Marny (15 page)

For the rest of the week, Anjah had pointedly
ignored her, which was fine with Marny. Wil either didn’t notice,
or wisely didn’t comment. They went to the dining room at different
times, and Marny was glad she didn’t have to sit with her
roommates. Intertech was filled with interesting people, and she
ended up hearing some fascinating conversations—stuff she probably
wouldn’t have otherwise been exposed to about future trends in
media consumption and what was going on with Intertech’s
projects.

On Friday after work, Anjah was sitting in
the living room when Marny came in.

“There you are,” she said, flashing her
tablet at Marny. “Have you seen this?”

Marny slipped her shoes off, then cautiously
padded over to the couch. She drew the line at sitting next to
Anjah, though. As far as she was concerned, the girl still owed her
a serious apology.

“What?” she asked, keeping her voice
neutral.

“This ad for the new all-ages club opening
tonight. It looks amazing.”

Anjah held up her tablet so Marny could read
the screen.

“Club Mysteria, where
enchanted wonders await
.” Marny shook her
head. “I’m not really into the party scene.”

Anjah gave her a little pout. “We should go
together, to celebrate your first weekend in the city. Girls’ night
out.”

“I don’t think so.” Marny wanted to make a
cup of tea, watch some vids, and go to bed early. It had been a
severe week.

“Please,” Anjah said, sounding like she meant
it. “My treat.”

Marny studied her a moment. It was a peace
offering, and the closest thing she’d get to Anjah saying she was
sorry. Was she willing to accept?

“Is this a setup or prank of some kind?”

Anjah flushed. “I know you think I hate
you—but this is real. I swear.”

Marny glanced at the screen again, noting the
little winged creatures dancing around Club Mysteria’s logo.
Faeries.

“Okay,” she said. “But I don’t want to stay
out too late.”

“Great.” Anjah smiled, and it looked genuine.
“We should leave around eight—I’ll arrange for a cab.”

“How far is it?” Maybe agreeing to go hadn’t
been such a good idea.

“Oh, the address is just south of downtown.”
Anjah waved her hand. “But I couldn’t walk that far in my silver
sandals.”

Anjah’s idea of sandals likely involved
three-inch heels.

“I’m not getting dressed up,” Marny
warned.

“That’s all right. I’ll glitter enough for
both of us.” Anjah rose. “I better start getting ready. See you
downstairs in the lobby at eight.”

Marny stood in the living room, staring out
at the sunlit rooftops and trying not to feel nervous. What had she
just gotten herself into?

D
espite her assertion she wasn’t planning to get all fancy,
that evening Marny donned one of her nicer outfits. If black jeans
and a top with a little lace around the edges counted as nice. But
they were going to a club, it would be dark inside, and who really
cared what she wore? Anjah would draw everybody’s gaze in whatever
outrageous dress she had on, anyway.

Marny laced up her high tops, then grabbed
her red coat, Intertech ID, and debit card. If she couldn’t stand
Club Mysteria, she’d just walk back to Intertech or grab a cab.
Anjah could look after herself.

Downstairs, Anjah hovered inside the front
doors—and she hadn’t been kidding about the glitter. Her dress was
made of green and blue sequins that caught the light with every
movement.

Marny glanced down at her basic outfit, then
gave a mental shrug. She had no desire to dazzle.

“Oh, you
did
come,” Anjah said, clacking over
to meet her. Even in her heels, she didn’t come up to Marny’s chin.
“I’m so glad. Come on, the cab’s waiting.”

Her evident relief made Marny warm to her a
touch more. At least Anjah was making an effort to be nice.

“You went for the mermaid look tonight?”
Marny said as she slid into the back seat of the cab after
Anjah.

“This club we’re going to is supposed to be
magical,” Anjah said. “I had to dress the part.”

Magical. The word made the hairs on the back
of Marny’s neck prickle.

“How do you know about this place?” she
asked. “Club Mysteria, right?”

“There’s been serious buzz about it on the
social webs. Plus all those ads.” Anjah inspected her
silver-flecked turquoise nail polish. “A local Flail channel star
is supposedly involved—Nyx Spenser.”

Marny shrugged. “Haven’t heard of him.”

“I hadn’t, either—but then, I’m not a big
gamer. He looks cute in the vids, though. See?”

Anjah flipped open her tablet and scrolled
through a few pics, pausing when she got to a shot of a guy with
dark blond hair. He seemed familiar. Marny studied his face.

“Wait,” she said. “Isn’t that one of the
Retro Game-a-Thon guys?” She’d watched their channel a bit, two
summers ago, before things started getting strange in
Crestview.

“I think that’s the name of their stream,”
Anjah said. “Anyway, isn’t he prime? Apparently he does martial
arts, too. A multiple black belt or whatever. I wonder if he has a
girlfriend.”

“I thought you liked that guy at
Intertech.”

Anjah shrugged, and her entire dress
shimmered. “He’s moving a little too slow for my tastes. Oh look,
we’re here.”

The cab pulled up in front
of what seemed to be a warehouse. The high upper windows were lit
from inside, showing flashes of flickering green and gold. A heavy
bass beat throbbed through the air, supporting a swirling synth and
wild-sounding fiddle. Above the battered metal door the
words
Club Mysteria
were written in curling gold script. And there was a line to
get in.

“Maybe there won’t be room for us.” Marny
wouldn’t mind if they were refused entry at the door.

Anjah paid their fare and motioned her to
step out. “I’m certain they won’t turn us away.”

“You, maybe. Me, I’m not so sure I’m their
type.”

Marny got out of the cab and scanned the
people standing in front of the building. Some wore elaborate
costumes complete with wings, while others had on outfits that
would fit right in at a royal ball. That said, there were a few
normally dressed people, too. They were just in the minority.

