Chapter 41
Violet
“We have to get out of here,” mum hissed, her fingers still clenched around the necklace for the past hour. “We’ll have to sneak out, leave before they realise we’ve gone.”
Distrust had flickered in her eyes each time Ryder moved, her attention darting between everyone that spoke with worrying fragility. So I’d taken her to the bedroom beside mine, thankful that Elena had already made it up.
Stress had always been the spark for her episodes, so I’d hoped that taking her out of the chaos downstairs might help settle her mind. But it didn’t.
Mum sat rigid in the armchair, a stiffness that looked painful.
With a deep exhale, she looked towards the window, out into the darkness. “How do I know if this is real?” she whispered, her voice cold, distant. “How do I know that you’re real? And that I won’t simply wake up, and I’ll be backthere?”
“I’ve always been real, mum,” I replied, my voice soft as I kneeled beside the chair.
Her eyes were sharp when she looked down at me, her fingers finally relaxing to brush through my hair.
“You sent him to get me, didn’t you?” she accused. “You think I don’t know what’s going on?” Her tone wasn’t angry, so much as desperate. The fear behind it raw, real. “He’s convinced you to take me back, to take me to?—”
“No, I’d never allow it.” I tilted my head, giving her more access to my hair. “I’ll never leave you again, I promise.”
The movement of untangling my strands was helping her stay calm, but I was worried she hadn’t been taking her medication. In such a short time she’d lost weight, her face hollowed, and her eyes shadowed as though she hadn’t slept.
“You were always such a needy child,” she whispered, her tone turning cold once more. “Desperate for my attention.”
My heart sank. “Mum…”
“Have you cut your hair?” Her eyes widened, fingers tightening until I felt pain along my scalp. “I’ve told you never to cut your hair, Violet.”
“Mum, tell me about the necklace,” I said gently, trying to keep the conversation on track. Sometimes it was effortless, and other times it was almost impossible. “I saw the picture of you wearing it a long time ago.”
Mum frowned, as if suddenly remembering the pendant she held in her other fist. Relaxing her hand, she opened her fingers, letting the necklace fall to the floor beside me.
“I have this secret,” she admitted quietly, her face blank even as her voice trembled.
“But Violet, biology doesn’t mean everything.”
My body went cold, white noise rushing in my ears. “What are you saying?”
It was silent for a long while. So long, I thought we’d gotten off track again.
Until finally, “I’m… I’m not your biological mother.”
“You’renot?” I had to concentrate, my mind spiralling into a million questions that would only derail her thoughts. “Where… who are my real parents?”
Mum’s fingers tightened in my hair a fraction before she finally let go, her eyes hardening on mine. “Stop looking at me like that, Violet. I’m fine; I’ve been taking the fucking pills. I’m not sick.”
“I never said you were.” I brushed away the tear from my cheek. “Please, mum, it’s just you and me here.”
“God, why are you making me say this?” she snapped. “It doesn’t matter. You’re mine, and that’s that.”
“Mine?” I echoed. “You talk like I’m property, not a living, breathing person.”
I dragged a hand down my chest, as if I could physically smooth out the tightness there. It didn’t, my heart racing violently behind my ribs.
“Who are my biological parents?” I asked again, this time a fraction louder. But she didn’t respond, so I jumped to my feet in a burst of frustration. “Oh my God. You always told me my dad died when I was a baby! That you were my only family!”
Mum’s head snapped towards me, eyes narrowed even as I began to spiral. “I’m your mother more than anyone else,” she growled, finally reacting. “I took you from?—”
