Tainted roots

Low thrumming music swirled around us as we entered the club. Unlike the ones in the human realm, the music wasn't shaking the building, loud enough to be heard blocks away. We preferred our music at a lower decibel, in respect for our sensitive ears.

The place was already in full swing, packed full of dancing and grinding bodies, moving along to some kind of heavy synth techno song. It was dimly lit here, not that it mattered with our eyesight. Plush couches lined the far wall, filled with couples practically having sex. No wait, that couple was definitely fucking.

My chest clenched and I had to look away, pushing down the emotions bubbling under the surface. I won't think about him, I won't think about him. I chanted those words to myself over and over, as if that would actually help. So far it hadn't worked. But I still had to try.

"I need a fucking drink," I muttered, skirting the edge of the dance floor on my way to the bar.

"You guys get some drinks, I'll go and find us a table upstairs," Harmony called out over her shoulder.

Ari was silent as she followed me to the bar. Which in my experience, was worse than if she were hounding me with questions. Her silence was almost tangible, scraping along my spine and the back of my neck.

"What can I get for you?" The bartender asked, interrupting my musings.

"A pitcher of the house special, three cups, and a half dozen shots," I ordered, watching Ari from the corner of my eye.

"Just say what's on your mind and get it over with." I couldn't take her silent treatment any longer. This was all wrong, I was supposed to be the sulky and antisocial one, not her.

She just gave me a blank look as she slowly rested her arms on the bar. Doing so because she knew it would annoy me. "I don't know what you mean. No thoughts are going on up here." To emphasize her statement, she gestured at her head.

Rolling my eyes, I looked away from her and watched the bartender as he poured our drinks. Ever since I told her to shove her opinions up her ass a couple of days ago, she'd been keeping a lot of her thoughts to herself, or at least she had been around me. All my life, it has never been like this for us.

I wasn't self-absorbed enough to think her silent treatment had anything to do with me snapping at her. It hadn't even been the first time I told her off. She wasn't even the only one to be on the receiving end of my less-than-nice comments lately.

It had been over a month since the asshole—whose name we didn’t dare speak—left me. Some days it took all of my energy to keep from falling apart. I'd been keeping myself busy, avoiding being alone as much as possible. When I was alone, my thoughts wandered. And when my thoughts wandered, I ended up thinking of him. I couldn't allow myself to think of that asshole, because when I did, I fell apart. It didn't matter how much I cried, I never seemed able to run out of tears.

Sometimes late at night when I couldn't sleep, my mind took me back to that night, and I would almost convince myself that he didn't want to leave. That it hurt him as much as me. Fucking stupid. If he didn't want to leave me, then he would've stayed. The memory of how his voice sounded gruff, almost like he choking up, was just my drunken memory trying to make me feel better.

I felt pathetic, crying over a man I barely knew for more than a couple of days.

The bartender placed a tray full of shots and cups in front of us with a flirty smile. "Enjoy."

Shooting him a bland look, I slammed two shots back, one after another. Relishing the burn and the instantaneous buzz. He opened his mouth, but before he could say whatever witty line he thought up, I grabbed the pitcher and left the bar.

The absolute last thing I needed or wanted right now was to be hit on. That bastard had well and truly ruined me for all other men—in more ways than I originally thought possible. I barely even gave the bartender a second glance. What color was his hair? No fucking clue.

Ari followed me up the staircase, carrying the tray of remaining shots. The second floor was more like a balcony overlooking the packed dance floor, with a couple dozen booths lining the wall, and a few tables in front of the railing. Harmony had snagged one of those tables.

"What's the drink special tonight?" Harmony asked with forced enthusiasm. It was obvious she was trying to distract me. She had been trying to do so for the past month. And while I appreciated her efforts, it wasn't like I could forget my mate didn't want me.

I smiled a little at her effort, or at least I think I did. "There's only one way to find out," I said as I poured the dark red drink. Strong notes of cranberry filled my mouth as I sampled the drink. A shock since I was expecting cherry. Hints of citrus peaked through, and overall it was pretty good.

Ari slammed back a shot and chased it with her entire drink. "I think I'll go and show these bitches how to dance," she said, roughly shoving her chair back, and left without another word.

