Page 30 of Heartless Enemy

The entire ground floor of the Red Moon was made up of a spacious bar area while the other floors housed private rooms. Even though it could be used as a bar too, the front door was painted red, marking it as an establishment that catered to the pleasures of the heart and body.

I scanned the gauzy red and gold drapes that hung around the room to provide privacy between the dark wooden tables. Since they were so translucent, they didn’t technically block the view of what everyone else was doing. But they apparently still had the desired effect because people acted as if no one could see them. My gaze drifted over a couple who were making out in their own booth while Levi uncorked the bottle and poured whiskey into our glasses.

His hands were once again steady, and there was no remaining outward trace of the panic that had gripped him earlier.

Once he had finished throwing up in that alley, we had returned to my house and changed back into normal clothes. Then we had made our way to the south side with the help of a water mage who went by the name of Ferry. I had some business to take care of, and Levi had looked like he needed a drink, which was why we had decided to go to the Red Moon tonight.

“Sorry,” Levi said as he handed me one of the glasses.

I took it while frowning at him in confusion. “For what?”

“For what you had to see in that tunnel.” He downed half of his whiskey in one go and then cleared his throat self-consciously. “And for fucking up our plan.”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll figure out another way.”

Leaning back against the cushioned backrest, he raked a hand through his hair and heaved a deep sigh. “Fuck. It would’ve been so easy. If I could just get into their parliament chamber, I could set up an attack underneath the floor and thenbam. Trap them all with metal in one fell swoop and give them a choice. Cede the south side or die.”

“Yeah.” I huffed out a laugh. “But when has anything we do ever been easy?”

He let out a soft chuckle and raised his glass at me. “True.”

After draining the entire glass, he refilled it. Based on the way he was drinking, I was pretty sure that he was faking the calm composure he wore like a mask on his face right now. After all, we were out in public, and the King of Metal could never be seen as anything but calm and in control. But I knew that the experience in that tunnel had rattled him more than he wanted to admit.

However, that was a conversation for another place and another time, when we were alone, so I went along with his façade and drank from my own glass before speaking again.

“Maybe we should try the kidnapping loved ones plan anyway?” I suggested. “If we find the right person, we might be able to get them all in the same place at the same time. Like a party or charity event or something.”

“Maybe.” Levi drummed his fingers on the polished wooden table. “But the problem is the amount of time it would take. Getting someone to organize a huge event for all the parliament members and their families? I doubt anyone would be able to pull that off even within a week or two, let alone a few days.”

I blew out a long sigh. “Good point.”

Lifting my glass, I was just about to take another sip when a blond woman walked up to our table. She cast a worried glance towards Levi, as if she feared that she might have done something to offend the Dark Mage King of Malgrave, before her gaze found mine.

“I heard that you wanted to speak with me,” she said in what sounded more like a question than a statement.

“Yes.” I set my glass down on the table with a thud and turned to face her fully. “I would like you to add a man to your list of past clients.”

Her pale brows creased in confusion, and she once more glanced at Levi before returning her attention to me. “I… don’t understand.”

Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a folded-up piece of paper. It rustled faintly as I smoothed it out on the table. Vera blinked and then peered down at the two drawings there.

“This man is Ulric Smith.” I pointed towards the drawing on the left before moving my finger to the second one. “And this is his wife, Marla.”

Vera studied their faces and then glanced up at me. “Okay?”

“If she comes here and asks about her husband, I would like you to tell her that Ulric is indeed one of your clients. That he started coming last month after something to do with his work made him lose the spark of life.”

Before she could respond, Levi reached into his own pocket and pulled out a rather generous stack of bills that he placed on the table. Vera’s eyes widened as she took in the money.

“I… I don’t understand.” Meeting my gaze, she shook her head in confusion. “Usually, it’s the other way around. People pay me to keep quiet about their meetings with me. But you… want me to tell the wife that I slept with the husband even though I didn’t?”

“Correct.”

“Why?”

I just looked back at her in silence.

Her gaze darted to the money again, and she licked her lips.

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