I shrugged, trying to look cool and unconcerned, but my palms sweated. I had been at the casino for less than an hour, and already, I was slipping up. Maybe I should go back to training.
He gestured to the club on our left. “This is DJ Wiz’s club. Normally, it wouldn’t be open until later this evening, but with the festival going on, people are partying pretty much twenty-four hours a day. Each venue and restaurant is closed for a few hours a day for cleaning, but the times are rotated so there is always plenty to do.”
“DJ Wiz used to work at the Golden Pyramid Casino. It was a big deal when he left.”
“I know. It was a major coup when he agreed to come to our casino. He is the cornerstone of our entertainment talent. We were willing to do anything to get him.”
It had been a blow to the Golden Pyramid when he left. He wasn’t just an employee. After a decade there, he was a part of the casino culture. He hosted the parties, knew everyone, and influenced the entire attitude of the nightlife there. When he left, so did a lot of employees, like bartenders, waitresses, and even maids and bellhops.
The Golden Pyramid was still an excellent casino—in my opinion, the best on the Avenue—but its nightlife scene hadn’t recovered from the loss. And for me, it was a bit more personal as DJ Wiz’s going-away party was supposed to be Vin and my first date. A lot of things had changed since.
As Thomas and I walked, we encountered more and more people until at the entrance to Club Platinum, we were scooting between knots of people. The music from the club was audible but not deafening as I would have expected if the venue didn’t have magical sound dampening. I was still new enough to this world that I could appreciate how many benefits magic entailed. Of course, the number of murders I had investigated helped me see that sometimes the grass was not greener on this side of the magical fence.
Thomas appeared to know everything and was eager to share with me. It was something that I could use to my advantage.
The side of the club facing the hallway had floor-to-ceiling windows that were tinted so that while I could see people, no details were visible. The gyrating bodies, rubbing up against each other and moving to the bass beat, appeared to be having a lot of fun. One couple, moving in unison as they ground and undulated against each other, left me feeling embarrassed, though a small part of me wanted to grab a second glance, but instead, I turned away as heat rose in my cheeks.
I struggled to think of something to comment on other than the couple. “People seem to be enjoying themselves.”
Thomas gave a deep, husky chuckle that seemed to dance along my skin, lifting goosebumps on my arms. “You noticed them as well? With all the magic and the freedom from humans, mages can get a bit… enthusiastic.”
He looked around, searching for someone. Eventually, he caught the eye of a man and motioned him over. Average was the only way to describe him even as my eyes tried to settle on his features to use more definitive terms. As Thomas stepped away and had a quiet conversation with him, I focused on reading the man’s emotions but came up with nothing except muted boredom. There might have been stirrings of something more under the disguise, but it was like fish swimming under a pond’s icy surface.
While the Golden Pyramid Casino’s security staff had always looked like security in their dark shirts, serious expressions, and physically intimidating builds, Magia obviously took a different approach. The man had been leaning against a wall as though he was waiting for someone. I hadn’t really noticed him until Thomas had called him over.
The man left Thomas and entered Club Platinum. I watched as his outline moved through the crowd and approached the couple, who were now one step from being on the floor. A few moments later, the couple stood up and moved away from the window and were lost in the crowd of bodies, a group of long-haired silhouettes replacing them.
“They were kicked out?”
“No, we try to never ruin someone’s fun. He gently encouraged them to find another activity. Maybe to go back to their room for some privacy or to a different, less amorous, activity. He would use his discretion based on what our client was most open to. We pride ourselves on keeping people happy.”
We started walking, and on the outside of the loop, to our right, we passed a store selling all the basic necessities people might have forgotten and a mix of items you might only realize you needed, like a jug of vodka or neon makeup, once you arrived.
The crowd had lightened only a little as we passed a restaurant on the right, a fifties-style diner advertising burgers, fries, and shakes. Nothing special in its appearance, but the smell of crisp, salty fries left my mouth watering. I licked my lips and caught Thomas staring. I stepped aside to avoid running into a twentysomething woman who stopped suddenly to retie her lace-up boots. Gathering myself, I focused on getting information relevant to my investigation.
“It’s bigger than I thought. There are a lot of people to get in through that little door.” I gestured back over my shoulder in the general direction of the single small door we had entered by.
“Barely anyone uses that entrance other than some employees and mages that get dropped off out front by human taxi drivers. We’re coming up on the entrance that patrons of the casino use each day unless they come by the mage-only entrance at the rear.”
We passed a row of doors, each with a friendly employee checking wrist bands of the attendees. A guy in designer jeans with rhinestones all over the front pockets, a look I was not familiar with for men, took a few steps in before jumping suddenly, cursing and rooting around in his back pockets.
After a few choice words, he pulled a smoking phone from his back pocket and chucked it on the floor, where it burst into flames. Three people that I would have sworn were festival goers surrounded the phone, picked it up with an oven mitt that emerged from nowhere, threw a small vial on the singed carpeting, and offered the man a VIP location to the next band before disappearing.
The crowd barely paused in their observation of the scene. The man who had literally been hopping mad a few moments earlier was transformed into another happy customer as he was guided off.
“Very efficient operation.”
