Dahlia

  I took a moment to compose myself before the Imms, studying them closely. None of them had the same silvery sheen on their faces as the members of the Calo family who resided in Firen. They were outsiders. Threats. And if I were really unlucky tonight, they might pose a threat to me.

  Noticing movement behind the bar, I met Verrin’s eye as he reached beneath the bar where Al kept his blades. I shook my head—warning him not to get involved. He paused and nodded once before stepping back.

  “Who’s in charge here?” One of the Imms called out.

  I peeked through the crowd to look at the man and found a tall, brown-haired Imm with feathered ears that reminded me of Hawthorne’s ears but lighter. In fact, they had strangely similar demeanors as though they were distantly related. He wore a black, cloth band to hold back his hair—hair that was both curly and unruly.

  “That’s you, Dee,” Verrin whispered to me, “Max is away tonight, and Maiza sure as hell isn’t getting involved—better she stays upstairs.”

  At the sound of Verrin’s voice, the Imm’s eyes snapped to the bartender—making him shrink back in fear and lower his eyes. I felt pity for the man, but didn’t blame him for his reaction. I wanted to disappear into the crowd myself, but Verrin was right. I was in charge tonight, and I was possibly the only person standing between these Imms and the humans here.

  I sucked in a breath—fighting the urge to run once more—before calling out in a light voice, “Can I get you a drink, gentlemen?”

  As the Imms looked my way, the patrons around me slipped back slowly as if I were diseased. It was comical to watch them scurry away and hide in the dark corners of the bar. We were so beaten down by our Imm overlords that it was impossible to feel anything but terror when we looked at them.

  Now that he had a clear view of me, the Imm who had spoken before met my eyes with his own astoundingly blue eyes and smiled slightly, “Are you in charge, little thing?”

  I made a show of looking around for someone with more authority before shrugging with feigned indifference—although I knew these Imms would have heard my racing heart if the bar hadn’t been so packed with nervous people, “Seems so—but just for tonight.”

  The Imm turned to his two companions, and I heard him whisper in a voice he assumed I couldn’t hear, “Outside. Check for a rear exit—no one leaves.”

  I didn’t like the sound of that, but I forced myself to wait as the other two Imms left without a word, like perfect little soldiers—leaving this blue-eyed Imm alone. I ran my eyes over his appearance—noting the black leather jacket, thick-soled, leather boots, and two swords strapped to his back. Like his companions, he was a soldier in the King’s army—one with some rank. I’d seen his kind before.

  “What’s an Imm soldier doing in Firen?” I asked coolly as I reached over the bar and helped myself to a bottle of amber liquid before settling in on a stool.

  I took a long sip from the bottle—ignoring the way it burned as it travelled down my throat and into my empty belly. I didn’t usually drink on an empty stomach, but tonight would have to be an exception. Not only did I need a little liquid courage, but I also needed to convince this Imm that he didn’t faze me.

  “You can join me,” I patted the wooden stool next to mine with a grin and gestured for him to approach, “There’s no need to stand in the doorway—I won’t bite.”

  I showed him my teeth in a false smile—thankful I’d filed my teeth just the night before. I rarely forgot to check them each morning and night, but it had happened before. Even with my father quite literally poisoning me at each of his visits, my hair grew a little quicker than a human’s—the white of my roots showing after only a few days, sometimes—and my teeth became pointed again after only a week or two. Regular maintenance kept these changes hidden from the people around me.

  The Imm smiled more readily then—showing me his own pointed canines. He stepped forward, and I watched as those remaining in the crowd parted to give him a direct path to the bar. He didn’t even pause as he took the seat beside me. I offered the bottle to him, and he accepted it with a smirk and a nod of thanks before taking a long drink. I watched as his throat moved with every swallow—mesmerized by the muscles in his neck.

  The Imms were exquisite—scary, yet captivating.

  Finding his nerve, Verrin called out from behind the bar, “Everybody out!”

  “No,” I snarled in a harsh voice—trying not to panic at the thought of the other Imms waiting for people to flee. I didn’t want to think about what they may do to these people.

  I swallowed hard and forced calm into my voice.

  “Portia wouldn’t want you scaring away her customers,” I deftly lied before I called out to the others, “Everyone back to your celebrations and drinks! It’s too quiet in here!”

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  At first, no one moved, but as I ran my eyes over the room, they seemed to shrink away and return to their raucousness—albeit halfheartedly now.

  Verrin murmured to himself under his breath as he turned back to his bartending, leaving me to my conversation with the Imm man. I looked over the crowd once more before turning my attention back to him.

  “They fear you,” he observed as he also looked around at the bar patrons before returning his attention to me with a raised eyebrow, “How…interesting.”

  “They fear the Ferros,” I corrected with a shrug, “And the Ferros favor me. People around here know I’m under Portia’s protection.”

  The Imm was quiet for a long moment as he looked at me closely—so close, I worried that he would notice I wasn’t entirely human.

  But he didn’t—no one ever did.

  “I’m Bennett—a deputy commander in the King’s Army, not that it matters to you, I’m sure,” the Imm explained as he handed the bottle back to me, “I’m here to help investigate the Mirnen murders. It would be best if you comply with my investigation. Understand, human?”

