Page 42 of Somnium

Cadi turned to see Spikey-Hair striding toward them, a half empty pint of beer in his hand. Elias leaned his pool cue against the table and turned to greet the musician with a friendly embrace, a move that ended up being rather awkward considering the man was closer to Cadi’s height than Elias’s, forcing Elias to stoop down in order to reach him.

“Hey, thanks for the gig, man,” Spikey-Hair said, clapping Elias on the shoulder. “It’s been great getting back into it, and this type of exposure really helps.”

“Anytime, brother. It’s the least I could do after I left you and the rest of the guys hanging.”

Cadi straightened at that. “You were in a band?”

“He wasn’t just in the band,” Spikey-Hair answered. “He was our frontman. Made barflies swoon all over Fiddler’s Green back in the day.”

He gave Cadi a playful wink, and she raised her eyebrows in surprise, not quite sure how to respond.

“Thank you, that’s enough of that,” Elias said, gesturing between them. “Cadi, this is Miles. Like he said, we go way back.”

“Lovely to meet you, Cadi,” Miles said with a lopsided grin, then bent forward to take her hand and place a flirtatious kiss against the back of her fingers. Cadi huffed out an awkward laugh, carefully freeing herself from his grip. Miles was very … friendly.

Elias pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sorry about him. He thinks he’s smooth.”

Miles scoffed, glowering up at Elias and taking another sip of beer. “You wish you had my game, Stringbean. Stick around and I’ll show you both just how smooth I can be when we rock this second set.”

Cadi gave him a pained smile. She was fairly confident her ears wouldn’t survive another set. Miles just winked at her again before turning away and disappearing into the crowd in the direction of the stage. Elias shook his head.

“Sorry about him,” he said again, but Cadi waved him off.

“It’s fine, he seems … fun.”

Elias chuckled. “That’s one way to put it.”

“Mister Masterson!”

Elias winced, turning his attention to where a panicked-looking barback was squeezing his way out of the crowd, jogging toward them.

“Seriously, Danny. It’s Elias,” he said as the young man reached them.

“Elias—right—sorry,” Danny panted, still trying to catch his breath. “The dishwasher is on the fritz again. It’s leaking water all over the front.”

Elias swore and ran a hand down his face, his eyes flicking to Cadi. “I’m sorry, I have to⁠—”

“No, don’t apologize, that sounds bad. You should go.”

His face relaxed, and he reached out to give her hand an appreciative squeeze. “Thanks,” he said, stepping back toward the bar. “I’ll see you later.”

Cadi nodded, sliding her fingers together to calm the sparks that still danced against her skin. She let out a soft breath before turning to where Sera had started teaching one of the sirens how to read a palm. Miles should be taking notes from her.

Stepping closer to the table, she coughed to announce her presence, trying her best not to completely derail what appeared to be a very effective play. Sera’s eyes found hers, and her smile widened as she pushed up from the table.

“Hang tight,” she said to the siren. The female giggled and shimmied back in her seat before gracefully crossing her legs at the knee.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Cadi said with a sly grin.

“Oh, don’t worry, the tension is half the fun,” Sera replied.

Cadi tipped her head back in understanding. Miles could definitely learn a thing or two. “I think I’m gonna head out.”

“Okay! I’ll walk you to your car,” Sera said, turning back to update her companions. Cadi opened her mouth to argue, a visceral discomfort swarming through her at the idea of making Sera disrupt her night just to escort her down the block. Then adrenaline began to seep into her veins when she turned to look at the crowd of strangers.

Chances were extremely low that Damon was lurking anywhere near this particular bar, but having someone with her didn’t seem like a terrible idea. Especially since Sera had already offered.

“Ready?” Sera asked. Cadi nodded and gripped her friend’s shoulder as they stepped back into the crush to make their way toward the door.