Better Off Red (34 page)

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“Sounds pretty,” I said with light hesitation. “What does it mean?”

“It means that you would be more than my mate. Our minds and hearts would be connected. If you wanted me, I would be yours forever. In your world and in mine.”

I didn’t think. I just answered.

“Yes.”

“Red, wait. Let me explain first.”

“No. You don’t have to. My answer is yes.” Even though part of me was just so overwhelmed that she wasn’t kicking me to the curb, I loved Camila more than I ever imagined I could. There was no other response worth considering.

“Just listen, please. This is a serious bond, but that is why I want to speak to Dalhem. I want you to have an out clause.”

“What do you mean?” I frowned.

“If you change your mind, three years from now, ten years from now, I want him to break our bond so you can go on with your life—”

“Don’t say that,” I pleaded, my voice sounding pathetically sad. “Ginger, you’re just so young.”

“I know, but I’m not going to change my mind. I want to be with you. Till I’m old and gray and you have to spoon-feed me peas.” I nudged her leg.

“Oh, I’m putting you in a home, but I’d love to keep fucking you until then, knowing you’re mine,” she said before the stern look came back to her beautiful face. “I am serious, though, Red. I do not want anyone else but you. But I have had years and years to know what I’ve been missing. You might find that you want someone else one day or that you just don’t want me. And if that happens, I’m not going to stand in your way.”

“You understand you’ve planned our marriage and our divorce before I even took my chem final,” I said playfully. “My answer is still yes. We’ll figure out the other stuff later.”

“And you still have to understand, your family can’t know what I am. It’s fine now because we’re both supposedly in school.

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But if we’re still together when you graduate, they’ll want to see me in the daytime.”

“When I graduate and when we’re still together, we’ll figure something out. We’ll say you have some weird disease and you can’t handle UV exposure. They’ll think it’s weird, but they won’t turn away someone I love.” I leaned forward and kissed her, trying to soothe her stress away. “And what about Dalhem? He’s married to a human. Maybe he can help us think of something. I mean we still have, what, three years and half years till I graduate? And then I’m supposed to go off on my own anyway. You said yourself, let’s just handle things as they come.” I took a deep breath, looking at my hands. “My dad thinks you’re the one for me.”

“He does?” Her hopeful expression broke my heart. I wanted my family to meet her now more than ever, just to see the love she was capable of.

“Yeah. And I agree with him.” I felt the waterworks bubbling over. I sniffled, holding them back. “So, yes. I want to demon-marry you.” “Okay, Red,” she said finally. “I still have to talk to Dalhem.

There’s a certain amount of formality to it. Technically, you’ll be considered a demon, but nothing else has to change. You finish school, if that’s what you want, and then afterward you remain with me.”“I like that.”

“I was going to wait until I talked to him, before we made things more official, but I did want to give you this.” I looked to see a small box in her hand. The perfect wooden cube was stained a deep brown and there were roses and vines carved into every surface. Whoever made it could teach Tiffany a thing or two about presentation.

“You don’t have to wear it. Or we can get you a different one, but I saw it—”

“On Amazon?”

“Yeah, on Amazon. I saw it and it made me think of you.”

Camila didn’t exactly know how to do it small. There was probably a hundred thousand dollars worth of lighting in her apartment alone. When she placed the box in my hand, I opened

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it expecting to find the Hope Diamond. Not my style at all, but a diamond that suited Camila’s flare for the unique and the expensive.

It took a little elbow grease to work against the small hinges. The ring inside was perfect. A large round-cut emerald sat nestled in a slanted arrangement of marquis diamonds fixed to a thick platinum band. The emerald was big, don’t get me wrong, but the ring was elegant and something I never knew I would want so badly.

“I want to wait. I don’t have to invite the whole chapter to the ceremony, do I?” I thought of all the rumors the ring would start.

“No. We can have witnesses if you like, but it’s just between me and you. Natasha and Rodrick didn’t have anyone at their na’suulaem—their wedding.”

“Then I’d rather wait till it’s done. I want to whip this bad boy out when everything is nice and demon-legal.”

