14. Mine

I sat in one of the wingback chairs to remove myself from them as much as possible. Ellie sat beside me in the second one with Odie beside her on the two-seater and Cy eyeing me from the larger couch.

This was incredibly uncomfortable, but it wasn't like I didn't know it was coming. I'd been avoiding it all day, and now with Vaila gone, there were no more excuses other than I was tired and didn't want to. That wouldn't stop them though.

"Tell us what happened." Odie's voice was calmer than I expected, and that eased some of the tension in my body.

I assumed they figured some part of it out since Ellie had, but better to get the truth from the horse's mouth than be a big old ass assuming shit.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. My hair hung down around my shoulders, and I played with it, refusing to meet their eyes when I opened mine.

It was going to sound ridiculous to them, and I didn't want that judgment. There were so many words vying for a spot first, but I had to start somewhere.

They ruined my things. None of them said a word, letting me carry on and explain. I don't care about the things. They can all be replaced, but they ruined a picture.

My boxes had been shoved into the space between the TV and the hallway opening, so they weren't in the middle of the living room. Seeing them like that made it seem like I had so little, but really, they barely packed anything in there, and what they did pack was meant to make a statement.

"A picture of what?" Odie prodded.

My parents and I before they died.

Through my peripherals, I saw Cy's nostrils flare and Odie's hands turn into fists.

"When did they die?" Cy asked this time, but what she said next was the real kicker. "My father died giving birth to me, and my mother—" she cut herself off and cleared her throat. "I lost her when I was ten. That's when Gerard took me in."

I cocked my head, surprised that Gerard had a nice bone in his body.

"Gerard isn't always a fuckhead. He's very blind to a lot of things, especially when it comes to the people he cares about," Odie explained, but it didn't improve my view of him. Clearly, his ways were trash considering his two daughters and adoptive daughter were all the way out here avoiding him.

I took Cy's kind gesture as it was though and gave them what they asked for.

Six. I was six when they died in a car accident. Cliché, isn't it?

They ignored my joke, and that made me fidget. I needed the humor to avoid the pain that was trying to bubble up inside me. I had shed enough tears for them and the life we could have had.

"Who took care of you after that?" Although I was still refusing to make eye contact with her, I could see Odie's hazel eyes boring into me through my peripherals.

My grandmother. I decided to bite the bullet and get all the juicy details out there that they would inevitably sniff out. Until she died when I was fourteen. Then I bounced from family member to family member, then went off on my own at seventeen. I didn't want my bad luck rubbing off on them.

"You know about that?" My eyes shot to hers.

Know about what?

"So you don't know. I'll explain, but let's get through what happened last night first. Was the destroyed image the reason you left?" Odie was sitting on the edge of her seat, following every word I signed.

That and the ungodly amount of alcohol in my system, plus being kidnapped and trapped here. It was a recipe for disaster.

Everyone chuckled except for Ellie who remained silent and staring at the coffee table. She was still so young, but like she had said before, she was raised to take on a high role at a young age, and she would soon need to be somewhat emotionless to events like this if she was going to survive. At least, that's how it looked from my side.

"None of us really thought that through, did we?" Cy sighed, then slumped down into the couch.

"No, we didn't, and we were lax, thinking a little Human like you could never evade us." I didn't think that was the full truth, but I didn't have anything else to explain it. "Please don't do that again, Mine." There was a small crack in her voice, but from the nonexistent reactions the other two gave, I thought it had been a trick of my mind.

Why are you both being so nice? Odie is one thing, but Cy has been, dare I say it, playful! You're freaking me out. What happened to the assholes I met?

They both jerked back as if they had been slapped, and Ellie clapped a hand over her mouth, and I was happy to see her do something other than be a statue.

"I don't really—"

Know what I mean? I interrupted Odie. Bullshit. Explain.

Cy and Odie shared a look, then Cy shrugged and Odie sighed as if they had come to a silent agreement.

"We don't know. We're just nicer to you than other people."

You were perfectly fucking nice to Vaila, so that's a lie.

Odie's mouth dropped open, and Cy bit her knuckle to keep from laughing.

"That's not—"

"Oh, come on. Even I know you slept with her," Ellie spat out as she stared down her sister.

"Ellie!" Odie gasped.

