attached.
Addy
closed her eyes, pretending no one else was in the room. Her fingers flew
across the keys, one note pouring out on top of another. Mrs. Baines, her old
piano teacher, would’ve been pleased that she remembered at least one classical
piece.
Plus,
Addy was playing with more confidence than she ever had, because who cared what
the music sounded like in this place? For all intents and purposes, she now preformed
the greatest concertos in the world. Her father might have sadly shaken his
head at her musical efforts, but no one in Shadow-of-the-Gods had ever heard of Bach. She could’ve been cranking out a McDonalds’ jingle for all they knew.
Christ,
she missed McDonalds.
She
finished the piece in a flurry of sound, messing up countless times. Hell, she
forgot the whole middle part. Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 was hard enough when
the music was right in front of her. She still thought it sounded passable,
though. Dead silence filled the bar as the imperfect music faded away,
everyone staring at her.
“My
gods.” Cade finally whispered from behind the bar.
Addy
pushed the sonically-cleaned hair back from her face and glowered over at him.
“It wasn’t that bad.” She snapped. Everyone was a critic.
Lavender
eyes stared back at her, not saying anything. It was impossible to read what
was going on behind the flawless lines of his face. Cade finally shook his
head and glanced away with a frown. He did that a lot. Anytime he was forced
to spend time in the same room as her, he seemed uncomfortable and churlish.
Addy
shot him another scowl. Every hour she was stuck there, the man got better
looking. He was so much wow!- er than everyone else, that it didn’t even
surprise her that his DNA carried some special, sparkly enhancement. Even in
this weather, he was tan, the golden color of his skin setting off the bright
purple of his eyes and the blue-black shine of his hair. The lanterns
flickering overhead highlighted the planes of his incredible cheekbones. Back
in reality, he’d be posed shirtless on a billboard, selling expensive sporting
goods to stockbrokers who wanted to pretend they could be half so masculine.
And
Deke seriously thought this guy was attracted a Jenny Craig dropout?
“That
one was the best song yet, Addy.” Jacobi called, jolting her from her hourly
session of Cade staring. “Was that by those great artists you were telling me
about?”
Jake
was sitting at a lopsided table, playing a Texas-hold’em-mixed-with-Go-Fish
card game with three scruffy miners. The brim of his tri-corner cowboy hat was
tilted back at a jaunty angle. If she wasn’t mistaken it was made of lizard-y green
sanbor skin. And --geez-- she hoped she was mistaken, because ick .
“No,
Duran Duran didn’t write the Brandenburg Concerto.” She told him. “It was
composed by a man named Johann Sebastian Bach a very long time ago.”
“Stupid
name, but the guy had some talent on the vianorgan. Not many folks do,
anymore. That one there belonged to our grandmother.” Jacobi gestured to the
not!piano, easily falling into conversation.
For
all his seeming good humor, he was still sending Cade wary looks every few
minutes, though. Ever since that duel thing, Jacobi had been feeling guilty.
Addy could read it on his face. The kid knew that he’d disappointed Cade and
he idolized his big brother. Cade hadn’t mentioned the fight since it
happened, but Jake still blamed himself.
Of
course, that didn’t stop him from playing cards. Jacobi had informed her that
he was the family screw up, so maybe he had to keep up appearances. Or maybe
he didn’t know he could be anything more.
Shadow-of-the-Gods
was a boring place for someone so young, so Jake was always looking for a
distraction. She just wished he didn’t usually find it with disreputable
gamblers. The confrontation with the Caroillos hadn’t slowed him down and his
idiot
Addy
closed her eyes, pretending no one else was in the room. Her fingers flew
across the keys, one note pouring out on top of another. Mrs. Baines, her old
piano teacher, would’ve been pleased that she remembered at least one classical
piece.
Plus,
Addy was playing with more confidence than she ever had, because who cared what
the music sounded like in this place? For all intents and purposes, she now preformed
the greatest concertos in the world. Her father might have sadly shaken his
head at her musical efforts, but no one in Shadow-of-the-Gods had ever heard of Bach. She could’ve been cranking out a McDonalds’ jingle for all they knew.
Christ,
she missed McDonalds.
She
finished the piece in a flurry of sound, messing up countless times. Hell, she
forgot the whole middle part. Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 was hard enough when
the music was right in front of her. She still thought it sounded passable,
though. Dead silence filled the bar as the imperfect music faded away,
everyone staring at her.
“My
gods.” Cade finally whispered from behind the bar.
Addy
pushed the sonically-cleaned hair back from her face and glowered over at him.
“It wasn’t that bad.” She snapped. Everyone was a critic.
Lavender
eyes stared back at her, not saying anything. It was impossible to read what
was going on behind the flawless lines of his face. Cade finally shook his
head and glanced away with a frown. He did that a lot. Anytime he was forced
to spend time in the same room as her, he seemed uncomfortable and churlish.
Addy
shot him another scowl. Every hour she was stuck there, the man got better
looking. He was so much wow!- er than everyone else, that it didn’t even
surprise her that his DNA carried some special, sparkly enhancement. Even in
this weather, he was tan, the golden color of his skin setting off the bright
purple of his eyes and the blue-black shine of his hair. The lanterns
flickering overhead highlighted the planes of his incredible cheekbones. Back
in reality, he’d be posed shirtless on a billboard, selling expensive sporting
goods to stockbrokers who wanted to pretend they could be half so masculine.
And
Deke seriously thought this guy was attracted a Jenny Craig dropout?
“That
one was the best song yet, Addy.” Jacobi called, jolting her from her hourly
session of Cade staring. “Was that by those great artists you were telling me
about?”
Jake
was sitting at a lopsided table, playing a Texas-hold’em-mixed-with-Go-Fish
card game with three scruffy miners. The brim of his tri-corner cowboy hat was
tilted back at a jaunty angle. If she wasn’t mistaken it was made of lizard-y green
sanbor skin. And --geez-- she hoped she was mistaken, because ick .
“No,
Duran Duran didn’t write the Brandenburg Concerto.” She told him. “It was
composed by a man named Johann Sebastian Bach a very long time ago.”
“Stupid
name, but the guy had some talent on the vianorgan. Not many folks do,
anymore. That one there belonged to our grandmother.” Jacobi gestured to the
not!piano, easily falling into conversation.
For
all his seeming good humor, he was still sending Cade wary looks every few
minutes, though. Ever since that duel thing, Jacobi had been feeling guilty.
Addy could read it on his face. The kid knew that he’d disappointed Cade and
he idolized his big brother. Cade hadn’t mentioned the fight since it
happened, but Jake still blamed himself.
Of
course, that didn’t stop him from playing cards. Jacobi had informed her that
he was the family screw up, so maybe he had to keep up appearances. Or maybe
he didn’t know he could be anything more.
Shadow-of-the-Gods
was a boring place for someone so young, so Jake was always looking for a
distraction. She just wished he didn’t usually find it with disreputable
gamblers. The confrontation with the Caroillos hadn’t slowed him down and his
idiot
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