Chapter 30

The cold dull weather that had been alternating between freezing rain and snow during most of the drive, left everything covered in a thick layer of ice. An intermittent blast of howling winds made the rusted wrought iron gates of a nearby cemetery moan with an eerie clamor, while frozen drizzle collected to form pointy icicles that hung off the name of the place spelled out in huge, creepy black letters that read, Gates of Hell.

Luna followed my empty stare. "I guess Hell finally froze over."

"Yeah," I agreed. "So that must mean I've gotta do all those things I said I wouldn't have to do until Hell froze over."

"You and me both," Luna whispered, as if afraid to wake the dead.

"Where is everyone?" I glanced up and down at the now empty streets. "The place looks like an abandoned ghost town."

Luna shrugged. "That's just what happens every time Serenity and her coven descend on a place. People for miles around get a sense of dread on the eve of the Witches Ball, and then they simply clear out. Don't worry though, it's better this way," she added almost as an afterthought.

"And why is that?"

"In your case, it means less casualties," she remarked in a dry voice.

I thought about that for a moment before nodding my head. Luna was right as usual. I didn't want to be responsible for spilling the blood of innocents.

Just Serenity's.

"Here, take this." Luna handed me a small red draw string pouch. "Put it somewhere on your body. It'll protect you."

"Whatever," I groaned. Rolling my eyes, I tucked the tiny charm bag down the front of my tight corset. Then reaching into the back seat, I grabbed the matching black steampunk jacket and put it on before retrieving my violin case.

"Chaos, look at me," Luna ordered. Fishing through the large pouch she'd insisted on bringing, she pulled out a tube of eye-liner and darkened in my eyes, followed by applying a coat of glossy black lipstick to my full lips.

When finished, I leaned down to glance in the oval side-view mirror and grinned proudly. "It feels good to be back in black." Straightening once again, I said, "You ready to kick it?"

"There's just one more thing," Luna cautioned. "You'll need to wear this." She held up a masquerade mask so elegant it nearly stole my breath. The sparkly black and silver venetian style mask featured glittering rhinestones around the opening of each eye, exquisite filigree cutouts, and beautiful long black feathers. Covering over three quarters of my face to keep my true identity a closely guarded secret, I put it on and glanced in the mirror again. The mask combined with the thick layer of makeup made me look even more mysterious.

Luna wore a red and black lace eye mask with a frilly black side feather and lots of ornamental beaded edging that matched her gown perfectly. I could barely contain my excitement at the thought of finally rescuing Thomas as we approached The Plaza.

"Just remember, Chaos. Wait for my signal before we attack." The way she said it, made me think she didn't trust me. Especially when she added, "Despite being in stealth mode, you still look like trouble with a capital T."

"I'm not trouble," I insisted, knowing full well I had authority issues. "I'm just a challenge to handle, that's all."

"Be that as it may, Serenity can be very fierce. So watch your back."

"Planned on it," I said, remembering our last encounter. "She's a delightful combination of both cruelty and hatred. I had to find that out the hard way."

"Let's not forget that Serenity is also extremely unbalanced. Her thirst for power makes her that much more dangerous."

"Not to mention the fact that she's specifically targeting teenagers as a means to bring about the end of the world as we know it. Which is objectively uncool," I pointed out.

Climbing the steep stairs of The Plaza, Luna bowed gracefully and handed her invitation to a male security guard dressed formally in an all-black tuxedo.

"This is an invitation for one," the guard replied in a deep voice, eyeballing me with not-so-carefully-concealed hostility.

Clearly, I hadn't been invited to the party.

Thomas's life, or what was left of it anyway, hinged on me gaining access. I didn't want to let him down.

"I'm with the band," I muttered nonchalantly, holding up my violin case as proof while trying to look bored.

"Orchestra," Luna corrected, jabbing me in the side with a pointy finger.

"I meant, I'm with The Orchestra." It came out sounding more like a question than a statement. I'd only ever performed as a soloist before. Luna never mentioned anything about me performing as part of a group.

She must've gone and lost her damn mind. Especially since I don't play well with others.

I jabbed her back. Hard.

Breath coming out in an unexpected rush, Luna first glared at me before turning her attention to the guard. "Guest performers are not required to have invitations. And besides, she's filling in for someone who canceled at the last minute."

Stiffening, the guard flexed his ample muscles clearly showing even under the expensive material of his tuxedo, before folding his arms across his broad chest and blocking the double glass doors with his massive body.

"No invitation. No entry," he growled. "Boss's orders."

I side-stepped Luna who reached out an arm to try and stop me, but she was too late. The angry hillbilly wearing the prom dress from hell had already broke loose.

"Look, Mister. I'm doing your boss a favor just by showing up here tonight. So unless you want to be the one who ruins this elaborate shindig, I suggest you let me in to join the hoedown. Otherwise, Serenity is going to have a heyday when she opens a can of whoopass all over ya. And trust me, she can be meaner than one of them there marsh rabbits chewin' off yer leg." I took a deep breath to continue, sounding more and more redneck by the second when the guard suddenly stepped aside.

"That won't be necessary," he said, giving me a curt nod. "Have a nice evening, ladies."

"Oh, you can betcha damn bottom on it!" I said, strolling on inside with Luna like we owned the joint. That guard may have been dumber than a box of rocks, but I was still glad he'd seen things my way.

Not that he had much of a choice.