Chapter 2
Chapter
Two
Cassia
Red neon lights glow and hum at the entrance of Dyrk.
This isn’t the first time that I’ve come here, but it’s the first time that I’m walking in as one of the staff.
The past few weeks have been some of the very worst of my life, and Miriam, my closest friend, is sure that working here is just what I need to get back on my feet.
I’d have passed up on the opportunity if she hadn’t gone out of her way to get me the job in the first place. Well, her talking me up and me having my interview with Sibley. That woman is actually terrifying, but also the nicest I’ve ever met besides Miriam.
I don’t want to let Miriam down. Not when she’s the only thing I have to a real friend in this town. Redwich is small, yet big enough to have the businesses it does.
The second I pass through the door, showing my ID to the bouncer, goosebumps spray over my body. The light is the type that grips the skin and stains the soul. I hope by the time my shift is over, I’ll either be used to the change or it’ll go away.
My eyes scan the crowd, and I gulp down hard as I mentally catalog the clientele. Vampires, demons, supernatural beings, a scattering of humans . . . individuals the normal person would not want to be alone with in the dark of night.
That’s who I’ll be serving tonight.
Every muscle in my body screams at me to turn and run. Instead, I push forward. After a few slow, measured steps, I make my way behind the round bar in the center of the club.
I’ve met a few of the other servers and workers when I came in for my impromptu interview, but still, everyone stares at me like I’m the outsider invading their space.
They’re not wrong.
My eyes drift back toward the crowd of people on the other side of the bar, and for a brief second, I lock eyes with one of the humans.
The first thing I learned about dealing with the individuals who keep company with the supernatural is to never lock eyes with them. Especially the humans. Some of them can be even worse than the monsters in plain sight.
It’s time to get the night started. It’s best just tojump right in.
Walking up to a woman in a tight black catsuit, I reach out and tap her shoulder. I think her name is Meg, but I’m not sure. I’ve only met her once.
““Hey, I’m the new, starting tonight,”“ I say as loud as I can and with a forced sugary tone.
She turns her vampire eyes on me, looking me over once before she turns back to the bar to continue with what she was doing.
She grabs a bottle and expertly flips it up in the air with a flourish before she catches it and pours a drink.
There are a few gasps and laughs as she makes a show of doing her job.
She slides the drink over to the patron before she turns back to address me.
“Servers don’t come behind the bar,” she snaps at me as she wipes her hands on an errant towel laid on the side.
Blinking a few times, I process what she’s just said. “Sorry. I’m not a server, I was hired as a bartender. I was told to come now and find the person in charge,” I add, just to smooth over my mistake.
She smirks at me and jerks her head for me to follow.
She takes me through a weaving path toward the back of the club.
Dyrk is built for decadence, not comfort. The tables are black glass. The chairs are grandiose but look to be a bit uncomfortable. Even the floor is hard and unforgiving.
I step around a puddle of something thick and refuse to look at it too hard. The bass of the music is so strong that it vibrates my skin.
The supernatural beings present are obvious, but not in a cartoonish way. No one is in a cape tonight, but it’s easy to pick them out of the crowd.
The way to the back is crammed with bodies, less dancing and more people milling around in conversation.
I do my very best not to make contact with any of them.
Of course, it’s easier said than done. I bump into a man who instantly growls in my direction, but after a beat his face smooths out, and instead of anger he stares at me with intrigue and something much darker.
Doing my best, I apologize and continue following Meg to the back. I don’t want my first night on the job to be marred with a bar brawl because I made the mistake of staring at someone for too long.
I release a deep breath the second we get to the back, and I’m feeling more at ease. The sensation doesn’t last very long.
“You’re early,” Meg grumbles as she digs through a small pile of cloth, without looking back at me.
“Uh, yeah. I thought it would be better to get a feel for the place, so I’d know what I’m doing. I like to be prepared.” I laugh lightly, but she doesn’t share my lightheartedness.
“Whatever. Miriam said you knew what you were doing, so I don’t have to waste time training you, right?”
“Yeah, I’m good. I know what to do.”
“Good, because I’m way too damn busy to be babysitting.
Here’s what you need to know. Tonight you’re serving.
Two servers called out.” Finally, she turns in my direction and glares at me.
“Don’t steal from the customers or the till, don’t bring any outside drama into the job, and be prepared to see shit that will give you nightmares.
Everything else you can learn as you go. ”
She shrugs her shoulders and tosses an apron in my direction.
So much for a welcoming committee.
We go back out into the chaos that is the club, and she points to the left. “That’s your section over there. Get to work.”
With that, she leaves me on my own to figure out everything else. It’s a little overwhelming, but I’m determined to do a good job.
There’s no time for me to catch my bearings. Instantly, a customer’s hand goes up, gesturing for me to come over.
From that moment on, I’m flying from table to table, taking orders and making sure everyone has the drinks that they need, including the synthetic blood I’m told was founded by the owner of this club.
Hopefully, that synthetic blood is enough to keep the vampires partying here in check.
“Bestie! I didn’t even see you over here,” Miriam squeals as she rushes over to me, nearly knocking a tray of empty bottles and glasses out of my hand.