"What? I'm right." Ellie sat back and crossed her arms.

It was obvious.

"Fine, yes, but it was nothing more than that. She's always been great to our family as well, so why wouldn't I be nice to her?" Odie looked at each of us, begging for someone to agree with her. I knew we all did. It made sense, but that didn't mean I would tell her that.

"Tell yourself whatever you want, Odie." Cy clapped her on the back.

"That's all it was! Besides, that was years ago before Ellie could even talk." That oddly made me feel better, and a smile crossed my lips. "What are you smiling about?"

A big, strong Alpha falling to pieces to explain she had a fuck buddy.

"Fucking Humans." Odie ran a hand down her face, and to make matters worse, I rounded us back to that little tidbit about my bad luck.

Now explain what I don't know about my bad luck.

Odie huffed, not wanting to spill the beans, but apparently it was important enough that she would get over it.

"Vaila felt two curses on you. Sort of. The first one is obviously the mutism. She said it's strong and unlike anything she's seen before."

My family has tried to break it many times in the past, but no one has even come close. I don't see a point in pursuing that. I shrugged, accepting my fate to not speak for as long as I lived. It didn't bother me. This was who I was.

"But," Odie continued, "the other one is more residual and cloying. It's a common enough one if you know the right people to perform it, but it's a way to bestow bad luck on someone, then it's a domino effect." Odie let the words hang in the air as my anger grew. My fingers gripped the arms of the chair, digging into the lush fabric. "Meaning someone cursed one of your parents and it has clung to you since then. It can be removed though. Vaila is sorting it out, so you won't have to worry about that anymore."

I combusted. What did she mean this can be fixed? Everything was already broken. My parents and grandmother were gone. My family was distant. I had no friends to speak of. I was a broken, lonely person that couldn't be fixed by some anti-curse thingamajig.

Shoving myself up from the chair, I let them have it, spilling every feeling I had about their little solution.

It's too fucking late. That curse ruined everything! Look where I am, Odie.

Ellie sniffled beside me, bringing me back to earth and making me feel like an asshole. I couldn't help how I felt about it, and all I had ever wanted were my parents to come back.

"That's not what I meant, Mine. It can't fix what has already happened, but it can lessen the load of anxiety going forward. It's easy to figure out that you've avoided people for a long time because of this. You don't have to do that anymore. You can have a life."

If I'm not thrown into jail by your father. I groaned and ran my fingers through my hair. I don't know if I want to be fixed.

"A lot has changed in two days. I get that, but don't say no to this because it changes things even more. Vaila is going through a lot of trouble—"

I didn't ask her to! I didn't ask you to! Just stop being nice to me. Let me hate you. Let me get through these few weeks until my life is officially over. Let the bad luck rub off on all those assholes who don't understand what fair is. Fuck them, and fuck you.

I stormed from the room, ignoring Cy and Ellie's protests. Odie was noticeably silent.

Slamming the door behind me, I collapsed on the bed, letting the tears finally fall. I had already lost so much. I couldn't bear truly losing any more. They needed to keep their distance until I left. They didn't understand what this curse takes from you. I should have known from the beginning that this was what it was, but none of the pieces fell together until tonight. My parents, my grandmother, all the shitty karma I never deserved. It was all because of some asshole who had it out for us.

If I was convicted, then so be it. Let this curse wreak havoc and destroy those fuckers. If I wasn't and I was set free, then maybe I would let Vaila cure me, and even then, I was Human. I could never truly be a part of their life, even as a friend, so I'd be sent away to pick up where I left off, living next to Lucinda. That wouldn"t last long. I'd find another place to live far away where they couldn't reach me and figure out how to hunt down the bastard that destroyed them and my life.

For right now, this had to end. Their kindness and my acceptance of it. In a few weeks, I'd be gone, and this would be some memory I locked away but always longed for. I wanted to feel like part of a family, but I would never risk someone again even if the curse was gone. I would never recover from it. Not really. Maybe if I wasn't Human, maybe then I could have a life, but it was too late for me.

More tears fell and soaked my pillow, and before long, exhaustion took over, pushing away the aching pain of my shoulder and ankle. I should have taken some medicine before running in here, but I wasn't going to risk going back out there.

I would let the suffering continue for now. It's what I was used to.