The man’s eyes turned red then back to a rusty yellow. “Ah yes. Seekers. Follow me, but first pay the toll.”
Seekers don’t usually travel with cash — who needs cash these days? I looked helplessly to Adonis, who, in turn, looked helplessly toward our fellow Styx.
“Seekers,” he grumbled then pulled the key out of the door. “This will do. Now, don’t fall behind.”
We followed him down a stairway that lacked any sort of railing. If I was afraid of heights, this would be my worst nightmare. When the homeless man said down, he meant down. By the looks of it, we were traveling at least sixty-six stories down into the earth. Maybe that was an exaggeration, but still.
My stomach fluttered with every level we traveled. The walls were rocky and black. In fact, everything was black. I heard nothing but my own footsteps as we continued down.
Adonis kept his hand on my lower back. The only comfort I had was that he hadn’t somehow been stabbed or fallen to his death.
The stairs ended at a large red door that was at least twenty feet tall. Above it, in neon lights, was the word River.
I wanted to ask if that was the name of the club, but bit my tongue instead. The guy leading us didn’t look like he was up to any joking remarks.
Styx opened the door and closed it behind us. The entire room we entered was covered in red and black velvet, from the panels on the walls to the tables and chairs. Pure-blood Fallen were lying casually around on couches. The entire ambiance felt… drugged. There were also humans participating in whatever the entertainment was, which meant it was only a matter of time before they would die. Some party.
The music sounded familiar, but I couldn’t really put my finger on it.
A beautiful woman appeared in front of us.
“Follow me,” she ordered. Her tight black leather jumpsuit looked like it was painted on. I tried to keep my mouth shut as people stared at us. Men and women alike were sprawled across any open space, many of them had glazed looks on their faces.
“What’s wrong with them?” I whispered to Adonis.
“They are in a relaxed state.” The woman in front of us turned and pointed at a couple next to my feet. They looked completely wasted. Both were conscious and still drinking from some sort of red cup. I’d seen the same red cup in others’ hands.
“Would you like a sample?” the woman asked, motioning to the bartender in the middle.
“Um, no, we’re here on business,” I said lamely.
“As you wish.” Her smile was tight as she led us farther into the club. The inner circle was clad with dark black couches in twelve rows, all circling one another. In the middle stood a man.
“Athena,” he said. His lips did not move, yet I knew it was him speaking.
I glanced at Adonis, but he wasn’t even looking in the same direction as I was.
“How do you fare today? I hope it wasn’t too much trouble coming down…”
Adonis was still looking around.
“I’ve decided I want to talk only to you, my love… if that isn’t too much to ask?”
“It is,” I said trying to sound bored.
“Who are you talking to?” Adonis asked.
“Fine.” The man gave a disappointed pout and clapped his hands. Adonis’s eyes flickered to the man, so I knew he was suddenly visible to him. “Sit.” He motioned to the couches.
We walked around the circle and joined him.
“Refreshments?” he asked.
Neither I nor Adonis responded, so the man excused the waitress near us and pressed a button on his seat. The curtains around the circle closed, leaving us utterly alone.
“I don’t work for Seekers, and I don’t work for Phantoms…” He lit a cigar. “ But I will tell you this. I don’t appreciate being told what to do or how to run my business, is that understood?”
He didn’t let us answer.
Brushing the jet-black hair out of his eyes, he leaned down and took a sip of the red liquid in front of him. “I’m a creature of the Underworld. We report to no one. That is, until the end, and I don’t plan on dying anytime soon, so get that out of your head, Beautiful One.” He looked seductively at Adonis, and I suddenly felt ill.
“I’m sure you have no idea what this place is, and if you haven’t guessed it by now, I don’t feel the need to inform you.”
“Feeders,” Adonis whispered. “They feed off blood and souls.”
“Ah, the pretty one has a brain, does he?”
The creature leaned forward and closed his eyes as he sniffed close to Adonis. It wasn’t lost on me that the man was somewhat, er, attracted to him. But most of the Underworld worked that way. If they were attracted to someone or something, they took it. But this man was different. He didn’t look like the Phantoms, yet he fed on souls and blood, which meant he needed them to be sustained. Phantoms could feed on anything. I quickly tried to put the pieces together.