Off With His Head

25. Each to their own, I guess

I'm too stunned to move, my feet frozen to the floor as my mouth drops open. She looks slightly different than the last time I saw her; her dark brown hair is cropped shorter into a bob, the fine wrinkles under her eyes have multiplied and there are a couple of scars on her neck that weren't there before. But, there is no doubt that the woman standing across from me, clad all in black, is my mother.

She gets to her feet, crossing the room in a few strides and pulling me close in a hug. For a moment, I let the warm smell of cinnamon surround me. It's always been her signature scent, and I've often turned to it for comfort. Now, all it does is cause confusion because the smell tells me that she's really here and not just a figment of my imagination.

"Peyton, I never wanted this for you," she mutters sadly, taking a step back to look at me. She holds me at arms-length, her brown eyes, almost identical to my own, scanning my face intently.

"What the hell is going on?" I ask, completely bewildered and unable to form any of the other questions I have in mind. What is my mother doing here? How the hell did she know I would be here? Did they tell her everything?

No, they wouldn't. Unless...

Everything starts clicking into place. The extended business trips her and my dad have taken my entire life. Zach and Caleb knowing everything about me. The way Caleb's mum asked about my surname and Caleb warned her against continuing. Caleb looking away when I mentioned my parents, or when he saw the photo of them. Zach wanting to tell me something, important information he wasn't allowed to share.

This is what they've been hiding from me.

"You're..." I swallow the lump of confusion in my throat. It sticks like popcorn, fighting the whole way down. My head is spinning like a carousel, trying desperately to grab onto the only answer that makes sense. "You're a hunter?"

I want her to deny it, to tell me I'm crazy. I want her to ask me if vampires actually exist. I want her to tell me that Lideri has just fed her some rubbish story about mythical creatures and that she has no idea what I'm talking about.

But, she does none of those things. Instead, sorrow and regret fill her familiar eyes and she releases me, taking a step back. I glance at Caleb who's staring at the floor, refusing to meet my gaze. Zach, who's watching me with an unreadable expression, offers a slight nod, confirming what I already knew.

"Peyton, maybe you should sit down," Lideri intervenes before my mom can even respond.

"I don't want to sit down!" I yell like a petulant child, anger and betrayal boiling up inside of me until I can't control them. "I want someone to explain what the hell is going on. Preferably, the woman who has been lying to me for the past twenty two years." I send a glare in my mother's direction, hoping to convey just how hurt I am by this revelation.

"We kept this from you for your protection," she insists. "I never wanted this life for you, Peyton. But, I see that you've somehow managed to get involved in it anyway." She glances at Lideri with a look of distaste.

"Well, maybe if you hadn't been so intent on keeping me in the dark, I wouldn't have ended up dating a vampire!" I counter.

She flinches as though I slapped her and I wonder if Lideri left that bit of information out when he told her I was here. "You can't possibly blame that on us, Peyton. Your dad and I did what we thought was right. It's a decision that I stand by."

"And what about my decisions?" Even though I try, I can't keep the venom out my voice. "Shouldn't I have had a choice in this?"

"Ladies, please," Lideri interjects but immediately goes silent as he receives a glare from both me and my mother.