Chapter 4
Marissa POV
The pulsing music inside the club was threatening to make my ear drums explode. The flashing lights, sticky floors, pungent smell – a mixture of sweat, alcohol and something probably starting to rot. It made me wonder what kind of life choices usually led people here. The club was one of the cheapest in the Capitol where chaps fed up with the world came to forget their reality. I wasn't one of the chaps, and I wasn't completely fed up with the world. If anything, I was thrilled with the notion of one day achieving my dreams. I was here for an important meet.
The bar-tender kept darting me side glances, questionable ones. Probably wondering why I had a yellow SpongeBob mask on and it wasn't Halloween. I fixated my eyes on the drink, fearing that maybe he could see through my mask and recognize me. When the glances increased, I figured it was because I hadn't touched the drink I had ordered for over an hour. I picked up the glass and slowly swirled it before sipping the purple content through a hole on the mask. I winced at its acidic taste.
I checked my watch then agitatedly turned to glance at the door…
"Did it hurt?" a man suddenly propped up, effortlessly sliding into the stool next to me. He was a shifter—I could smell it on him. Lion shifters had this distinctive mountain smell, it was kind of easy recognizing them by their scent. He wore an ill-fitting but expensive suit, with white sports shoes to match it. Definitely a married man with a bunch of kids.
"What?" I quipped
"Did it hurt? When you fell from heaven?" he continued, with the kind of confidence that even surprised me. Alcohol was really something else.
I rolled my eyes, not glorifying his teen pick-up line with an answer.
"Come on, don't be like that," he said, leaning closer. "I'm John. What's your name sweet pie?"
I cringed, on behalf of his wife probably pregnant with the fifth kid at home. Suddenly, the drink in front of me was getting more interesting than my unexpected company.
John wasn't deterred. "You know, I'm a lion shifter, you know, one of the strongest kinds of shifters to exist. Bet you've never been with a guy like me before, strong and muscular…handsome"
I sighed audibly and glanced at my watch as if it would save me from the man beside me. I wish it could.
"Come on, a little fun time won't hurt…" he leaned closer to me, such that our elbows were bumping. I instantly set my glass down and finally turned to look at him.
"Let me tell you something. If you were the last man on earth and the survival of our species depended on me procreating with you, I'd gladly drink poison, strap myself with explosives on dead trigger, drink more poison then hang myself, and just before I die…I'd release the trigger and explode my body just to make sure none of me remain behind for you to mourn."
"what the…" the guy blinked, his grin faltering for a moment before he recovered. "Feisty, aren't you."
Apparently, he wasn't done yet.
"You know; I've got connections to the current regime. Just today morning after Julian was announced the winner, I was requested…by name, to offer my services as an administrator at the Capitol hall. You see, I am now the secretarial administrator of the office of relations between species. I got a chance to see Julian too…." he said, puffing out his chest. "Also, not to brag but I'm tight with Luca Wilder. The leader of the shifters? Yeah, we go way back. I could introduce you. Get you whatever you want."
I didn't respond.
"Seriously," he pressed, undeterred. "Name it. Money? Power? A penthouse in the Capitol? I could make it happen. Just tell me what you want."
"I would like for you to just shut up and leave." I said sharply,
John opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, a hand landed on my shoulder. I turned to see a hooded figure standing behind me, their face obscured by the shadows of their hood.
"Let's go," he said, his voice low and urgent.
I stood up without a word, leaving John hurling insults at the bar. The man led me to a booth in the back of the club, where a couple was too busy making out to notice us.
"Out," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
The couple looked up, annoyed, but one glance at his face had them scrambling out of the booth. The man slid in across from me, his hood still up, his red eyes darting around the room like he was expecting an ambush.
"You're late, an hour late" I said, crossing my arms.
"I had to make sure I wasn't followed," he replied, his voice barely audible over the music. "Julian's got eyes everywhere."
"You said you got some dirt" I cut right to the chase
He leaned forward, his hands clasped on the table. "I know what Julian bribed the leaders with," he said, his voice trembling with a mix of fear and excitement. "I know what he promised them."
I leaned in closer, my heart rate picking up. "Well, go on."
But before he could say another word, the lights in the club flickered and went out. The music cut out too, plunging the room into silence, the kind of silence that made your skin crawl.
"They're here," he whispered.
"Who's here?" I demanded, my hand instinctively reaching for the knife strapped to my thigh.
The lights came back on, and the music started up again, but the man was gone. I rushed outside and the mood in the club had all but shifted. People were whispering, glancing around like they were waiting for something to happen.
My instincts screamed at me to get out of this place as fast as possible.