Gypsy Moon (All The Pretty Monsters #4)(80)



“She doesn’t smell like a Portocale,” Emit snarls, glaring at Mom like she’s a lying troll.

“That’s because it takes up to a year for my scent to be restored when I gypsy hop so suddenly,” Mom answers carelessly. Then she cuts her gaze up at Arion. “Make a move or unhand me, Vampyre.”

“Promise you won’t attack if he lets you go?” I ask, and…then get four lethal glares swung my way…that I decide to ignore.

Emit is still guiltily darting a gaze at my covered side every two seconds because of an accidental collision that I caused. It’s not like I feel threatened by them. They can glare all they want right now; that’s my mother. I’ll risk it.

“Promise,” I say again, drawing a glare from her now.

“After what I’ve sat through and endured, only to have that miserable shite tranquilizer burn through too fast?” she asks, not completely sounding like her normal self, but almost like the memories of the times an unusual accent would slip in.

“Violet, you have no idea how tricky Idun’s gypsy freak skin walkers can be, and right now, our presence here ensures them we’re now aware Idun is up. They’ll be flocking in, which is why I never went to collect our things,” Arion tells me like he’s growing impatient. “This one has some sort of paralytic that I want to know more about.”

“It’s my tranquilizer that I’ve been developing for me for when my heart drops. I’m turbo charged right now, due to the lightning I was forced to absorb, so it’s presently a lot more ineffective than in the past when tested,” I absently explain, only feeling the slightest numbing tingles in my fingertips, and weirdly my elbows, through it all.

Arion’s brow furrows, and his claws retract ever so slightly.

“A girl’s got to put food on the table, even when there’s a head to hunt. Only the girls who dare to be too pretty eat for free,” I say, looking back over to Mom’s eyes, feeling too much hope tugging at my heart, as it slowly sinks in that this is really happening.

She clears her throat, darts a glance around, rolls her eyes, and huffs out a breath, as she follows it up with the next two lines. “Pay with heart or pay with cunt. Both come with the highest chance of trickery,” she mutters like she can’t believe she picked that burner riddle.

“What exactly does this prove?” Vance asks me very seriously, as Mom turns her narrowed eyes toward him, watching his hand cup my cheek, while his gaze flicks over my face.

I’m paying more attention to her than him right now, because I’m worried she’s going to kill them all the second Arion finally releases her.

If she’s been in here all this time, she’s heard my conversation with Arion and Anna and knows soooooo much.

“It’s a burner poem. Recite it once if ever you question whether or not you’re being tricked. It wasn’t because gypsies can put on their old-lady makeup, though, was it?” I ask her, taking in the new information versus the subtle hints to things from growing up. “It’s because some dangerous monsters can look like whomever they want to look like.”

Her look softens, as though the bigger elephant in the room is just now getting noticed. It’s a bad day when the naked vampire holding you at bay, after having to endure hearing him have his way with your daughter for…a while…is just the distraction from the more pressing matters.

Today, Mom’s life may actually suck worse than mine. I want to hug her and apologize, but that’s a whole other conversation to have…later.

I’m suddenly okay with them hunting Idun. Mom’s here, feeling guilty about lying to me my entire life, and—

“Why did you flirt with Arion?” I ask more seriously after that whole thing continues to grow increasingly confusing.

“Because I was trying to get your attention without it being obvious that I wanted your attention,” she bites out. “But then he was blocking you in on the elevator, and I couldn’t figure out how to get into the room without putting you at risk, until the scotch got called in. I had no idea you were willingly with him. I thought he was in your head, Violet. How could you?”

Arion is seriously resisting the urge to grin, and that’s unsurprisingly cruel. “Can you give us a little bit?” I ask them.

“I’m not killing anyone tonight, so release me. We have far more urgent matters to discuss at present, and this is the first time I’ve been able to gain an audience with you. I wanted to pretend to be someone other than myself, but fucking hell if you don’t make such a thing impossible, since you never bother getting to know anyone at all.” Her eyes grow colder as they land on mine. “At least most of the time.”

I rock back on my heels and hold my sheet a little tighter. Yep, she’s really pissed. Understandably so. By this point, she knows I slept with Arion after knowing the twisted, dark history—most likely.

Mom waves her hand, sniffling, as Arion finally releases her.

“Later,” she tells me, her put-a-pin-in-all-the-emotions look on her face. “I’m sure you’re all here because Idun came here for two months after she rose.”

Everyone looks at Arion, who immediately shakes his head. “I’m here because it was far away from where you thought I was. Simply a coincidence.”

Mom rolls her eyes, snorting in derision, as I glance over at Arion, who is still shaking his head.

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