“It’s totally a laughing matter,” Paris countered, her smile bright enough to irk me. “Sami doesn’t hate you. She loves you.”
“No, she doesn’t.”
“Give me a break, Zoe,” Paris said, her tone slipping. “Don’t you remember what it was like to be that age? She’s trying to find herself, and all she knows is that she can’t be like you because it’s never cool to be like your mom.”
“She thinks you’re cool,” I pointed out. “She asks what shoes you like. She asks what shirt you like. She even asks what kind of purses you like and she doesn’t like purses.”
“That’s exactly it,” Paris said. “I’m her bohemian aunt. I pop into town every few months and tell her what she wants to hear and earn all of the love and accolades. You do all of the hard stuff.
“I mean, you’re the one who limits her time on the internet so a predator doesn’t find her,” she continued. “You’re the one who takes care of her when she’s sick. You’re the one who feeds her. You’re the one who comforts her when she has a nightmare.”
“Aric does all of those things.”
Paris wrinkled her forehead. “He doesn’t do all of those things,” she argued. “You’re there and help. Sure, you don’t cook, but I remember when she was seven and got pneumonia. You were the one who sat at her bedside for hours.”
“That’s because I tried to heal her and it didn’t work right away,” I said. “It was like I was blocked or something.”
“I think fear blocked you,” Paris said. “It was the first time since she was an infant that you realized how truly vulnerable she was. You guys raised her to be rough and tumble, so she has this larger-than-life persona. I will never forget that first week you guys brought her home, though. Do you remember that?”
How could I forget? The kid refused to sleep, screeching at the top of her lungs and only settling when Aric held her. I went on a rampage about him baby-proofing the house while ignoring how hungry I was because I was determined to get back into my pre-pregnancy pants within a week. It didn’t end well. “I remember that being a great week,” I lied.
“Oh, you’re so full of crap,” Paris said. “You and Aric were so exhausted your mothers showed up to take Sami off your hands and forced you to sleep. I remember your mom holding Sami and whispering about how her parents were crazy but she’d love them anyway.
“You guys slept for fifteen straight hours,” she continued. “You didn’t move. You were dead to the world. You never told me what happened, but you held hands the entire time. I always envisioned you sharing a dream.”
That was an ability that manifested while I was pregnant with Sami. I think she’s the one who gave it to me, although I carried it with me after her birth. We did dream together that day. It was the simplest of all dreams. We sat in the hot tub and just talked for hours. It was, for lack of a better word, magical.
“She still hates me,” I said. “She loves Aric, but she hates me.”
“You’re being a moron,” Paris chided. “I watch Sami when she thinks no one is looking. She doesn’t hate you. She admires you and wants to be you. She tries to mimic your walk, and it drives her nuts that she doesn’t look like you.”
“She looks like Aric. How could anyone hate that?”
“I don’t think it’s a rational hate,” Paris said. “She sees how much Aric loves you and when she looks in a mirror she sees him. In her head she probably thinks that means she won’t get someone as wonderful as Aric. She probably thinks she has to look like you for that to happen.”
“That’s ludicrous,” I said. “Have you listened to the way that kid talks to me? She’s mean.”
“Oh, that’s rich coming from you,” Paris said. “You’re the meanest person I know. You were mean to Aric. You were mean to me. You were mean to Kelsey. I’m sure you were mean to your mother when you were Sami’s age. Are you saying you don’t love all of us?”
That was an unfair question – mostly because I didn’t have an acceptable answer. “No,” I said finally. “I was also mean to Will, Professor Blake, Brittany, Jessica, Paul and Mark. Did I love them? No, I hated them.”
“That was completely different, and you know it,” Paris said. “You had a legitimate reason to hate them. They tried to hurt you and the people you love. Sami has no reason to hate you.”
“Unless I failed her and somehow don’t realize it.” The words were already out of my mouth before I realized I meant to think instead of speak them.
“What?” Paris’ eyes clouded. “How do you think you failed her?”