“Okay, baby.” Her soft laugh was cut short by another kiss, a long and slow kiss. I found myself back in her arms, gently but passionately showing her that my answer was definitely and always yes. She pulled away eventually, laying a few more sweet pecks on my lips before she said to me. “Would you like me to hang on to it?”

“Yes. I’ll lose it somewhere.” I handed her the box back and she placed it on the coffee table. “I feel like we should celebrate or something.”

“We can, Red. Would you like to go out or would yo—”

I tried to catch Camila before she doubled forward onto the floor, but I wasn’t fast enough. I slid to the carpet beside her, leaning to see her eyes squeezed shut. And then pain came. It wasn’t Camila’s pain, but someone else’s. Someone connected to Camila and to me. I couldn’t feel it, but I could hear it. In my head, someone screaming, someone was in horrible pain.

❖

I looked through the thick glass of the hospital room. The person lying there was not recognizable as my friend. Cleo’s body was covered head to foot in thick, gauzy bandages. The tan bottoms of her small toes peeked out through the dressings. Her right arm

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was elevated, supported by a brace. The intricate web of pins and supports was keeping her arm attached to her body. Tubes and wires ran from her face and chest to various pumps and monitors around her bed. Cleo’s pain was muted now, but it was still there, a tight, constant scream. I felt like if she could have, she would have called out to Camila or me, but she couldn’t. I wanted to help her, but I couldn’t.

There had been two cars involved in the accident and a truck.

Cleo had been pinned behind her steering wheel. Debris from the initial crash had severed her right arm almost completely above the elbow. Cleo’s doctor had no idea whether she was conscious when the other car burst in flames, igniting the driver’s side of her Civic.

One driver had died at the scene and the driver of the truck when he reached the hospital. Cleo was barely holding on.

Camila wrapped her arm around my waist as she, Kina, Faeth, Omi, and Natasha got more details from Dr. Ronald Fountain, a feeder who belonged to the brother-king Pax. We stood in the center of the busy burn unit, shrouded by Faeth’s cloak. I tried to pay attention, but all I could see were Cleo’s toes. Suddenly, I wanted my dad.

“The burns cover ninety percent of her body, most of the damage being on the left side, and it remains to be seen whether she’ll regain full use of her arm—if she lives through the night,” Dr Fountain said. “But the tissue lost on her face and upper body will be a problem. She’s heavily sedated now. She can’t feel—”

“She’s screaming,” I interrupted.

Faeth whipped around in my direction. “You can sense her?”

Immediately, I felt Camila’s eyes on me.

“I didn’t want to scare you,” I said before I explained to the others. “I can’t…feel her. It’s more like I can hear her. I know I get no vote in this situation, but do something quickly. She’s in pain.”

I could tell the others had questions, but before they could ask them Tokyo appeared within the confines of the cloak with Moreland and her feeder Andrew, the brown-haired boy who had been with her that night at the restaurant.

“Why is she here?” Camila asked, her fangs flashing brightly.

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“My Queen. I apologize,” Tokyo said. “But I thought Moreland may be of some use to us. She was close by and she has feeders to spare.” Camila looked at Moreland and then Andrew. He was taking measured, deep breaths, his gaze focused on the floor.

“Andrew, look at me,” Camila said. He obeyed, his brown eyes peering at her respectfully. “Are you prepared to sever your bond with your Mistress?” she asked him.

“Yes, ma’am,” he answered quietly. I hadn’t noticed before, but his voice was deep and rough and carried much more confidence than the first time I’d seen him. “I want to help in any way I can.”

Camila seemed satisfied with that answer, although not particularly pleased with it. She turned her focus back to Moreland.

“Even though you do not deserve him, I know Andrew is precious to you. I thank you for your offering of sacrifice.”

“Thank you, my Queen. If he is no longer needed, I will wipe him completely. He will have no recollection of this night.”

Camila grunted decisively, turning things back over to Dr.

Fountain.

“What are our choices?” Natasha asked.

Camila nodded to the doctor, urging him to give it to them straight. He glanced at Cleo through the glass.

“You can say it. No one will judge,” Camila said.

