Chapter 18
EIGHTEEN
The address proved to be some kind of club. A blinking neon light in the shape of an arrow read Bar None—a clever if not disturbing play on words for what might lie inside.
I leaned over and placed a cash tip in the front seat’s cup holder. “Thank you.”
The driver didn’t respond or move when I got out of the car and headed toward the bar’s entrance. I glanced back to see the vehicle still sitting there idling.
Frowning, I motioned him away. A flash of light outlined the driver’s face, but a hat pulled low onto his brow obscured most of his features. All I caught was the edge of a sharp jawline before the driver reversed and pulled into traffic.
Odd.
Shaking my head, I pushed the door open and entered, hoping to find answers.
I never went out. Not because I was anti-social or anything, but because I was never invited anywhere. Friends were a must for social outings, I supposed, and I wasn’t the best at finding any of those.
Marinka’s parting words swam in my mind. Find someone worthy to trust.
Yeah. Well. Easier said than done.
Music blared through several speakers. Neon lights danced over the ceiling and walls, mostly focused on the small but packed dance floor over to the right side of the bar. One thing was evident immediately. This bar catered to the supernatural population.
Someone’s lineage wasn’t always apparent when you saw them, but I’d always been able to pinpoint people pretty closely, either from my hedgewitch side, which didn’t seem likely since no witch I knew could do the same, or from whatever my father might have been.
This club was full of witches, shifters, and vampires, but there were several types I couldn’t identify, their magic a strange, heady push against my senses.
Unfortunately, Marinka had been her usual abrupt self and hadn’t given me anything more than an address.
I couldn’t very well stroll up to the bar and ask them what they thought about a witch who thought she was turning into something impossible, could I?
That left the obvious.
I walked up to the bar, squeezed my way through a crowd of young witches, and ordered a vodka tonic with extra lime.
The bartender was young, male, and had more colors in his hair than I had in all my eyeshadow palettes put together.
He also wore a disgruntled expression that never went away, regardless of whether he was taking orders or pouring drinks.
But when I tasted the drink he set in front of me, I had to admit it was the best vodka tonic I’d ever had. I gave him a grateful nod and sat on the only barstool available.
I watched everyone dancing and having a good time, trying to squash my jealousy.
Some people had many friends and liked it that way.
I was on the opposite side. I much preferred intimate conversations and small dinners than loud and raucous gatherings.
College had proved a lonely affair for me.
While everyone was getting black-out drunk, I was reading fantasy in my dorm, wishing I was anywhere but there.
I wanted to be with other people, but I wasn’t built for late nights and big crowds.
Making friends when you never went anywhere proved unsurprisingly difficult.
Mom’s constant warnings about trusting the wrong person prevented me from having a normal college experience, and I still wasn’t sure if it had been worth it.
“Is this seat taken?”
I blinked, startled out of my self-pitying reverie, to see a tall woman with light brown hair and friendly blue eyes smiling at me. I’d been so lost in my thoughts, I hadn’t noticed the person beside me leaving. “Oh. No. I’m by myself.”
The woman took the seat and stuck out her hand. “Blaze.”
I shook her hand. “Alex.”
From the way our magic sparked against each other, Blaze was a witch, elemental if I had to guess.
She had an almost electric feel about her.
“I’m waiting on a date.” She rolled her eyes.
“Strike one was suggesting a bar, but it’s been a little dry these days, so I’m trying to give him the benefit of the doubt. ”
“First date?”
She nodded. “We’ve been chatting on the app for a few weeks now, but you know how it is. You don’t really know if they’re a serial killer until you look into their eyes.”
I grimaced. Dating these days sounded awful. “How long have you been on the apps?”
“A few months.” Blaze shook her head. “It’s a whole different world out there now. Remember when you could walk into a place like this and twenty minutes later meet your soul mate?”
I snorted. “Or soul mate for the night, at least?”
Blaze grinned. “Exactly. Now everything feels transactional. What about you?” She glanced down at my left hand. “No wedding ring. Single or dating?”
“Single. I haven’t dated in ages.” Even thinking about it sent a finger of dread walking down my spine.
“I gave it a rest for a while. After my last boyfriend.” She pulled a face. “He was such a shit.”
I laughed. “What time is he supposed to meet you?”
“Nine. He’s already ten minutes late.”
“Strike two?” I ventured.
She laughed. “I’ll give him five more minutes before another strike.”
We chatted for a while until a tall man appeared next to the bar, smiling and waving at Blaze. He gave off witch vibes, but there was something else about him, something I couldn’t put my finger on. My elbow, close to the area where my implant was, flared with heat.
Weird. Absentmindedly, I rubbed my arm and watched the man walk over.
There was no good reason to dislike him immediately, but I did.
Blaze pulled him over and gestured to me. “This is Alex.”
He inclined his head politely. “Nice to meet you.”
“And this is Jason.”
“Hello,” I said. He didn’t offer his hand to shake, so I kept mine on the bar. I got up from the seat. “You can take this one.”
Blaze protested. “You don’t have to leave!”
“Thanks,” Jason said and slid into the seat I’d just vacated.
Blaze’s eyes flickered. Her lips pursed, but Jason slung an arm over her shoulder and pulled her close. He whispered something in her ear too low for me to catch.
Whatever he said, she didn’t like it. A false smile flickered over her lips, but there was no amusement in her eyes.
I waved. “Nice to meet you, Blaze. Maybe I’ll see you around sometime.”
Jason’s smug smile lingered. “Not for a while,” he said with a creepy chuckle.
Blaze and I locked gazes. Something I couldn’t explain passed between us.
I nodded and walked away, but I had no plans to leave before I knew Blaze was safe.
I went to the other side of the bar and ordered one more drink.
So far, nothing screamed here are all the answers you want, and I wondered if this endeavor would be a dead end.
Marinka wouldn’t have given me the address for nothing, though. I had to believe that. The woman had never gone out of her way to offer any assistance beyond implant upkeep. This club had answers. All I had to do was find them.
I glanced back at Blaze and Jason to see their heads ducked together. Blaze was no longer smiling, but she looked safe enough for now.
I made my way toward the back room, but I still had no idea what I was searching for.
People passed by with little sign of recognition, some offering faint smiles, others bumping into me, their drinks sloshing over the edges of their cups.
I recognized a few people, regulars from the coffee shop, others I saw around the neighborhood I lived in.
A few of them nodded to me with surprised acknowledgment but soon returned to their drinks and conversations.
This room was quieter and filled with lounge chairs and couches.
I took my drink and settled onto one of the chairs in the darker area where there were fewer people.
If nothing happened in a few minutes, I’d find Blaze and see if I could talk her into leaving her date behind.
The odd feeling about him hadn’t yet left me, though my elbow had stopped burning.
Maybe it’d been an odd flare-up due to the repair Marinka had made, but that didn’t feel quite right.
I was staring down into my drink when the conversation in the room fell silent.
Even the music pounding the walls softened, the sound muffled like the speakers were underwater.
A wispy white fog curled through the doorway, obscuring everyone and everything.
I slowly rose from my seat, wariness now etched in every muscle.
There was only one way out, right where the fog was coming in.
If it posed a danger, I had nowhere else to go.
This room had no windows and no other exits.
Cursing my choices, I took a step out from the table and pushed my hands out behind me searching for something I could touch.
If I could disappear into the fog, maybe I’d have a chance.
But as I stepped back, the fog curled behind me, keeping me in plain view. Whatever this was, I sensed it was here for me.