I watched as Ari weaved through the dancers, my worry for her increasing. Other than noting her lack of communication with me, I hadn't noticed anything else off with her. But then again, I'd been a selfish bitch, so wrapped in my own problems and pity party to have noticed. The thought that something had been going on with her and I hadn't noticed made my stomach pitch. I was so disappointed in myself that I made her feel like she couldn't come and talk to me. Why would she? This past month, I hadn't been a supportive sister or friend.

Just another reason to add to the ever-growing list of reasons to hate him.

Not liking the fact I didn't know what was going on, I shifted my focus to Harmony. "What's going on with her?"

Her focus remained on Ari as she took a healthy gulp of her drink. "Not a clue.

So it wasn't just me she was freezing out. Fuck. "Have you tried asking her about it?"

Harmony huffed out a short and unamused laugh as she faced me. "I've already tried multiple times. Each time she's managed to distract me. I almost asked Ander for help, but she knows how to evade his questions as well. All it would do is cause more harm than good."

I nodded, knowing exactly how skilled she was at evading. Ari never needed to lie, because if she didn't want to answer your question, she found a way to avoid it. I toyed with my wristband as I considered what might be bothering her. "You don't think it's because of me, right?" I'd already dismissed this idea, but it never hurt to have a second opinion.

An immediate shake of her head was Harmony's response. "Absolutely not. She knows not to take your...grumpy disposition personally. The same goes for the rest of us. This isn't about you and K—" She cut herself off, eyes wide as she realized she nearly said his name. A burst of pain stabbed my chest. And while I tried to hide my reaction, I was pretty sure I failed in that department.

Harmony shook her head and continued on, her words faster than before, as if that would help take my mind off of the pain. "The timing may be shitty, but there is something else going on."

"One of us needs to talk to her," I murmured before knocking back another shot.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Harmony said hesitantly, and when I raised my brows she sighed. "Honestly Jade, you should know better than anyone not to force a conversation they aren't ready for." She gave me a knowing look, calling me out on my hypocrisy.

Tossing back a shot, Harmony coughed until she chased it with her cocktail. "Just let her blow off steam we all need a chance to relax and forget all the bullshit."

She was right on all fronts, it had been a rough month, and I hadn't given myself the chance to let loose in quite a while. The last time I had done so, didn't exactly end on a good note. I'd ended up sobbing on the living room floor curled around Rowan. Yes, it was that night. Ander had been the one to find me. The absolute worst, out of all of my friends, to find me like that. He had been near murderous and was—

I cut those thoughts off with a firm shake of my head. Downing the rest of my drink added to my pleasant buzz, while Harmony finished off the last shot and the rest of her drink.

"Okay, no more moping or thinking for the rest of the night. We're going down onto the dance floor, and we're going to have some fun." Harmony pulled me to my feet, dragged me down the stairs, and onto the dance floor.

Within several minutes of dancing, my hair began sticking to the back of my neck, annoying the fuck out of me. Grumbling about how it was too damn hot on the dance floor, I yanked my hair into a high ponytail. There was nothing to be done about my bangs, and I was forced to leave them be.

The bangs were a recent addition to my look, and I still wasn't used to them. Or even sure if I liked them. From what I'd seen in human movies and tv shows, whenever a woman was dumped, she always did something drastic with her hair. Cutting my hair short didn't sound appealing. So I opted for some curtain bangs instead.

A sorcerer came up and started dancing with Harmony. After a few minutes, he asked if she wanted to go and get a drink with him. Being the friend that she was, she looked over at me, torn between wanting to go with him and not ditching me for some guy. I inclined my head toward him, telling her I'd be fine. There was absolutely no point in both of us not getting laid.

Not long after, I had just enough of this music and was ready to leave the dance floor, when a pair of hands gripped my waist. Yanking me back against a hard body that began grinding against my ass. Every muscle in my body locked up as a growing revulsion began in the pit of my stomach.

I grasped at the hands, trying to get them off of me, but instead, he took it as an invitation to explore my body. They slid up my sides slowly, but still firm enough that I couldn't pull them from me. He ground harder and this time I felt his erection pressing against me.

Panic built within me as I gagged, and without thought, my claw shot out and I raked them up his hands and forearms.

Swears came from him as he yanked his bleeding hands from me. Ignoring his insults, I shoved my way through the crowded dance floor, fighting off my warring nausea and tight pressure in my chest.

Cool air greeted me as I burst out the back door, just as my breathing began picking up. Leaning back against the stone wall, I lifted my hands to the top of my head and used the breathing techniques my dad taught me as a child.

This one was worse than the last one.