. She glared at the painting of Caledon Cullraven.Stupid painting.
Grabbing the door handle, she glanced both ways before heading down the hall.Stupid hall. Stupid creepy wallpaper. Stupideverything.
The bathroom didn’t even have a shower. She had to wash her hair in the claw-foot bathtub, and then use the remainder of the water to bathe in. At least there was a wide variety of soap, all of it homemade-looking with chunks of flowers and herbs in the milky bars. The dark green one that smelled like pine trees had to be Cal’s. She set that one aside and used the white one infused with what seemed to be honeysuckle, washing herself as quickly as she could.
You could leave.The thought was seductive in its appeal. It would be so easy. Connect to the wi-fi, hire a driver. Pack up, go home.
Nadine shoved that thought aside. As tempting as it was, she couldn’t leave yet.
It was a warm evening, so she wore jeans and a black tank top. It was more revealing than what she usually wore, but tonight she wanted to feel good. She hadn’t in a while and was so tired from bearing the crushing weight of everything on her shoulders.
Tonight, she wanted to feel alive.
Silhouetted against that periwinkle sky, the pines looked like sharp lances extending to their great heights as if to pierce through the stars themselves. Moths fluttered lazily around the neon sign outside the sagging bar. There was no name, just a blue neon circle, like some San Francisco dive bar that was trying too hard to be hip.
She opened the door and was immediately hit by a wall of noise. A number of people glanced in her direction and she quickly let the door close behind her, shutting out the night. Her eyes swept the room. Deena hadn’t arrived yet—she was probably on her way over from work—so Nadine drifted over to the bar area where an older female bartender was working the counter, cleaning out the steins with a dubious-looking rag while Johnny Hates Jazz blasted from some unseen speaker.
“I’ll have a porter, please,” she said, sliding a few bills into the tip jar. They were stronger than the lighter beers but not quite as strong as wine. She could easily have a couple of those and not get shit-faced, and they would still take the edge off her anxiety.
Clutching her stein—just like a real mountain man, she thought—she drifted to the edge of the room, trying not to notice the eyes following her progress. Argentum only had a population of a couple hundred, according to a sign she’d seen on her walk, but it seemed like Deena hadn’t been exaggerating about this place being the hot spot for at least three counties. The entire population of the town alone seemed to be packed right into this bar.
The blinking lights of some old arcade games captured her attention. When she was a kid, Nikki had pirated some older games like these off Limewire for her and Noelle to play. She remembered one where she was a tiny triangle of a ship, blasting at lumpy circles twirling in the pixelated vacuum of space. Waiting for her turn had been agony; she used to beg Noelle to let her play early, until Noelle lost patience and screamed for her to stop and Nikki came running in and threatened to “unplug the internet” if they didn’t behave.
That was a good memory. She took a long draught of her beer before setting it in the provided cupholder that had been bolted into the side of the machine, trying to hold onto those achingly bittersweet feelings as she dropped a quarter in. It was amazing that it stilltookquarters, not that this place seemed to see much change. The title screen saidGalaxianbut it looked like a fancier version ofSpace Invaders, which she was pretty sure she had also played as a kid.
Might as well enjoy the time warp, Nadine.
Soon, she could barely hear the chatter of the bar. Her body relaxed as she became more focused and the worried frown disappeared, easing into a look of almost fierce concentration.
Though she didn’t realize it, more than a few eyes had started to linger in her direction, drawn to the way her ass filled out her jeans as she bent over the console, and the suggestive arch of her back. She became more animated as she became more invested, the flashing lights trapped by the flowing waves of her hair.
And one pair of eyes—a dark, blood-red hazel—was the most riveted of all.
A heavy hand settled on her bare shoulder, making her start in surprise. She swore when her knee hit the machine, causing some of her beer to slosh over the edges.
“Deena’s looking for you.”
Nadine yelped as her ship went skidding into one of the projectiles being dropped by the aliens. She watched it explode in an 8-bit cloud before looking over her shoulder accusingly, meeting the cat-like gaze of Rael. As he stood over her, the neon lights from the machines behind him gilded his shoulders in an eerie green light that clashed with his fiery hair. He was wearing another one of those flannel button-downs and standing just a little too close.
“Jesus,” she said. “What thehell.”
“What the hell yourself,” he responded. “Why are you so jumpy?”
“Why do you stand so close behind the people you’re trying to get the attention of?” she shot back, vaguely surprised at her own daring.The alcohol, she thought, reaching over for her glass.It must be.She could feel the warm glow of it pooling in her heated cheeks.
“You look different.” His eyes swept over her. “Your little raven friend’s doing just fine by the way.”
“What?”
“With the injured wing.” He arched an eyebrow. “You were with Cal. Remember?”
Nadine made a face before turning her back on him. She scanned for Deena, folding her arms self-consciously. Being out in the open like this was already making her feel anxious. Big spaces like this always made her feel like everyone was staring at her. Normally, they weren’t. But in this place in particular, she couldn’t convince herself that she was entirely wrong.
She might not be a Cullraven, but she was tainted by association, nonetheless.