“Thank you. We have a number of restaurants. Any style you can crave: Italian, Thai, Japanese, Indian, New American, fondue, and a few fusion places. We tuck them between the four big venues.”
We walked past the Italian place on our left, where the comforting scent of garlic and onion beckoned me inside. Then I was hit by the spicy and cheesy scent of Mexican food at the place on my right. Despite the fact that I had been off cheese since nearly dying in a vat of queso, my steps faltered as my stomach grumbled.
“Why don’t we stop and have a quick meal?” Thomas attempted to steer me inside, but I danced away.
“No.”
He let out a sigh but seemed only mildly disappointed, as if he’d lost a point in a game that was far from over. He smiled at me, and I could sense his attraction to me. “All business and no pleasure will make Ella a dull girl. The comedy venue is ahead.”
The crowd started to thicken again, and I could just catch the thin notes of music.
Thomas gestured to his right. “This is the Peach Basket, our live music venue. We have twenty different bands over the course of the festival. They work with our seers to get the perfect schedule set up so everyone can see all the shows they want.”
“This is taking much longer than I had intended. I want to get backstage before Natasha’s show starts.” I was being rude to him, and I knew it. I walked quickly, expecting Thomas to try to convince me to slow down, but instead, he fell into step next to me, matching my stride.
“We have some more restaurants up ahead and on the left. On the inner part of the loop is the Aviary, our burlesque show. Not really my thing, but it wouldn’t be Rambler without it.”
I had a quick glance at the entrance, intending to race on by, but instead, I stopped mid-stride. It was so sudden that Thomas walked on a few steps before realizing what had hap
pened and backed up to join me and see what had caused my rapid deceleration.
At the entrance, with deep-red curtains and gold trim decorating it, there was a large billboard advertising the performers inside. A dark-skinned, dark-haired woman with the delicate features of a queen, eyes the color of priceless sapphires, and the thin, athletic build of an Olympic diver was advertised as the lead performer. Britney had several pictures, all of them angled so her finest assets were left to the imagination behind feathered fans or flowing scarves.
But she wasn’t the reason I had stopped, nor the other attractive performer, Becky, who had coloring like mine. Her hair red and eyes green, we could have been related, though she was more of a breast girl, whereas I was endowed in the rump department.
It was the final featured performer that had caught my eye. Tall, blond, and haughty Tiffany’s picture left my legs feeling like lead. Vin’s girlfriend was someone that I had hoped to never see again.
“Tiffany!” I bit off, not even realizing I was talking until the word had escaped my lips, angry and hurt.
Thomas arched an eyebrow. “Yes, she’s been here for a few months. I take it you two aren’t friends?”
I scowled. It wasn’t a topic I cared to discuss.
“Maybe this will cheer you up. She’s not very well liked here. Thinks she’s better than everyone else, fights about stage time, won’t cover for her coworkers—a real diva. She even insisted that her fiancé act as private security during the festival despite the fact that she is nowhere near the biggest performer here.”
The world spun briefly, and I must have thrown out my right hand because suddenly, I was clutching Thomas’s right hand in mine, and he wrapped his left arm around my shoulder to brace me.
I muttered weakly, “Sorry, dizzy spell.”
But it wasn’t. Vin was engaged, and Vanessa hadn’t told me? She could have warned me in private.
I swallowed hard and pulled in a little bit of magic even though I didn’t plan to cast any spells. Just holding the magic in my chest, I felt stronger and more balanced. With a deep breath, I released the magic, which tingled out to the tips of my fingers. It was then that I noticed Thomas’s thumb gently rubbing my shoulder, and a whole new set of sensations started.
I recalled a quote from one my roommates back in boarding school. She had had a hard breakup and immediately started dating another guy. When I asked how she could do that with a broken heart, she had told me that sometimes the best way to get over one guy was to get under another.
I smiled. Even though I had zero intention of getting under anyone, the memory and the attention from Thomas had dulled the impact. “Thank you. I feel better.” I stepped away slightly.
Thomas dropped his arms to his side. He eyed me suspiciously, and even through his shields, I could feel his doubt at my excuse. “Should we stop and grab something to eat?”
I started to protest, but he lifted his hand to stop me. “I know you want to see the comedy show, so I’ll compromise. Roast beef or turkey?”
“Roast beef.”
He searched the crowd until he spied a woman in her thirties who appeared to be waiting for someone as she checked her watch, but her eyes had been searching the crowd until Thomas jerked his head, gesturing her over.
I looked again at Tiffany’s picture and cursed my luck that in all the casinos in Rambler, she had to be working here. And even worse, that Vin was apparently her security for the week. I would have to keep my eye out for both of them.
Thomas started walking again, slowly, though, and with his eyes on me. “She’s grabbing a sandwich for you and will deliver it to the comedy theater. You can sit and watch the show while eating.”
“Thank you.” I couldn’t suppress a smile. It was nice to have someone take care of me. “Are we late? There are no clocks around, and you can’t bring any electronics in. How does anyone know what time it is?”
He held up his wrist to show me a flat matte black metal watch. “You know clocks don’t have to be electronic, right?” His tone was gentle and teasing.