I decided to go for broke. “What is her life going to be if people start coming after her?”
“Is your life so terrible even though people came after you?”
“No, but I have Aric … and you … and Sami.”
“And Sami has you … and Aric … and his parents … and your parents … and cool Aunt Paris. She’s living a wonderful life.”
“She made us sleep outside last night because we embarrass her,” I countered. “I was supposed to be the cool parent. I don’t want to be the embarrassing parent. My mother was the embarrassing parent. I am the coolest person alive.”
Paris snickered, delighted by my fretting. “You are cool. It doesn’t matter, though. It’s the age. Every kid is pre-disposed to view their parents as big dorks. Other people’s parents are cool and hip. Those kids think the same parents are geeks. It’s just what happens. If it’s any consolation, my child will think I’m a geek but love you.”
It was very mild consolation. I had every intention of spoiling her kid rotten. “You know someone can’t be considered cool if they use the word ‘hip,’ right?”
Paris shrugged. “I’ll bet Sami doesn’t think that.”
“I hate you sometimes,” I grumbled, lifting my head and scanning the store when I realized Sami was no longer by the shoes. “Where is she?”
“I’m sure she didn’t go far,” Paris said, moving toward the dressing rooms. “She’s probably trying on that blouse.”
“The color was all wrong for her,” I muttered.
“I think she’ll look darling in it.”
“Tell her she’ll look hip,” I suggested. “She won’t buy it then.”
“You have a delightful way of looking at the world sometimes,” Paris said. “Has anyone ever told you that?”
“You just did.”
“Excuse me.” Paris approached the sales clerk with a polite smile. “My friend’s daughter was with us but we can’t seem to find her. Did you let a young girl into one of the dressing rooms?”
The clerk, who had those ridiculous plugs in her ears that stretch the lobes to monstrous proportions, fixed us with a blank look. “There’s no one in the dressing rooms.”
For some reason I couldn’t identify, my heart rate increased. “Where did she go? She was here two minutes ago.”
“Are you talking about the girl with the dark hair?” The clerk must have sensed I wasn’t messing around because she took an involuntary step away from me. “She went out the door like a minute ago.”
“I’m going to kill her,” I hissed, my long blond hair flying as I swiveled. “I am going to wring her neck.” I hurried through the open door, paying no heed to Paris as she struggled to catch up. My eyes were busy as they scanned the area outside. It was a crossroads – four sections of the mall meeting around a big fountain – and the sheer number of teens and younger kids was frightening. “Why aren’t these kids at home?”
“Calm down,” Paris instructed, resting her hand on my shoulder. “She couldn’t have gone far. She’s probably right out here. If we can’t find her we’ll get Aric and let him track her down. She won’t be happy when he freaks out.”
“I can freak out enough for the both of us.”
“Look!” Paris extended her right hand and pointed to a spot on the other side of the fountain. “She’s right there.”
I followed her finger with my gaze and scowled when I saw Sami talking
to Katie Dolloway. “Of course.”
“Who is that girl? Do you know her?”
“She’s the one who said her mother told her Aric and I had to get married because I was pregnant.”
“Oh, well, let’s hope the mother is around,” Paris said. “I’d love to run into her.”
“That makes two of us,” I said, moving toward the fountain with a purpose. I knew Paris was behind me, but I didn’t slow my pace. It wasn’t until I was almost on the other side of the fountain that I noticed a dark figure, a hoodie shrouding the individual’s face, moving in behind Sami. Whoever it was, Sami didn’t sense the new arrival and I did the only thing I could to protect her. I launched myself into the air and tackled the shady interloper from behind, wrestling the figure to the ground and using my leverage to pin the struggling body there.
“You’re going to be sorry you ever met me. I promise you that!”
Six
“Omigod!”
Sami’s wail could’ve woken the dead – which is a scary thought because I know vampires and they are technically dead. I ignored her outburst and rolled the guy over, making a face when I shoved the hoodie back and realized I was looking at a teenaged boy. Uh-oh. “Who are you?”
