The Strange Path Read Online Free PDF

the artist. “Yeah. What the hell, you know?”
    The smaller woman grinned. “All right then. Let’s go into the back room for that.” She led the way toward a curtain.
    Swallowing her sudden trepidation, Whiskey followed, Cora and Fiona trailing after.
     

Chapter Five
    “You’ve got to be shitting me.” Whiskey studied the upscale club across the street from the car. The word Malice dripped bloody red across black-colored brick above the door. A spotlight brought out the glossiness of the paint. At nearly one in the morning, people still lined up, waiting for admittance from the two bouncers at the door. The air pulsed with the muffled bass of the music inside. Someone threw open the double doors to leave, and a flow of ambient trance music washed over the street.
    Fiona laughed, locking the vehicle doors. “When it comes to raising hell, my friend, I rarely joke. Have you been here before?”
    “Hell, no.” She raised her voice to be heard over the crowd. “I’m not twenty-one.” Not to mention I’m not pretty enough to be let into the hottest club in town.
    Cora wrapped herself around Whiskey’s left arm. “I think you’ll like it. It’s not as much fun as Crucible, but—”
    “Cora.”
    Fiona’s sharp voice redirected Whiskey’s attention. She saw Fiona give Cora a glare. For her part, Cora didn’t wilt, but her pale skin flushed as she looked away.
    “What were you going to say?”
    Cora’s discomfort faded. She smiled at Whiskey. “I was going to say it’s not as much fun, but I like the music better here.”
    Whiskey always knew when someone lied to her. She’d expected it sooner or later. Fiona ruled this roost. For whatever reason, be it fear or greed, she engendered loyalty from her people. She’d probably ordered Cora’s intimacy with Whiskey whatever Cora’s enjoyment of the activity. Whiskey ruthlessly quashed a faint sense of regret. Take more than you give.
    “Shall we?” Fiona turned away from her guest, and crossed the street.
    Whiskey allowed herself to be pulled along by Cora. She kept a neutral expression on her face as Fiona led them not to the end of the line, but to the door itself. Shit. How much influence does she have?
    Glances smoldered with venom, especially from those who’d waited longest near the door. A handful verbally accosted them as Fiona spoke with one of the bouncers. The big man’s black T-shirt strained across his pectoral muscles. He looked past Fiona to Cora and Whiskey. His eyes flashed golden in the streetlight, startling Whiskey from her feigned nonchalance. He nodded, and spoke with his partner. Another nod, a wave, and the door opened for them.
    They mounted the steps, and entered the thundering music. The more vocal members of the crowd swore at them. Whiskey ignored the epithets, staring at the bouncer with the golden eyes. Up close his eyes were dark brown, a few shades lighter than hers. He has to be wearing contacts, too. Is he part of Fiona’s clique? She had no more time to dwell on it as the doors closed behind them.
    Light and sound. Multicolored flashes overhead illuminated the balcony onto which the entry opened. An industrial-style railing circled this level, an affectation permeating the club’s decor. More brightness assaulted her eyes from somewhere beyond and below. She let Cora guide her as she gained her bearings. Gunmetal steel cabaret tables here held a handful of drinkers. A small bar huddled in the corner to accommodate them. Fiona smiled over her shoulder, and waved at Whiskey to follow. She descended a wide circular staircase.
    As Whiskey approached the steps, she saw three cages hanging from the ceiling on a level with the balcony. A couple currently occupied one. A man and woman danced seductively inside, both partially undressed. From the looks of the clothing scattered in the corners of the cage, they’d be completely nude before long. The cage gently swayed with their motions, and Whiskey saw where a catwalk