Mira's Diary by Marissa Moss Read Free Book Online Page A

the three of them forming a tight group. They were too far away for me to tell much, except that Mom was talking and the man was leaning toward her, listening intently, while the lilac woman looked horrified by whatever Mom was saying.

    Scarier was the woman I saw behind them. It was the beautiful creepy woman, the witch from Notre Dame. She looked ready to claw out Mom’s eyes. Now I had no choice but to go to Mom, no matter what the rules said.
    â€œI’m sorry, Claude,” I said. “I’ll pose for you later.” I gathered up my skirts, trying to stride quickly toward Mom. When she saw me, she shook her head, her eyes warning me off.
    That didn’t stop me. “Excuse me, madame,” I said. “You should be careful. There are pickpockets all around, and I recognize a particularly nasty one behind you.”
    Mom turned pale and nodded. Glancing back at the dark-haired woman, she hurried away with the couple. I lunged toward the woman, not sure if I should trip her or try to throw her to the ground like a football tackle. I just knew I had to stop her.
    I snapped my parasol shut, thinking I could use it as a weapon somehow. What I really wanted was some holy water. I should have taken some from the font at the front of Notre Dame. I imagined tossing the water on the beautiful nasty woman and watching her melt into the ground like the Wicked Witch of the West.
    â€œThere you are!” she barked, grabbing my wrist with that iron grip of hers. “You naughty girl! I didn’t say you could have today off.”
    â€œI’m not your maid!” I tried to wrench free but I swear her hands were like the talons of an eagle.
    â€œYou’re coming home where you belong!” she seethed. Her eyes drilled into me. I didn’t know someone so beautiful could be so ugly.
    â€œGet away, you crazy old bag!” I whacked her with the parasol, hitting as hard as I could.
    Claude rushed up. Even if he thought I was crazy for beating on an elegant lady, I had to give him credit. He took my side right away. He pulled the woman off me, trying to be a gentleman at the same time.
    â€œMadame has made a mistake, it seems. This young lady is not your servant, and you will leave her in peace.” It wasn’t a question.
    The dark woman glared. She must have been used to men fawning over her, so why wasn’t Claude? Then she smiled and her face was serenely beautiful again. “Ah, a mistake. Must be a trick of the light. No harm done, I’m sure.”
    â€œDon’t try it again,” I said. “Ever!”
    The woman sniffed and turned away, melting into the crowd. At least I’d kept her away from Mom.
    â€œMira, she made a simple mistake. Did you have to hit her?”
    â€œShe didn’t give me much choice.” I showed him my wrist where her claw-hand had left deep red marks.
    He looked startled, then sad. He lifted my wrist to his face and kissed all along the welts.
    A kiss! At last! And even if it wasn’t the kind of kiss I’d imagined, I could feel it all the way to my toes.
    I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to break the magic spell.
    Degas did that. “You two!” he called out. “Why are you dawdling? The light is changing. The air is turning chill. It is time to go home to a nice warm fire.”

I had seen Mom again, which was good, but I’d also seen the beautiful scary woman, which was bad. Worst of all, I still didn’t know what the job was that I was supposed to do and why Mom was here in the first place. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, but I wandered through the streets, searching for some kind of clue, keeping my eyes open like Mom had said. Since Mr. Walrus had left the note for her at Notre Dame, that seemed a good place to try.
    By the time I got to the park behind Notre Dame, I was exhausted. I sank down onto a bench by the fountain and looked at the statues climbing the roof of