“Get off him,” Sami screeched, mortified.
I pretended I’d been rendered temporarily deaf and focused on my prey. “Who are you?”
“J-Joey Sanders.” The boy looked petrified, which made me think I’d made a terrible mistake. That didn’t cause me to change my chosen form of response, though.
“And why were you approaching my daughter, Joey Sanders?”
“W-what? I wasn’t.”
“I saw you!”
“What’s going on?” Aric appeared at the edge of the fountain, Heath close on his heels. I saw Paris watching the spectacle with a mixture of amusement and worry as she crossed over to her husband.
“Sami snuck out of the store and we couldn’t find her,” Paris explained. “When we came out here we saw her talking to that girl, and then the kid in the hoodie came up behind her and … um … Zoe tackled him.”
“Oh.” Aric rested his hand on his cheek as he met my gaze. I had no idea what he was thinking but I had a feeling it wasn’t good. My surprise was all encompassing when he flashed me an enthusiastic thumbs-up. “Good job, killer!”
“Oh, my … get off of him!” Sami was close to a full-on meltdown, but Aric didn’t look sympathetic in the least.
“Hey, if a guy was coming up behind you in the mall and he looked as if he was going to hurt you I would’ve done the same thing,” Aric snapped. “You’re lucky you got my wife, kid. I weigh thirty pounds more than her and I growl.”
Thirty pounds? “Hey!”
“Fifty pounds,” Aric automatically corrected. “Chill out. I misspoke.”
“I think you should get off of him, Zoe,” Paris said. “You’re starting to draw a crowd.”
Paris was right, although I was reluctant to release my catch. Ultimately I blew out a sigh and climbed to my feet, watching with unhidden mirth as Joey Sanders scrambled away from me. I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing when he slammed into the marble fountain wall, banging his shin hard and cursing under his breath. What? It’s funny. Of course, one look at my daughter told me she didn’t feel the same way.
“What were you doing approaching my daughter?” Aric asked, hunkering down so he was at eye-level with Joey. “Think really hard before you answer the question.”
“I wasn’t approaching your daughter,” Joey snapped. “I was approaching my best friend’s sister because we all rode together.” He jerked his thumb in Katie’s direction for emphasis. “I was late and wanted to make sure they didn’t leave without me.”
“Oh.” Aric pursed his lips as he shifted his eyes to me. “It was an honest mistake, baby. Don’t worry about it.”
“Honest mistake?” Sami widened her eyes until they looked like saucers. “How can you even say that?”
“Because you’re my daughter and your mother acted out of concern for you,” Aric replied, not missing a beat. “I’ll never fault her for that.”
“You always take her side!” Sami stomped her foot for emphasis. “Why don’t you ever take my side?”
“What’s your side in this?” Aric challenged. “You left the store even though I told you not to wander and you made your mother panic. When she found you a weird guy was coming up behind you and she reacted. He’s not hurt – er, at least he’s not physically hurt. I’m sure his ego will take a beating when the guys at school hear about this, but whatever. It will teach him to pull his hood down and his pants up.”
Oh, wow. Now we were both talking like our parents. That was just … horrifying. I was going to have to get drunk to forget this day. There was no getting around it.
“I can’t believe you.” Sami’s voice was high-pitched yet quiet enough to cause me to strain to hear her. “Do you care that you’re embarrassing me?”
“No.” Aric jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “Move your ass to the parking lot. We’re going to talk about a few things out there.”
“I hate you!” The words were out of Sami’s mouth so quickly I knew she didn’t mean to say them. They were directed at me, her eyes flashing, and it was too late to take them back when the realization of what she’d said hit her. “I … .”
“That did it.” Aric grabbed the back of Sami’s shirt and physically pulled her away from her friends, leaving Katie gaping and giggling and Joey dumbfounded.
“I didn’t mean to get her in trouble,” Joey lamely offered.
