𝐁𝐀𝐃 𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐑 ༒ 𝑨𝒓𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒆

03. 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩

"In this city, the strong don't survive. The smart do."

━━━━━━━

The Last Drop was a bar, but it might as well have been the crown jewel of the Lanes. Frequented by half of the underground, it was practically the centre of the city. And it is owned and managed by Vander, which was the sole reason Riven had never entered.

There was a time, which felt so long ago, that Riven had known Vander as a close family friend. There were fractured memories of him that involved moments of laughter and warmth, a time so lost in the past that the details faded more every day. And, if Riven was honest with herself, she was dreading the reunion. She wanted to leave dead memories where they sleep.

And while getting inside The Last Drop was crucial for her plan to succeed, that didn't mean she had to be pleased with her predicament.

She only had to remember her goal: create an opportunity. This wasn't about keeping track of Vander's children or setting Silco's plan in motion, it was about her. Silco may want to kill Vander out of anger and revenge, but Riven wants him gone because he's an obstacle. Too many people in the Lanes were loyal to Vander, and if she wanted to take control, she'd have to destroy her competition.

Riven supposed she was grateful for her lack of memory; it made her goal easier to achieve.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Riven stopped just outside the front door to The Last Drop. Claggor and Mylo didn't seem to notice, sauntering into the pub with a careless ease Riven only felt in the laboratory. Powder, who had been keeping to her side, stopped alongside her with a furrow of her brows. Riven looked down at her with a short smile, feeling the rising tempo of her heartbeat.

Was she nervous?

Assessing herself, Riven felt the warmth in her palms that made them damp with sweat, the slightly underwhelming sensation of nausea in her stomach, and the flutter of her pulse in tandem with her heartbeat. All signs of anxiousness, but also possible excitement. This would be new territory for Riven.

She'd have to map out the entire building, allowing the image of the infrastructure to manifest in her mind in case she ever needed to escape in a hurry. That wouldn't be hard to do, but it was a nuisance all the same. In that regard, Riven decided that she was simply excited about exploring something new.

And forbidden.

If Silco ever found out that her plan included entering The Last Drop, and therefore interacting with Vander, he would've tried to stop her. Riven knew it was because of his hatred, but she also feared Silco wanted her hidden for another reason. Riven wasn't stupid, and sometimes the people around her forgot just how formidable she was created to be.

"What's the hold-up?" Vi questioned, holding the door open while leaning her hip against the frame. She would have noticed Powder's absence, and Riven could see the curiosity in Violet's eyes. She wanted to know why Powder had formed an attachment to her so quickly, in the span of an hour. To be honest, Riven would like to know as well.

Perhaps two damaged souls were naturally drawn to each other.

"We're coming Vi," Powder said. She took the initiative to grab Riven's hand in an effort to drag her into the building. Riven could have fought the weak pull, and she did think about it for a moment, but she let the younger girl take control. If only to get her through the door.