“Yeah, I told you I was starting tonight.” I press a quick kiss to her cheek as we both make our way to the bar so I can pick up my next round of orders.
“Yeah, but you didn’t come find me.” Miriam gives me an exaggerated pout, which pushes her septum piercing up.
I shake my head at the expression. With her neon green braids and nearly drag queen level makeup, Miriam is the complete opposite of me. She walks into a room, and all eyes are on her. She loves it that way. I, on the other hand, would prefer to just fade away into the shadows.
“Sorry, it’s been nonstop since I hit the floor.” I sigh and look over my shoulder at the never-ending stream of customers and patrons.
“Wait, I thought you were going to be bartending,” Miriam says, seeming to realize that I’m serving instead of tending.
I shrug. “Meg said I needed to serve since they were short.”
Honestly, I didn’t mind. Not if it meant I’m working. I could tend bar or serve, it doesn’t matter.
It’s after midnight now, and instead of things dying down, it seems as if things are only getting more hectic. Standing here talking to Miriam is the first chance I’ve had at a break in the last few hours, and my feet are reminding me of it.
I lean against the bar, trying to take some of the pressure off my feet as Miriam goes on a tangent about what she did earlier in the day.
I do my best to pay attention to her, but I know the longer I stand here with her, the more I’m going to have to do when I get back on the floor.
I look over my shoulder again, but this time instead of seeing a huge crowd, my eyes lock onto one person in particular. He’s staring straight at me. Not like he’s waiting for me to come take his order, but as if he’s studying me.
He’s got long gray hair, but it doesn’t age him in the least. He’s wearing dark clothing. It’s not his appearance that has me stuck in his gaze, it’s the way he’s staring at me. The fact that he’s standing so still almost makes the people around him look like they are moving in super speed.
After a moment, or an hour, I can’t tell, the man smirks at me, baring his fangs. He licks the tip of one in a way that is both suggestive and terrifying.
The hair on the back of my neck prickles.
“Cassie? You okay?” Miriam shakes my shoulder, and I snap my eyes in her direction.
“Hmm? Yeah, I’m okay. I’m sorry, I need to get back on the floor.” I grab the tray, giving her a look I hope says I’m sorry.
“True, you don’t want to get on the King’s bad side,” she jokes before she turns and walks away as if what she’s said is as normal as saying the sky is blue.
The King?
I’ve heard several people mentioning the King in here and others who have talked about Dyrk as being owned by a king, but they can’t be serious . . . can they?
I push the thought out of my mind and get on with the night. An hour later, I’m making my way back to the kitchen to drop off a bucket of dirty dishes.
It’s on my way out the door that I’m faced with my first real problem.
The hall is dark, but I see the man standing there before I take my first step. The customers usually stay in the main area, but there are a few who linger along the sides, so I try to put aside the fact that this man is so close to my space.
Just as I try to walk by him, he takes a step forward and cuts off my path.
“Can I help you with something?” I ask, trying my best to keep my tone pleasant.
“You’re new.” His voice grates on my nerves for no other reason than it’s coming out of his mouth.
“Guilty.” I smile and try to walk around him. He cuts me off once again.
“Hmm, I like the new ones. They are always so eager to please.” He leans in a little closer, and I do my best to take a step away, but the wall is to my back. I don’t have anywhere to go.
“Sir, I need to get back on the floor. If you need a drink, I’ll be able to help you out there.”
“I do need a drink, but it’s nothing that you can get for me behind the bar.”
I suck in a breath and prepare myself to fight, though even I’m not delusional enough to think I’ll do any damage.
This is the same man from earlier, the gray-haired one who stared too hard. The one with the fangs. A definite supernatural being. If I hit him, it’ll do no more damage than a mosquito.
“You need to leave me alone.”
“Or what? What are you going to do to me if I don’t leave you alone?” He smirks at me again, his fangs on full display.
“I’ll scream. There’s security all around.”
“I’ll be finished before they get here.”
My heart feels like it’s going to beat right out of my chest, but I try to keep calm. I don’t want this man to see how much he scares me.
In a last-ditch effort, I push my hands against his chest and try to get away.
I’m almost past him when his hand snakes out from the shadows and yanks me back against the wall.
The shock knocks the air out of me. I catch a whiff of cigarette smoke and cheap cologne.
He pins my wrists with one hand and presses his body against mine. I suck in a breath when I feel his mouth against my ear.
“You smell different,” he growls, and my body trembles in fear.
What the hell is that supposed to mean? What am I supposed to smell like to him?
I twist, try to stomp on his foot, but he’s ready. He moves away and squeezes me tighter. Pain blossoms in my wrists, and I open my mouth to scream. It’s not like anyone will hear me, though.
Surely this can’t be how I end my first day on the job.
Just as his head starts to dip toward my neck, there is a blur of motion, and the weight is gone.
The man is yanked away from me and thrown against the far wall with a thud.
A man dressed in all black, with short inky hair and tattoos on his arms, steps between me and the man who was attacking me.
“I’ve been waiting all night for some excitement,” my savior mutters.
I don’t need to ask who he is. Everything about him screams royalty.
My first night on the job, and I’m being saved by the King.