“Follow me,” Anjah said, striding up to the
door like she was queen of the world.

She headed for the front of the line, cutting
a couple guys wearing hologram dragon shirts. Marny gave them an
apologetic glance, but they seemed more bemused than offended.

“Hi,” Anjah said to the big, brown-haired man
manning the door. “I’m Anjah Lee. I reserved ahead.”

“One sec.” The guy consulted his tablet, then
nodded. “Ms. Lee and guest. Go on in.”

“How did you do that?” Marny asked in a low
voice as the crowd shifted so she and Anjah could get to the door.
“I didn’t know clubs took reservations.”

Anjah looked smug. “Everything’s possible if
you know what kind of leverage to apply. In this case, a few extra
credits and sweet words did the trick. They usually do, you
know.”

Marny lifted one brow. She’d never had extra
money lying around to use as bribes, and using sweet talk to get
her way wasn’t in her repertoire. Nor did she want it to be.

“And guest?” she asked her roommate.

“I wasn’t sure you’d come.” Anjah’s veneer of
confidence slipped a notch.

“Well…” Marny lost her thought as they
stepped into Club Mysteria.

Past the twinkling lights strung from the
ceiling, past the gauzy hangings and juice bar on one side, past
the colors strobing over the dance floor, lay the Realm of
Faerie.

The sight of it stole her breath, and she
stopped dead.

“Hey there.” Anjah nudged her arm. “Haven’t
you ever been in a club before, small-town girl?”

Marny had to swallow to get
her voice working. “It’s not that. Just a second of
déjà
vu
.”

She was lying, though. That gut-stabbing
familiarity wasn’t a momentary sensation.

“Ooh.” Anjah glanced around, a smile lighting
her face. “It’s so pretty. And that forest! What an incredible
installation. I knew this place was going to be amazing.”

Installation. Right. Marny blinked a few
times, but there was no denying that the pale-barked trees were
directly out of the Realm.

What the hell was going on here?

Panic scrabbled at the back of her mind, but
she pushed it down. The Feyguard wouldn’t let the Dark Queen come
striding out of those woods and into the mortal world. Things were
under control. Right?

“Let’s go order something to drink,” Anjah
said, misreading Marny’s shock. “You’ll get used to this place in a
minute. I’m dying to explore that forest, though.”

That was what Marny was afraid of—but she
couldn’t voice her fears to Anjah. Nobody else would understand,
except Tam and Jennet. She had to get a message to them right
away.

Anjah towed her up to the polished wooden
juice bar, where a couple girls in crazy makeup manned the
machines.

“What’ll you have?” the shorter girl with
teal-edged blonde hair asked. Her blue eyeliner extended into
feathers at the corners of her eyes, and tiny lights blinked in her
hair.

“I’ll take a Pixie Dust,” Anjah said, then
turned to Marny with an expectant look.

“Sure.” Marny forced herself to concentrate.
“Sounds good. Hey, is there a restroom nearby?”

“Through that doorway, then take a right.”
The server pointed to an opening draped with more of the green
gauze.

“Be right back,” Marny said.

She skirted the dance floor filled with
stomping, gyrating bodies, and ducked through the doorway. The
pounding beat muffled down, and she took a deep breath.

In the privacy of the bathroom stall, she
pulled out her messager. She needed to try and reach all of the
Feyguard. Even Jennet’s dad. Maybe someone had pirated Feyland’s
sim code, and that was what she was seeing out there, not the Realm
of Faerie. It was a thin hope, but she clung to it.

Because if that was actually a forest
connected to the world of the faeries, they were all in deep, deep
trouble.

:Mayday,:
she wrote.
:Possible breach into the
Realm.:

A few seconds later, Tam’s reply popped up on
her screen.

:What’s
going on?:

:This
new club in Newpoint has an enchanted forest in the middle of
it,:
she replied.
:Might be Feyland hack? Stolen sim
code?:

:Maybe.:
That was Jennet.
:Let me wake up a little more,
and go see if Dad knows anything. It’s super-early in the morning
here.:

Right,
the India thing. So much for Jennet riding to the rescue. And last
Marny had heard, Spark and Aran were in New Zealand, still on the
big FullD VirtuMax tour. Suddenly, Marny felt very much alone. And
inadequate.

Uncle Zeg responded
next.
:Are you in
danger?:

:Not
immediate.:
Marny hoped. It didn’t
feel dangerous, though. Just threatening, like dark storm clouds
massing on the horizon.

Dammit, she wanted them here. She wasn’t one
of the official Feyguard, protecting the border between the worlds.
She was just Marny. Sure, she’d had a few brushes with the fey
folk, but she wasn’t cut out to be a hero. That was her friends’
job.

:Investigate. Carefully,:
Uncle
Zeg wrote.

:Okay.:
What else could she do?
She was the one on the front lines, whether she was qualified or
not.
:I’ll report back
soon.:

:Don’t
get yourself in trouble,:
Tam
typed.

Yeah, like she wasn’t already. Marny tucked
her messager into her bag, then went and splashed water on her
face.

“All right,” she said to the round-cheeked
girl in the mirror. “Let’s take care of this.”

Luckily, there wasn’t anyone else in the
bathroom to overhear her talking to herself. She stepped out, then
hesitated at the doorway back into the club.

The hallway continued on the other side of
the bathrooms, but was blocked with a heavy curtain. Darting a
glance at the dance floor to make sure she was unobserved, Marny
pushed the curtain aside and stepped into the back hall. If she
poked around a bit, maybe she could get some clues about what,
exactly, was going on with Club Mysteria.