Bonedust

lowest-of-the-low slums. And from the look of the silver trimmed door with bullet wounds and the buzz of the retro neon sign flashing “Feylinn”, Gabriel was guessing this was the slums.
    He sighed and swung the door inwards. It chimed merrily, inviting him into a small club decorated in hot pink and silver with a large dance floor. Bodies churned together like roaring waves, the tinge of sweat and sex in the air. One man had his hands wrapped in a woman’s hair, her throat bare to him, willing as he kissed her. The north wall held a corner bar with a long row of red vinyl stools and the back wall was a stage. The wooden floor gleamed under the lights, sporting a slender crystallite pole and the form of a man making love to it.
    The man swung and dipped to the thrum of the music pounding a beat. He wore nothing but a tight black thong that revealed a perfect ass. His head arched back, hands wrapped around the clear pole, one leg sliding upwards. His skin was pale, muscles taut and glittery under the lighting, his royal blue hair done up in spikes with the bangs drifting into his face. His eyes were closed and the lights caught the silver ring adorning one nipple. Someone whistled and the stripper skirted a little closer, a seductive, secretive smile playing across his lips.
    Gabriel hesitated, his eyes glued to the slender, rippling form of the man on the stage. Gorgeous, he had to admit, with a sort of liquid beauty even a vampire couldn’t attest to. Gabriel had never been given a choice about his sexuality, but despite being forced to Jeremie’s bed, men still intrigued him. It was something about their lean bodies, the supple muscle under taut skin that just…called to him in a way women never could. His tongue snaked out along his bottom lip just in time for the stripper’s eyes to open and lock on his.
    His breath caught in his throat as eyes as pale as winter met his. Strange, hypnotizing eyes with snake-slit pupils. The man’s brow quirked, lips lifting into a toothy grin and then he winked and just like that, the spell was broken. The crowd gathered around the stage was glued to him as he strutted off, sashaying slender hips as he slid behind the curtains. The lights returned to the dance floor as a dark-skinned man came out and the crowd wolf-whistled.
    Gabriel needed to find the man in charge. He wasn’t sure he could offer the crowd what that stripper had just offered—pure sexual energy—but he had to try. He needed cash and he needed it quick. Worrying his lip between his teeth, he took off for the stage. A burly man with four arms stopped him dead with a glare. “I’d like a job,” he said before the man could escort him away.
    The bouncer gave him a look. “I suppose you look interestin’, that’s for sure.” He flashed a row of tiny, yellowed teeth. “But Butch isn’t hirin’. Sorry kid, but scram.”
    “Can’t I at least talk with him?”
    “Depends. You have a coin?”
    Gabriel’s lip wrinkled in a sneer. “If I had a coin, I wouldn’t be here.”
    “Maybe prostitution’s a better avenue for you, then.”
    “I’d hire him.” The voice that trailed from behind the four-armed beast was soft with the promise of being a little bit naughty. The bouncer dropped his shoulder and glanced over at the man and Gabriel was given the full view of the stripper. He wore tight black snakeskin pants that hugged every inch of him. His chest was bare and in the lighting, Gabriel could see the glimmer of iridescent scales adorning his skin. His eyes were still eerily pale, the pupils mere slits down the center as deep blue bangs fringed into his gaze. Not only was his nipple pierced, but he had silver studs lining both ears and a ring through his bottom lip. He gave a coy grin. Not a scar marred his beautiful body. “Hey, sexy. You new around here?”
    Gabriel nodded. “You could say that. I’m actually looking for a job.”
    Another grin. “I already said I’d hire you. How much?”
    His breath caught in his chest as he fought back nerves and the instinct to run far away from this man… “Not like that.”
    “Aww, you’re no fun. I promise you’d like it.” A thoughtful pause. The man stroked his tongue over the metal of his lip ring. “But I suppose I could help you out. How much you need?”
    “You’re going to let me dance?”
    “Babe, if it was up to me, you could dance all day long. But I’m not Butch and he’s not here ‘til seven. Still, he has no say about