Page 14 of Feast

He sighed as he followed behind. “Yeah…I was afraid you’d say that.”

The sound of my clunky heels echoed with the weak bass, pulsating like a heartbeat from further in the club as I walked to another door, one that led straight into the upper level of The Burnout.

Here we go.

I took a deep breath, calming my nerves as I pushed the door open. My eyes were instantly blinded by an overwhelming, vibrant light. Pink flooded the multilevel club, soaking it in a deep fuchsia. Music blasted from every angle, drowning out any kind of noise or sound; hundreds of people were dancing, drinking, and partying in every which way direction.

Yup. This is exactly how I remembered it.

I stepped further, pushing through crowds of people. The club was packed: body glitter, confetti, and the smell of alcohol shoved into every sense. Spider grabbed my hand, startling me as I turned to look up at him. “Easy!” he shouted over the music. I tried to pull my arm free, but he refused to let go, leaning in close as he shouted in my ear. “Until I get seated at the bar, I’m hanging on! Just try not to lose me!”

“You better hope—” I paused, remembering our alias names. “You better hope Bud doesn’t see you!” I rolled my eyes at the ridiculous name.

Spider grinned. “Just lead the way!”

I shook my head, reluctantly pulling my ex-boyfriend behind me as we snaked through the crowd, eventually approaching the railing of the upper level.

The view from the upper level was insane. It looked out into the rest of the club, which consisted of numerous VIP booths, similar to this level, tucked into little pockets along multiple levels. Of course, there were more private VIP sections hidden from the public view for more personal exchanges.

I shuddered, remembering it all too well.

Spider leaned in close, placing his arms on either side of me as he surrounded me. “Look!” He pointed down to the lower level at one of the many bars in The Burnout. And staring right up at us was none other than my twin, Haze.

My heart nearly stopped at the look on his face, his eyes dark from the colored contacts like my own, his hair hidden behind a hat. He was dressed in a tight black t-shirt, his bulging tattooed arms on full display.

Fuck.

“Think he can see us?” Spider shouted in my ear. He waved down at my brother, completely unbothered by Haze’s death glare. Haze flipped Spider off, causing him to burst into laughter. “Oh, man! He’s so going to kill me!”

No shit.

“Alright, I can take it from here!” He patted my arm, turning to leave. The lights in the club shifted with the song, turning from that vibrant pink to a mix of blacklight-blue and glowing-green as a new song began to blare over the speakers.

I stopped him, forcing my eyes from Haze. “Wait! What am I supposed to do?”

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, the blacklight ink in his spider tattoo on his neck glowing under the lights. “Take a few laps, then blend in! You’ve worked here before, not me!”

“So helpful!” I crossed my arms.

He laughed. “You’re bottle service, Ms. Flowers! And by the looks of it, a VIP client is walking in right this very moment!” My eyes followed his as I looked over the railing to see Ray, the petty dealer who fucked with Dream. He had entered the club, wearing some douchy pair of shades, dressed like a wannabe mafia boss, surrounded by a group of Kief’s men. Another bottle service woman greeted them. I watched as she showed them to a lower-level VIP booth.

Spider rested his head on my shoulder, speaking in my ear. “Get to it, Indi. It’s showtime.” I nodded, knowing I needed to get down there. Spider melted into the crowd, leaving me alone.

You got this, Indi.

I took another deep breath, forcing my anxiety down as I forced my way back into the crowd. Gripping the railing tightly, my heels clanked along the glass stairs that led down to the lower level of the club. My eyes scanned my surroundings, noticing the handful of dancers in cages, dressed in the smallest metallic bikinis, wearing mostly body glitter and neon paint, dancing as if they were rolling on molly.

God, I don’t miss that shit.

I stepped onto the lower level, my green wig glowing in the black light. Instinct and old habits took over as I walked through the club, heading toward the direction of the VIP booths. I also spotted another woman in bottle service walking through the crowd with a couple of bottles of champagne.

Perfect.

I bobbed around a crowd of wasted men, walking a bit closer. One of the men, dressed in a suit and completely wasted, raised his arm as I purposefully bumped into it, spilling the man’s glass as the ice from his drink spewed down at the woman's feet. She slipped, nearly falling back as I happened to catch her. “Oh my gosh!” I shouted as her eyes met mine. “Are you alright?”

The woman nodded as I helped her up. “Here.” She handed me the bottles and proceeded to smack the drunken businessman, shouting at him as his friends laughed at the commotion. I quickly walked away, carrying the bottles close, smiling at how easy that was.

Now…to set the bait.