Page 18 of Wicked Royals
The floor was made of black and white marble tiles, and the ceilings were high with ornate moldings sweeping around the edges. Tall black and red candles lit the small space. From somewhere up ahead, muffled voices, music, and laughter drifted through theair.
“What the hell is this place?” I muttered to myself, brows dipping in confusion. Behind me, the door suddenly closed with a bang, making mejump.
On my left was a low table cluttered with black and gold Venetian-style masks. I reached down and took one, carefully slipping it over my face before securing it at the back. While I was only here to ask for help and directions, something told me I wasn’t supposed to have found this place at all, let alone made my way inside. Until I got the lay of the land, it was probably better that I disguise myidentity.
I took a few nervous steps forward. Several arched entryways lay ahead. Most of the halls beyond were dim, lit only by the soft glow of a few black candles, but the door on the left led to a bright and warm space. That was where the chatter and music was comingfrom.
Gulping, I stepped down the hall. My brows shot up as I took in my new surroundings. It seemed to be some sort of party room, but it was much bigger than any ballroom or nightclub I’d ever been inbefore.
Scattered around the hardwood floors were several black leather sofas and ottomans, deep red and gold velvet chaise lounges, and polished cherry-wood tables littered with crystal glasses and china plates. Masked wait-staff circulated the space, handing out drinks and food to jovial guests. Some of those guests wore masks like mine, but others werebarefaced.
In the center of the room, there was a long narrow pool, filled with steaming turquoise water. A large gold-plated dragon statue rose from the surface in the center. Its body and wings were encrusted with precious jewels, and ruby eyes flickered in the glow of the candles and chandeliers that lit the room. Nude men and women with perfect bodies and gold spray-painted skin frolicked in the warm water around it, giggling andsplashing.
I gazed around with wide eyes, still trying to figure out what the hell I was looking at. With a sharp intake of breath, I realized I recognized at least half of the barefaced guests. They were important power players—not just in D.C. but in the entire country—and most of them had been at my mother’s birthday party only an hour ago. In fact, they were the exact ones who had notably vanished from the celebration, leading to Marissa’s complaint about how boring it hadbecome.
“Ma’am, are youokay?”
I whipped my head around. A waitress in a short black dress was staring at me, eyes wide behind hermask.
“You’re bleeding,” she went on, lowering her gaze to my rightarm.
I looked down. She was right. I must’ve grazed myself when I fell in the tunnelearlier.
“I, uh… I fell over outside,” Ireplied.
She smiled. “Those passages can be so treacherous sometimes. Let mehelp.”
She led me over to a large bar on one side of the enormous room. “I would normally tell you to go to the medical center, but that room is in use at the moment,” she said in an apologetic tone as she rummaged behind the bar. “Luckily, we have a few things behind here in case of any minoraccidents.”
This place had a medicalcenter?
I shook my head mutely, still trying to comprehend the bizarre situation I’d found myselfin.
“Here we go.” The waitress stood up straight and handed me some adhesive bandages and a little bottle of antiseptic liquid. “That should be enough to get you cleanedup.”
“Thank you,” Imurmured.
“You know where the restrooms are, of course,” she said, nodding somewhere over myshoulder.
“Yes,” I replied, still not wanting to admit I didn’t belong here. I’d obviously wandered into some sort of secret lair, and I’d seen enough thriller movies to know that interlopers in such places were always thrown out on their asses as soon as they werecaught.
Orworse.
Figuring the waitress had more than likely nodded toward the main entryway, I quietly left the room and headed back into the foyer. After hesitating for a moment, I stepped through the next archeddoorway.
The hall was lined with the same checkered black and white marble tiles that lay in the foyer. Several doors lay open on either side of the wide passage, and I peeked into each one on my way through. The rooms beyond looked like private lounges with damask wallpaper, plush carpet, and expensive furniture sitting in front of fireplaces. Each room also featured a large wall carving—the same triangle and eye symbol I’d seen out in thetunnels.
A plaintive cry echoed down the hall, and my eyes widened with shock. I crept forward and peeked through the nextdoor.
This room was different. While it featured the same charcoal-gray and gold patterned wallpaper and expensive furniture as the others, it also contained three adjustable hospital beds, IV stands with saline bags, heart monitors, and rolling tables covered with medical gear. Another wide door at the back led to what appeared to be a surgicalsuite.
A young woman sat on one of the beds, her face contorted with agony. A tall man in scrubs rubbed her sweat-drenched hair in a soothing gesture. “You’re going to be fine, Angela. It might not seem like it, but this is the safest place in the world to give birth. Dr. Hansen and Dr. Keating are the very best obstetricians in the country, the nursing staff are the cream of the crop, and the equipment is all state of theart.”
“It fuckinghurts!”
“I know. It will be over soon, and it will all be worth it for yourfuture.”
“It better be.” The woman winced and groanedagain.
