Chapter Twenty-Six

It was Halloween, and normally, Granny made a big deal of it, but she’d been in a rush before she left and had forgotten to buy candy. Which I discovered that morning when I went to pour it into the big plastic pumpkin we used every year.

Rose was in the backyard, watering the plants or talking to them or distilling poison or something. Thorn was on a run, which I’d managed to get out of by claiming I was still achy from my episode yesterday.

Which meant it was up to me to obtain the necessary sweets. The morning was overcast. I threw on a hoodie over my tee; my jeans would cover my legs, and I found a ball cap and covered my head. Sunglasses completed the “don’t let the sun touch me” look.

“I’m going out on a candy run,” I hollered at Rose. She nodded to let me know she heard me.

I pulled into the grocery store and tried to find a parking spot close to the entrance. It was Saturday morning, the market was already busy, and the Deathtrap wasn’t exactly a tiny vehicle, so I had to settle for something in the middle.

I grabbed a cart, deciding that I may as well grab a few other things while I was at it. The candy selection was picked over, but that’s what I got for waiting until the last minute.

“I’m a big fan of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups,” a woman said.

I glanced up, already prepared to give the speaker my “talking to strangers in a store” smile, but it was my mother. Standing in the middle of Ralph’s in broad daylight.

I stared at her. She hadn’t been lying. Vampires couldn’t walk in broad daylight, yet here she was.

“I’m glad to see you’re feeling better,” Vanessa said. “I was worried about you. You made it home from the wedding without any difficulty?”

“I did,” I said. “Thank you for offering to help me, but my—a coworker took me home.”

“Handing out candy tonight?” she asked casually.

“Yep,” I said, still stunned by the idea that she had been telling me the truth. My mother was human.

“Want some company?” she asked.

Overwhelmed, I continued to stare without speaking.

“Tansy?” she asked. “Are you all right?”

“It’s just a shock,” I said, waving vaguely in her direction.

Her eyes twinkled. “You’re telling me. When it first happened, I thought it had to be too good to be true. But I’ve had a few months to get used to being human again.”

I smiled at her. I couldn’t help it.

“About tonight. Would you like some company?” she asked. She watched me closely as she waited for my answer.

I really wanted to say yes, but I couldn’t. Not yet. “I’m having friends over.” Not exactly a lie. Rose and Thorn were becoming my friends. Or at least the closest thing I had to them.

“I understand,” she said. “Let me give you my number, just in case you change your mind. Or call me to talk. I’d love to spend some time with you.”

I didn’t hand her my phone. Instead, I asked her to recite the number, and I put it in my phone myself. It’s not that I didn’t trust her, but I didn’t trust her. Not yet. Maybe not ever. But maybe I could try.

I programmed the number in, and we stood there, grinning at each other. It was kind of awkward, but also kind of nice. Hanging out at the grocery store with my mom. Something a lot of people took for granted.

After a few minutes, she grabbed some candy and then said goodbye. I finished my own shopping and then headed home.

I didn’t think I’d call her. I wasn’t ready for more, not after seventeen years of silence. Besides, it would be fun to hang out with Rose and Thorn. We could watch a scary movie and admire the costumes.

But it turned out they had other plans. Plans that didn’t include me.

“What movie do you want to watch tonight?” I asked.

Rose and Thorn did that twin thing where they didn’t say anything out loud but communicated with their eyes.

“I have a date with Lucas,” Rose finally said.

“I was going to hang out with Beckett and Xavier,” Thorn said. “But I can cancel.”

“Don’t be silly,” I said. “I’ll be fine on my own for a few hours.”

“Are you sure?” Rose asked.

“I am,” I replied. “Now tell me what you’re doing tonight.”

“There’s a small party at Con…” Her voice trailed off. They were all going to Connor’s house. Skyler and Vaughn would probably be there, too.

“Have fun,” I said brightly. “I think I’ll read in my room until it’s time for the trick-or-treaters.” I wanted to cry. Skyler and Vaughn still hadn’t forgiven me for what happened to Connor on Homecoming night.

I pretended to be asleep when Rose tapped on my door, but as the night went on, it got harder and harder to smile at the kids in their costumes.

At around nine, the doorbell stopped ringing, and I was alone with my thoughts. I picked up my phone and called Vanessa. When she picked up, I said, “Hi, it’s me.” I cleared my throat. “Turns out my plans fell through. Would you like to come over?”

“To your grandmother’s house?” my mom said. “Are you sure she’s ready for that?”

“She’s not here,” I said. “Nobody is.” I winced at the sound of the loneliness I heard in my own voice.

There was a long pause. “Are you sure you trust me enough to invite me in?”

“I do,” I said. Besides, I’d keep my drumstick with me, just in case.

“Then I’ll be right over,” my mother replied.

When the doorbell rang twenty minutes later, I took a deep breath. Was I really going to let Vanessa into my home? What if it was some kind of trick?

The last thing I was expecting was a normal night. But that’s what we had.

We made popcorn and threw in the leftover M&Ms, watched a romantic comedy instead of a horror movie, because Mom said, “There’s been enough horror in my life,” and then we talked about me, mostly.

“What were you like before you became a striga vie?” she asked.

I told her the story of how Skyler and I had met, fighting over a book during story time at the library.

“She sounds like a good friend,” my mom said softly.

Some of the pain I was feeling about my faltering friendship with Skyler must have shown on my face, because my mom reached over and squeezed my hand. “Did I say something wrong?”

“Skyler and I aren’t talking right now,” I admitted. “She’s mad at me. But I’m mad at her, too.”

My mother was watching me closely. “You were a very good friend to her this summer, Tansy,” she said firmly. “I would expect that a true friend would show you the same kind of loyalty.”

I didn’t want to cry in front of her. She was still a stranger, even though I was starting to think that maybe we could have a relationship. I jumped up. “I’ll be right back,” I said.

In the bathroom, I locked the door and let a few tears fall. Then I splashed cold water on my face. When I went back to the living room, my mother wasn’t there.

Where was she? My mother, the potentially former vampire, was loose somewhere in my house. And I’d invited her in.

She was in my bedroom. She was examining something on my dresser. “What are you doing in here?” I asked, and she practically jumped as she turned to face me, her eyes wide. I folded my arms across my chest.

“You startled me,” she said.

“Why are you in my bedroom?”

“I could tell you were upset,” she replied. “I just wanted to comfort you. I’m sorry.”

“Maybe we should call it a night,” I said.

“If that’s what you want,” she said.

“It is.”

“Maybe we could do it again sometime?” Vanessa asked.

I hesitated and then nodded.

“We can keep it between the two of us,” she suggested.

“That we’re hanging out?”

She nodded. “And that I’m human.”

“Why?” I crossed my arms over my chest.

“I made a lot of mistakes,” she admitted softly. “Even before Jure forced me into becoming a vampire. I don’t know if my mother will ever be able to forgive me. I don’t know if you will be able to forgive me, either.”

“I don’t know, either,” I said honestly.

Tears welled in her eyes. “I understand.”

“But I’ll try,” I said. I wanted to believe her. So much.