Jill frowns, pointing toward the building we’re parked in front of. “I thought you said we were going to a club, not a laundromat.”
Jill isn’t mistaken. Weareparked in front of a laundromat.
I shoot a look back at Nate, who is walking leisurely beside Gray. “Explain.”
“Relax,” he says, both of them joining us. “This is just a quick stop. I promise. This way!”
He waves us along, already two strides ahead of us. I hesitate for a minute, but then Gray’s fingers curl around mine and he gives a gentle tug. Reaching for Jill, I hook her arm in mine and pull her with me as he starts to walk. Emma is right beside her sister, not half as skeptical as Jill looks, though. Something tells me she knows a secret, as if there’s more to the laundromat than what we see at first glance.
The four of us follow Nate inside. He’s at the desk, speaking with someone in hushed tones before addressing us.
“I’ll need your keys.” He holds out a pale hand toward Jill.
“Why?” She crosses her arms tightly over her chest.
He waves his own keys around. “Valet, of course.”
There’s a long pause of silence between the five of us, but Jill finally relents. I’m not sure what convinces her, but she handsover the keys to her car. The guy behind the desk takes both sets from Nate and then disappears. We don’t stand around waiting for him to return. Nate guides us past rows of washers and dryers, all of which seem to be pretty normal for a laundromat. It doesn’t change until we reach a door at the back marked ‘Associates Only.’
I’m having a hard time picturing this as a face for an exclusive nightclub.
“Tannis is theatrical,” Gray leans down to whisper in my ear.
Clearly.
On the other side of the door are rows and rows of bagged clothing hanging from racks. It’s a short walk, but it does get more cramped as we go. Gray is pressed to my back and the girls are in front of me, huddled so close that the garment bags have pretty much closed in on both sides.
Nate’s voice rises above us in the darkness, “It’s right through here.”
“Great,” Jill grumbles. “Just fucking open the door already.”
With a laugh, Nate opens the final door, and we’re hit with a burst of light emanating from the neon lining the ceiling of a long hallway. We file through one at a time, bathed in shimmering red. When the door closes again, we’re shut in tight.
“Watch your step!” Nate calls.
The second half of this excursion is a descent down a few staircases. Beyond the second set of doors, a wider hallway leads to a distant thumping beat of music. My skin crawls with goosebumps as my excitement grows. The music is loud—a siren call drawing us in closer and closer.
“Are you having fun yet?” Gray’s voice is so close to my skin again, I didn’t realize he was hovering.
“You have no idea.” I’m actually bouncing on my toes in these borrowed heels. “Fucking giddy.”
We’ve reached our destination at the end of the hallway. The mouth of a door opens wide, two guards in pitch black suits posted outside. In clear writing above the door ‘Your Fangtasy’ glows with neon, and a little set of vampire teeth flash back and forth from closed to open. Here is where the music is loudest, and I recognize the tempo, amping me up further.
“Wow, this is insane!” Emma shouts, finding me. She’s practically jumping. Jill is looking up at the sign with wide eyes, basked in the glow. I’m starting to feel a little more uneasy, worried that Nate might have been right. Maybe they might actually want a little bite to their night.
“Before we go in,” Nate calls us to attention, producing a set of flashy bands from his pocket. “Special wristbands for each of you. Purple for the ladies, black for me and Gray.”
He passes them around and we slip them on easily.
I hear myself ask, “Why purple?”
“Purple is VIP admission,” Nate explains, pointing to each of our wrists. “Black is for escorts and designated drivers. I’ve appointed Gray my back-up, just in case.”
While Emma and Jill slip theirs on, I notice Nate wink at me. I’m willing to bet the bands mean something else entirely, but since my friends don’t know about vampires, I don’t plan to ask while they’re within earshot.
“Ready?” Nate asks. “Here we go!”
The men posted at the double doors open them wide, and like the force of a black hole, we’re all sucked in toward the darkness. We break through a wall of smoke and laser lights, standing on a raised platform overlooking a huge dance floor. The crowd is frenzied, dancing with the music blaring overhead. I can’t tear my eyes away. Apart from the music and number of people below, I am overly impressed. If I wasn’t already in the know, I would just assume the owner was a fan of movies like Blade orDracula. But I know Tannis, and I get their love of pageantry and drama, because this place is over the top.
