Xinyi’s gaze settled back on Callum. ‘Let’s say I … assisted you. What’s in it for me?’
‘What would you want?’ Nicole asked.
Xinyi slid that gaze over to Remi. ‘Would you sing for me, first?’
Nicole gave her a look that saidyou don’t have to.But Remi watched the mysterious woman who might be able to grant her access to a divine instrument, and the confidence glided back into her body. Remi nodded softly.
A slight smile tugged at Xinyi’s lips, and she waved a hand to the stage. ‘Then the stage is yours.’
Remi finished her drink and rose. ‘Let’s see what your orchestra can do.’
She strode to the stage and, after speaking to the musicians, stepped into the spotlight. For a breathless moment, she was lambent as a gold flame. Then the orchestra began with flutes and strings and the magical flutter of a harp that felt like the soundtrack to an old movie.
Then Remi sang an opening note, her eyes closed and head tiltedas if it was a kiss and not a song. It vibrated with such a tone her voice captivated the entire room. One note became another, and then she was singing.
She wasn’t holding back as much as she had in Estwood. She had the proper acoustics here, the proper non-human environment, and a new kind of ease, using her power like a cloak of confidence.
Her voice was liquid warmth, smooth and skilled. The type you’d follow into another world. Nicole marvelled at her friend’s ability to transfix a room, even one full of creatures that were used to Sirens. Even those who’d been chatting quietly through the other sets ceased speaking.
How wonderful it would be to sit here freely and listen to Remi all night. The need was so strong Nicole’s chest ached.
To think, she’d been missing magic like this her whole life.
Remi took them through the music, wending and weaving and adding to the ache in Nicole’s chest. By the time it came to a sweeping conclusion, Nicole nearly launched out of her seat to clap.
‘I know every whisper that goes on in my city,’ Xinyi said as Remi finished. ‘So I know elements of what the Wake have been up to. But I want to be warned about any … developments, or details.’
‘Does that mean we have a deal?’ asked Callum.
Nicole was nearly breathless as she waited to hear Xinyi’s answer, noting how the woman’s eyes were still on Remi as the spotlight dimmed and she seemed to disappear like a dream.
What about Remi and her voice had convinced Xinyi to help them? Other Sirens had performed here, and yet Callum hadn’t mentioned that any Siren who performs gets to speak to the owner.
Unless, from that performance, Xinyi knew Remi’s Siren song would be extraordinary and wanted a connection to her in the future. If Nicole had learned anything on this quest of art and immortals, it was how so many of them knew how to play a long game.
‘Yes.’ Xinyi hummed. ‘We have a deal.’
Callum raised his glass to Remi with a flash of a grin, and drank.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Nicole
REMI HAD STARTED ANOTHER SONG. XINYI HADAGREED TOhelp them get their hands on the Brian Boru Harp.
But now it was time for the second half of tonight’s plan, the one that involved Kyan … Nicole just had to make an excuse to leave, and then their faux hunt would begin.
‘Hey.’ Dylan brushed her shoulder, leaning over Callum to do so. His concerned blue eyes met hers like a splash of fresh water. ‘You okay?’
Nicole made herself nod. She didn’t have to feign a slight wince. She was tired, and so overly aware of the room, that stepping out into the night would be a subtle relief, even if she wished she had longer to soak in the atmosphere. ‘I’m fine. I just have a headache. I’m going to get some air.’
As she slid out of the booth, Callum draped his arm around her brother’s shoulders to keep him there, giving Nicole a reassuring wink. Both knew about the plan and had their own roles to play, but Dylan’s eyes didn’t leave her as she wove through the other creatures.
Going through the door by the bar, Nicole bypassed the bathrooms and disappeared down a set of stairs to the back entrance and out into the night, the door locking behind her to prevent humans getting inside.
She took a moment in the ringing quiet to locate herself. Smells rushed her: car exhaust, the sharp spill of alcohol, the salt of the marina. She’d entered onto a warren of back alleys. Ahead was ashadowed route to the next street. Otherwise, the different alleys branched off from the tarmacked stretch outside the door, lit by moonlight and the neon-red glow of the exit sign buzzing quietly.
She was supposed to linger here for a few minutes, just long enough that Kyan could ‘track’ her. She focused her hearing, searching for him.
