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“Don’t start,” she says and rolls her eyes.
I smile. “I love you, Aunt Mimi.”
She swallows and looks away. “Love you, too. All five of you brats.”
“Greyson’s pretty great, isn’t he?” I pivot quickly.
She smiles again and emotion lights in her eyes. “He is.”
“You’re gonna start!” I accuse.
“I’m not,” she assures.
But I do think she’s fighting it.
I laugh and drop a kiss on her cheek, then we get back to gathering what we need for tonight’s circle. We leave the covenstead in the back of the drycleaners and pile into my bus with my sisters.
“Before we go,” Aunt Mimi says as she lifts a tangle of necklaces from the pocket of her skirt and hands me a leather necklace with a pale green pearl charm. She hands Vivica a bluish one, Jessica gets an amber, Dani an ivory one, and Ronnie a pale pink.
“Pretty,” Dani remarks. “Function?”
Aunt Mimi’s jewelry sells out quickly at her boutique.
“Wear those, but don’t draw attention to them.” She eyes Ronnie. “You’ve got too much cleavage so stick yours in your pocket. Don’t lose it. Make sure it stays on your body all night. Danica? Your ankle maybe. Someone choose their wrist.”
“What are-” I begin to ask.
“I cultured the pearls myself with some protection elements as well as a blocking agent for mindreading. I got a vision a few months back, not very clear but to do with this moon tonight, so made and brought them with me to be sure. If they’re not needed, no harm. If they are, we’re covered.”
“Do you have any concerns as of today?” Vivi asks. “Because I don’t. I still don’t like what they did to her back then, but everything today felt very genuine. My senses haven’t been pinging.”
“Mine have, but I can’t describe what I’m getting,” Jessie says. “Something stirring from beyond…” She shakes her head. “It’s blurry, though. I’m not sure what it is that’s reaching for us, but it’s from another realm. I don’t know if it’s Aunt Lyrica. If it’s our mom. I just don’t know yet.”
“Keep listening, Jessica,” Aunt Mimi tells her, “And contingencies, girls. Always.”
“I haven’t planned for any,” I say. “Shit.”
And it’s not like me.
“You’ve been kinda busy, cut yourself some slack,” Vivi says as Aunt Mimi gives me a look that tells me she has.
And this is why she is the elder of our coven and why we need her. I can smell the rose, sage, and chamomile on the leather, all of which help block mind-reading. I put it on and tuck it into the tank top I’m wearing under my dress.
As I turn the ignition, Aunt Mimi clears her throat and says, “Girls, as Lyrica always said, whether you’re in your favorite dream or the middle of a nightmare, alone or in a crowd, always be mindful of potential pitfalls and exits. And… work out a plan for how to use that exit should you need it. Remember this for when you don’t have me to do it for you.”
***
I park by the water tower beside what must be Greyson’s car as he was going to drive Aviva and Lucinda here.
Riley is with most of the other alphas on the council nearby. All of them, as far as I know other than Jase, who is guarding Greyson’s mate Stacy.
The moon is high and the ring around it is bright. Greyson scans the surroundings and I’m guessing he’s taking in sights, sounds, and scents. I’m not picking up sounds as much as energy. It’s quiet. No frogs or crickets. The energy here right now is abundant. His eyes bounce from mine to the back of Lucinda’s head, then back to mine. If I’m reading his expression correctly, he doesn’t trust her.
Hopefully he’s just being protective. Nobody has spent enough time with him yet to know what his strengths are beyond the fact he can be persuasive. I wish he’d gotten time with Aunt Lyrica who would know.
“This walk becomes too much for you, Aunt Mimi, you tell me, and I’ll carry you,” he says.
She smiles at him. It’s one of her rare wide smiles and I don’t know if he knows how rare or what a gift it is, but his gaze softens, and he holds out his arm for her to hang onto. I see her hand him something. He eyes what’s in his palm and sticks it into his pocket. A protection pearl charm for him, too, maybe? I’m not sure.
Aunt Mimi is small and of course she’s getting on in years now, but she’s never seemed frail to me. Maybe it’s how slow she walks or how she looks extra-small being led by Greyson who is muscled and over six feet tall; I’m not sure. But, the notion of her being gone like Aunt Lyrica suddenly terrifies me and I want to do everything I can to give her as much quality time as possible.