“She did that on her own,” I said. “I’m sorry I tackled you.”
“That’s okay.” Joey’s grin was almost charming. “It’s the most action I’ve had all week. You’re kind of hot. Old, but hot.”
“Thanks. Sadly, that’s the highlight of my day.”
BY THE time we got home Sami was in tears and Heath and Paris excused themselves to hide in their bedroom while Aric raged at our terrible tween. I didn’t blame Heath and Paris for fleeing. I didn’t want to hear the fight either, but I was stuck in the center of it and had no choice.
“Why do you hate me so much?” Now that we really had embarrassed Sami in front of her friends she was on the warpath. “Do you have any idea what you did to me today? Katie is going to tell everyone what happened and they’re all going to laugh at me.”
I sat in the chair at the edge of the room and rested my feet on the coffee table. I figured I should get comfortable because Aric wasn’t going to calm down in the next few minutes.
“Who cares if they laugh at you?” Aric barked. “Those people are not your friends. That Katie girl is a complete and total … what’s the word I’m looking for?” He glanced at me for help.
“I’m going to go with bitch.”
“Mother!” Sami scorched me with a murderous look.
“I think that’s a good word,” Aric said. “She gets that from her mother, who also happens to be a … .”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” I warned, wagging a finger. “You’ll regret it if you do. It makes us just as bad as her.”
“What is your deal with Mrs. Dolloway?” Sami asked. “She’s always nice to me. She even offered to help with my hair.”
“What’s wrong with your hair?” It was long, luscious and black. People would kill for her hair.
“It’s so boring,” Sami said. “I want to add some color to it … maybe purple.”
“Over my dead body,” Aric roared.
“We’ll talk about getting some Manic Panic when you’re not being punished,” I said, taking Aric by surprise.
“Excuse me? I am not walking around with a purple-haired daughter.”
He clearly didn’t get girls. “Manic Panic is temporary and her hair is so dark it’ll barely show,” I said. “I dyed my hair with it when I was a teenager. It’s not a big deal.”
“And you say I’m the one who always caves.” Aric paced the spot behi
nd the couch, dragging a restless hand through his hair as he worked overtime to tamp down his anger. “I can’t believe you’re giving in to her after the way she treated you.”
“I’m not giving in to her,” I said. “Hair is not worth a fight. It’s normal for girls to want to change their hair.”
Sami was dumbfounded. “But … what?”
“You could’ve asked me to change your hair and I would’ve allowed it,” I replied. “There was no reason to go to Barbie Dolloway and act as if I’m the meanest mother in the world.”
“Isn’t her name Cissy?” Aric asked.
“You’d better not know. She is the town whore,” I warned.
“Oh, nice,” Sami said, rolling her eyes. “You just told Dad not to say anything mean.”
“That’s because he’s a nicer person than I am. He would’ve felt guilty for saying it. I don’t have that problem.”
“I still can’t believe you did that,” Sami hissed. “Joey is the hottest guy in school. Now he’s going to think I’m a spaz and never talk to me.”
“He’d better never talk to you,” Aric growled. “He’s like … twenty.”
That was a gross exaggeration. “I’m guessing he’s fourteen,” I countered. “That’s still too old for you, Sami.”
She jutted out her lower lip and crossed her arms over her chest. “You just want to ruin my life every chance you get, don’t you?”
“It does hold some appeal.”
“You … suck!”
“Don’t talk to your mother like that,” Aric raged. “I can’t stand that. Why do you put up with that, Zoe? She’s disrespectful, and I’m not going to stand for it.”
Why did I put up with it? Because I was exactly the same way at her age – sans the desperate need to be popular, mind you – and it seemed hypocritical to call her on her crap when I said even worse things to my own mother. I should probably call her and apologize, by the way.
“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “She didn’t mean what she said.” I hoped that was true. “She speaks before she thinks. I have the same problem.”
Dying Covenant: The Complete Series Page 6