  “Sure, I understand, Imm,” I tilted my head and smiled sweetly as I refused to use the term the Imms used to refer to themselves, “But what are you doing here?”

  I gestured to the Ledge absently—again feigning calm disinterest.

  Bennett took a moment to take in my demeanor.

  “I’m looking for someone who may have seen the deaths of three Mirnen nearby tonight,” Bennett explained as he shifted on his stool to face me more directly, “I met with one of the members of your Crimson Council just moments ago, and she warned me of tonight’s deaths. We didn’t make it in time to save them, but she revealed that if we came here, we might find a witness. This is the only open establishment around here tonight—so it seems there is some truth to her Prediction, given the murders happened only a few blocks away.”

  Bennett leaned in closer, “So, who here may have seen something tonight, human?”

  I was unsurprised that he had help from the Council, given what I knew about their feelings towards the Reaper. It seemed the Imms and Predictors had now teamed up to stop him. But Bennett’s investigation would be doomed from the start tonight. He’d asked the wrong question—one that would scare off any human he spoke to.

  I shook my head and sighed, “You can’t just come in here and ask questions like that.”

  It was the wrong response, and I knew it the moment the words left my lips.

  “I can, and I will,” Bennett snarled, breaking his mild-mannered demeanor.

  I looked over to see him baring his pointed canines at me and shivered. The man almost had me fooled. With his pretty eyes and handsome features—even his good-natured disposition—I nearly thought he was safe. It seemed I was wrong. He was just as dangerous as any other Imm.

  He was just better at hiding his nature.

  “Fine—you can do what you want. That’s what Imms do, right? Bully the humans out of your way?” I rolled my eyes as though unbothered by his behavior, “You misunderstand. No one is going to talk to you—they fear you too much. And as soon as they admit they know something, you’ll torture them for no goddamned reason for information they don’t have. So no, you can’t ask questions like that—it won’t work.”

  Bennett surprised me by laughing, “You seem familiar enough with our methods—perhaps too familiar. I’m not sure I like that, human.”

  He pulled out a dagger and lazily pointed it at my chest—making the hair on the back of my neck stand on end as his unspoken threat settled over me. I gritted my teeth to maintain calm, but it was hard to stay composed.

  Assholes—the Imms were all assholes.

  “Look, Imm. No one knows anything about the Reaper, and if they do, they are too terrified to talk about it with a menacing Imm man,” I met his eyes again to convey my honesty.

  “We’ll see about that,” the Imm narrowed his eyes at me before calling out over the entire Ledge—his voice booming, “We’re offering five hundred thousand to anyone who identifies the Reaper—twenty-thousand to anyone with a good tip.”

  I felt my eyes widen instinctively. Most people in this bar made twenty a year—at most. Even I could be tempted by that much money—it was life-changing.

  “So, Dee,” Bennett pressed the flat side of the dagger against my leg—making me jump involuntarily, “Please let Portia Ferro know what we are offering. A woman with her connections should have no trouble tracking down a little pest like the Reaper.”

  I reached to push his blade away, but he snatched my arm and leaned in to whisper, “Has anyone told you you’re far too pretty for a place like this?”

  It sounded like bullshit, coming from him.

  “A place like the Ledge?” I snorted a laugh, “I’m perfectly happy here, thanks.”

  “I meant the Red,” He smiled down at me, “I could take you to the Circle or the Marrow. Something tells me you’d make a good life for yourself in a Mirnen world. You aren’t really my type, but many of my people like to hire pretty little creatures like you to look after their children or run errands for them.”

  “Like a slave?” I rolled my eyes, “I’d never—”

  “Most humans would be honored,” Bennett pointed out with a smile.

  My temper flared.

  “The Circle and the Marrow—those were once human worlds, you know,” I cocked my head at the man, “Until you Imms took them from the humans who lived there to make your kingdom, that is. You made them into your servants and laborers.”

  “As God intended, but that was long before our time, little thing,” Bennett yawned, suddenly disinterested in the conversation.

  “Not interested,” I reiterated, glaring at the Imm who had been so quick to avoid the subject of Mirnen imperialism.

  “Fine,” the Imm stood with a shrug, “Well, I’ll be around if you change your mind.”

  “I won’t,” I bristled at the thought of seeing him again, “So you can make yourself scarce.”

  He didn’t bother responding. He didn’t even look at me as he turned away and crossed the bar to the front door—walking through it without acknowledging anyone around him. And why would he? We were nothing but pathetic humans to him.

  As soon as the sound of his footsteps disappeared down the road, I let out the breath I didn’t know I’d been holding and slumped over the bar. With the way my heart was beating in my chest, it was a wonder I didn’t drop dead of a heart attack right there.

  I tightened my fists to calm myself as I muttered to Verrin, “Pull out the good stuff tonight, Verrin—We’re getting drunk.”

  Verrin handed me a tall glass and placed a bottle of liquor next to it as he grinned over the top of the bar, “It’s on the house tonight, Dee. Let’s have some fun.”

  Like what you’ve read so far? Please like, rate, or comment. Every bit of feedback helps!