But the ache inside me doesn’t go away. In my distracted state, I knock into a standing table, stubbing my toe painfully. A cloud of glittering, purple dust wafts over the table as it shakes. I gasp insurprise, accidentally inhaling the sickly sweet dust.
I cough, and wave my hand to disperse the cloud.
“Hey, watch it!” snaps the angry voice of a customer, her hands reaching out to steady the table. “This is expensive stuff!”
“Whatisit?” I say, wrinkling my nose.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
I frown at her, confused. I had almost mistaken the dust for purple energy magic, but that can’t be right. Rather than dispersing into the air, it settles on the standing table, on a sheet of white paper. The woman collects it as best as she can and folds the paper so the dust makes a neat, purple row. Then she takes a hollow tube and snorts it.
Suddenly, I experience a strong, hazy feeling. It’s like I’m being pulled underwater. My vision blurs and a warm, tingling feeling radiates throughout my body. It’s immediately familiar. It’s the feeling of being enchanted, or glamoured. I haven’t experienced it for a while, but I recognize it right away.
Once I realize what’s happening, I summon all of my willpower and magic to fight it. I focus my senses on the sweaty smell around me, the pounding music, the firm ground under my feet.
I reach into a glass from the tray in my hand and take a piece of ice, pressing it into my palm. The coldness grounds me and brings me back to reality, thank Hecate.
“Hey, no using in here!” says a firm voice. It’s Xia, who confidently pushes her way to the table. The other customers quickly duck out of the way.
“I wasn’t!” whines the woman, turning to me. “It washer!”
“Nice try,” Xia shakes her head. “I recognize you from last week. Let’s go.”
“This isbullshit,” says the woman angrily. She snatches up the dust, paper and tube before Xia escorts her out.
Still a bit shaken, I take my tray and make my way back to the bar. I pour myself a large glass of water and down it quickly.
“Are you all right?” says Nova, coming up to the side of the bar.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I reply. Luckily there are no customers waiting. I set my water glass on the bar. “I think I accidentally inhaled something. There was a woman snorting weird purple powder…”
Nova gives me a concerned look. “How much did you ingest? Youshould sit down.”
“It’s all right,” I reply, taking another gulp of water. “It didn’t affect me much. I’ve…got a strong constitution.”
“That stuff is all over the place,” Nova says, with a shake of their head. “I’ve never done it, but it makes people all dopey. I heard Xia and Renata talking about increasing the club’s security. When customers use it, it makes it easier for vampires to take advantage of them.”
I recall the feeling of being pulled underwater, of losing touch with reality. “I can see how it would.”
“Excuseme!” shouts a customer from the other end of the bar, adjusting their tight crocheted crop top. “Could I have two screwdrivers, please!”
I put down my water glass with a sigh. “Coming right up!”
As I search for the orange juice in the bar’s mini-fridge, I think about the strange, magical drug that I ingested. It’s more than a bit concerning. I’m a witch, so I can fight off that sort of magic. But it’s not so easy for non-magical people. They might not even know that they’re taking magically-enhanced drugs.
And the effect…it wasjustlike being glamoured by a vampire. If people are taking these drugs, they could very easily be overpowered by any vampire who senses that their defenses are down.
I’m going to have to keep a close eye out.
GAMBLE
Celine
“Blackjack!” shouts the woman in a well-tailored pantsuit, throwing her arms in the air. The dealer flashes her a charming smile and pushes the large pot toward her, increasing her earnings for the night at least threefold. “I’m on a lucky streak tonight!”
“Very good.You’ve got excellent instincts, Madame Mayor,” I tell her with a nod of my head. I make a gesture to a nearby server, who quickly brings over another glass of Bordeaux to replace her almost-empty one. All complimentary, of course. “You always know when a risk is going to pay off.”
“You’d know a thing or two about that,” she says slyly, holding up her glass to me before taking a sip. “Mmm, how do you always know my favourites?”