“No. No,” he stuttered, realizing she’d read his mind. “My assistance will be limited in the big picture, and her journey to recovery will be long and painful. I will do everything in my power to keep this young lady breathing, but I—if I were her lying in that bed, if she is feeling right now, I’d want you to end my suffering any way you can. As quickly as you can. If you can heal her completely?

Tonight? I would do it, my Queen.”

The sister-queens let out a collective mix of groans and swears.

Camila looked from the glass to Dr. Fountain. “I’ll have to look at her, but I think the amount of blood she’ll need for us to heal her will change her.”

“Did you talk to her about the change?” Omi asked.

Camila shook her head. “I don’t think she wants it, but we didn’t talk about it at length.”

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“She…” I hesitated. I already felt like an intruder, but this was Cleo’s life and it had been my suggestion that they do something quickly. Someone had to speak up for her if that something meant Cleo would no longer be human.

“What did she say, Red?” Camila said.

“A few months ago, we were talking and she said she didn’t want to cut off ties with her family. She said she couldn’t live with the idea of her mom thinking she was dead if she really wasn’t.

And she mentioned that she had some…religious reservations about becoming a demon.”

“So do we just let her die?” Faeth said.

“No. We let her decide,” Camila said. “Ginger is right. She is in pain. I can feel it. We can’t leave her like this.”

Dr. Fountain nodded in understanding. “When you’re finished, I’ll have the morgue prepare a body and the paperwork. I won’t be far. Just call me if there’s anything I can do.”

“I will. Thank you,” Camila replied. With that, Dr. Fountain walked down the hall. He hadn’t turned the corner before Kina unsealed the door to Cleo’s room and ushered us in. I ignored the beeps of the monitors and the buzzing of the bright lights overhead.

We stood at the foot of the bed.

“Moreland, please. Cloak the room,” Camila ordered.

“Yes, my Queen.”

“What about Dalhem?” Kina asked. “He didn’t exactly sign off on this.”

“I’ll deal with him,” Camila replied.

“We’re really going to do this?” Faeth asked.

Camila nodded. “She’s mine and I won’t let her die.”

“She’s going to be so pissed,” Tokyo said.

“I know,” Camila said. “But I want this to be her choice. If death is what she wants, she can have it. Just not tonight.” She let out a deep breath, then let go of my hand. “Red, I don’t want you to see this, but I’m not going to make you leave.” She kissed me softly but quickly on my mouth.

I grabbed Camila’s hand. “Wait. Please don’t do this. Don’t change her.”

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“Red, I—”

“I know you don’t want her to die, but she doesn’t want this.

What about her family?”

Camila closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. When her gaze met mine again, I knew she’d made up her mind. “I wish I could explain it to you. She’s mine. I can’t let her suffer in pain any longer. She’ll be upset for a while, but in the end she will have wanted me to help her.” She kissed me once more, letting me know her decision was final. “You and Andrew go stand in the corner.”

Andrew gently grabbed my other hand and pulled me out of the way. Silently, I prayed Camila was right.

Camila quickly started giving orders and the sister-queens followed them without hesitation. I watched as Omi and Tokyo rummaged up a scalpel and some surgical scissors and began cutting away Cleo’s bandages. Faeth silenced the monitors and started unhooking Cleo from the wires and tubes. I wanted to look away as every inch and section of Cleo’s destroyed body was revealed. My stomach flipped, twisted at the medicated smell of her burns. The bile rose in the back of my throat, but I couldn’t look anywhere else but the bed.

The sister-queens kept cutting, splaying the bandages open around her. I swallowed a whimpering shriek when they reached her head. The left side of her upper lip and her cheek were completely gone. And so was her beautiful hair. Andrew’s arm wrapped around my shoulder, and a moment later, I realized we were supporting each other.

Camila pulled off her jacket and threw it in the chair. “Natasha and Faeth, take her neck.” As she spoke she held out her hand.

Tokyo handed her a scalpel. “Omi, her right arm. Tokyo, Kina, take her legs.” The sister-queens took their positions around the hospital bed. There was a brief moment of silent communication between the six of them and then at once, the five in their assigned positions struck, their fangs piercing Cleo’s ravaged skin.