I rolled my eyes. “Obviously, I’m not thinking straight today.” Did I even own a wind-up watch? I’d need to check. Otherwise, I was going to be late until this investigation was wrapped. I had meant to grill him about the festival, and yet I hadn’t gotten even a hint of information. “The festival looks like a lot of fun. It must be really safe?”
He turned and looked at me, a question in his eyes, but he said nothing.
I felt the pressure to make the question seem more natural. “You know… like no one died? Or got hurt or anything like that.” I tripped over my own feet and used the moment to try to gather myself. If only his eyes weren’t staring at me so intently.
“If you don’t feel safe, I can assign security to you.”
“No!” I shouted before realizing how loudly I had said it. Security dogging my every move would ruin any chance to investigate. I grabbed his right arm, hoping to distract him. “I feel very safe. It’s not me that I am worried about but Vanessa. I will be working with her, and she’s younger and can be a bit wild. I want to make sure that she won’t get into anything too dangerous.”
He smiled at me and wrapped his left hand over my hand. “Of course. You’re a good friend. Though we try very hard to have a fun and safe festival, we cannot and do not want to try to control every aspect. Try to keep her away from the obvious dangers like men that will break her heart and too much drinking or drugs.”
He already thought I was a bit naïve, so I took a gamble to play into his view. “Drugs? Why would any mage do that when there are so many better ways to spend their time?” I lightly covered my mouth as though I was gasping at the very idea.
He smiled and patted my hand that still rested on his arm. “You’re so delightful. I hope that Rambler won’t ruin you. I’ve no idea why they would need drugs, but some of them seem to buy into the lifestyle. If I find out who is dealing, they will be banned from my casino.”
I wondered if the use of the phrase “my casino” was a sign of how seriously he took his job or something more proprietary. I opened my mouth to continue the conversation, but Thomas spoke first.
“You know the loft you live in? I tried to buy it after the previous owner passed away. I knew him and always envied his home. Can I ask how you were able to get the place? I tried to contact the lawyer or find the son but no luck.”
I stared straight ahead, my heart racing. The comment about the son was based on a lie my father had told people to protect me, that he had one son who lived in New York. I couldn’t tell the truth, but if I gave a lie, then there would be information he could eventually disprove and expose me. I swallowed hard.
We had continued to walk, and I realized that we were quickly approaching Vaudeville, the comedy club and the perfect change of topic. “We’re here.”
He smiled and allowed me to pull my hand from his arm. “Fine, keep your secrets. They only make you more intriguing.”
I squinted in the distance where a single door stood, the same door we had entered from the casino. “That’s where we came in. Why didn’t we come this way instead of going all the way around the loop?”
“I wanted to show off a little and get to know you. But the show has already begun. Let’s go inside and check it out.” He nodded to a man at the entrance and held the door for me as I slipped inside.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Laughter erupted from behind the doors. The lobby of the club was no more than a long hallway that ran left and right. Thick carpeting muffled our steps as Thomas and I followed an usher in all black to a large gold door. The lights in the hallway were dim. As we stepped inside, a few people in the back row turned to look at us before restoring their attention to the antics on stage.
My eyes struggled to adjust, and when Thomas’s elbow bumped into me, I took it so as not to trip in the dark. The theater was much larger than I had expected. I had assumed it would be nothing more than a cramped nightclub holding a fe
w dozen drunk patrons, but this was more like the theaters I had seen on awards shows. Hundreds of seats fanned out between us and the stage, and when a roar of applause went up, I realized that overhead was a balcony with more audience members.
I had signed up to perform in front of all these people? I swallowed hard and backed up half a step, ready to run, when Thomas escorted me forward to two empty seats on the aisle. As we sat, he smiled brightly and leaned in, his lips grazing the loose hair around my ear and sending chills down my back.
“You’ll love the show.” He slipped a show program into my hand.
I strained to see in the dim light, but by angling it, I could get enough illumination from the lights near the flooring to make out the description. The show was a mix of Natasha’s stand-up act, sketches, musical numbers, and prop comedy.
At the moment, a girl danced and sang on stage. She had shiny black hair that swung as she stomped around the stage, and her pale skin practically glowed under the bright stage lights, but the rest of her features were difficult to pick out, though I thought she might be of Asian heritage. But what I could tell without a doubt was the power of her voice.
She was singing along to a collection of hit songs from the last thirty-odd years with the lyrics changed to paranormal humor. As we entered, she had been singing in a breathy Britney Spears impression to “Oops, I Spelled It Again” before transitioning to Katy Perry’s voice to sing “I Kissed a Cat and I Liked It.” The lyrics had made reference to the familiar smelling like tuna fish. I tapped my foot along to the beat. Some of the songs had been favorites growing up, but several were new.
Unfortunately, I didn’t understand all the references but smiled along with the rest of the crowd to blend in. Every time I thought I was catching up on mage culture, I was reminded that I was still a stranger in a strange land, so to speak. The song “My Runes Don’t Lie” was a mystery to me with all the inside jokes about runes being unsexy. I had heard Vanessa referring to them as an outdated way of performing magic, but the rest of the nuances were lost on me.
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