Better Off Red

by Rebekah Weatherspoon

  older than thirty. Had he been human, he would have been very

  handsome, but it was hard to see past the horns and the teeth and the

  power in his eyes. His smile was warm and paternal, but I found it

  hard to smile back. Camila’s suffering was ripping at my heart.

  She was beside him on a large golden couch. The whole room

  was decorated in dark wood and creams and gold, but I couldn’t take

  my eyes off Camila. She wouldn’t look at me. She was too ashamed.

  Clear blue tears ran down her face in a steady stream. Dalhem’s arm

  was around her shoulders. As she sobbed, he tightened his grip to

  comfort her, but she only sobbed harder.

  “You are already a quick study. Using your powers with such

  precision and not even an hour old.” My eyes fluttered back to his

  face.“Master.” I dipped my head to him deeply.

  “My Rodrick. I thank you. You may go.”

  My head whipped to the side. Rodrick was standing in the

  corner looking back at Dalhem. I was too overwhelmed by Dalhem’s

  power and Camila’s tears to sense another vampire in the room.

  “I thank you, Master, for your grace and forgiveness and your

  acceptance of my word,” he said. Dalhem dipped his head with

  subtle appreciation in reply.

  Then Rodrick took three long strides in my direction and

  hugged me. He was trying to tell me something, give me some sort

  of warning, but he couldn’t. There was no way to keep any sort

  of communication from Dalhem and we both knew it. Instead, my

  arms went around Rodrick’s waist and I squeezed back, my only

  way to thank him for at least trying to be on my side. Whatever side

  that was. And then he vanished.

  • 303 •

  reBekah WeatherspOOn

  I took a deep breath and turned back to face Dalhem.

  “I’m afraid I have some unfortunate news. I’m going to have

  to punish our darling Camila, and I believe you know what that

  punishment will be.”

  “Please don’t hurt her,” I begged him as a sharp pain shot

  through my chest. I could hear Natasha’s words pounding in my

  ears. Remove the head or the heart. The sun will do the rest.

  “Oh, my Ginger.” Dalhem frowned at me sternly. “I may be

  pure demon, hell-spawned, but I think you misunderstand my love

  for your mate. She is the only piece that remains of my twin. Though

  her execution is called for and just, I would no sooner harm her than

  I would harm my own daughter. But that does not erase the mistakes

  she has made. I overlooked the taste she gave you for human blood

  all those months ago. I should have corrected her then. But now she

  has changed you against your wishes and she has taken the life of

  a feeder that did not belong to her. If our Rodrick had not forgiven

  her immediately, she would have to answer to more than just me.”

  “But I begged her to change me. And Greg—”

  “You begged her to help you. Let us not be confused. And yes,

  my Gregory harmed you and a feeder belonging to our Natasha. I

  would not have allowed him to live, but our Natasha and our Rodrick

  and even your precious Samantha, deserved their vengeance, and

  our Camila took that away from them because her only thought was

  of you.”

  “And she saved me. I don’t understand. What’s the difference

  between her changing me and her changing Cleo? We were both

  dying. She saved us both.” I waited for his anger to rise as I kept up

  my arguing, but all I felt was his compassion.

  “My Ginger, she saved our Cleo with the aid of her sister-

  queens. She trusted them, as she vowed that she would, to bring our

  Cleo across safely. Your sister-queens could have healed you and

  left you human, but our Camila let her emotions for you get in the

  way. She let her emotions overrule what she truly knew to be just.”

  He went on, speaking firmly but softly, all for my sake. I wasn’t

  going to change his mind, but he was willing to explain.

  • 304 •

  Better Off red

  “Though you have yet to commit the ritual, I only allowed our

  Camila to bind herself to you as her na’suul under the terms that

  she would be willing to let you go if you ever wished to leave her.

  Humans may be a very treasured gift to us, but they don’t view time

  and bonds as we do. They don’t treasure their own lives as we do.

  You may still love her very much, I sense that you do, but there is

  a large difference between fabricating stories to your family about

  your mysterious girlfriend and them believing you are dead.”

  Camila tensed, but stayed quiet as the tears dripped off her

  chin. I wanted to go to her. Trying to move was useless, though.

  Dalhem would not allow it, not until he was done. My feet were

  frozen to the floor.

  “You will never see the sun again, my Ginger. And I hope you

  had no desire to have children of your own, because now that choice

  is gone. And there is also the small matter of your family. You may

  be content with our Camila now, but you have seen the behavior of

  your sister-queen, Cleo. If in a day or in a week or twenty years,

  when you see that your family is forever removed from you, you

  may hold our Camila responsible for taking your life.

  “Our Cleo comes from an extremely loving flock, but they

  never would have accepted her as a demon. Her only choice was

  death.” He stopped then, and looked over at Camila. Gently, he

  tucked a longer, spiky lock of her hair behind her ear. He was testing

  me, not my love for her, but my patience with him. I swallowed

  twice, waiting.

  “You never tried to share the truth with your family, did you,

  my Ginger?”

  What the fu—

  “No. Of course I didn’t. I thought it was against the law. And

  so did she.”

  He sighed wistfully. “If only she thought to ask. Again, her only

  thought was of her Ginger, and sometimes those sorts of thoughts

  work against you.”

  He had to be kidding, but I knew he wasn’t.

  “You’re saying I could have told them?”

  • 305 •

  reBekah WeatherspOOn

  “I am saying, my Ginger, now I am afraid it is too late, and one

  day you may feel the sting of that regret. And when you ask that I

  cast Camila from your sight, the pain of losing you as a result of her

  own selfishness will be far greater than any punishment I could hand

  down. Our Camila will wish for death, and I will not grant it.”

  “Please. I love her and I still want her, with or without my

  family,” I said.

  “And what will we do about them now, my Ginger? Linda and

  her Fredo and Todd. You are probably wondering.”

  “I am,” I replied. He was talking in circles. I had no idea what

  he was getting at.

  “I will handle them.”

  “How?” I gulped.

  “That is not your concern, my Ginger. Our Camila has forced

  my hand. But you will know the outcome. In the meantime, you will

  not contact them. When it is done, they will reach out to you or they

  will bury your memory. Either w
ay, I will not allow our Camila to

  make those sorts of decisions anymore.”

  “Her punishment,” I breathed. “What would her punishment

  involve? Or is this all?”

  “Many things and one only. She may no longer act as the Queen

  of my Alpha nest. She has made some grievous mistakes. She may

  be old to you, but she is still very young, and now I have seen, too

  weak and too immature to handle such a responsibility.”

  Then I felt my jaw clench. I had a deep respect for our master,

  literally running through my veins, but Camila was my maker. No

  one had the right to insult her. Still, I kept my mouth shut. A slight

  smile returned to Dalhem’s lips as he moved through my mind.

  “A perfect example. You love her, but you know not to speak

  hastily. You are very young, but you know when to exercise restraint.

  Yet you know she was wrong. I can feel it, my Ginger. She went

  against your wishes.” He took a deep breath, completely for show,

  and squared his shoulders. He still held Camila close. “You will be

  queen.”

  “But I’m younger than she is.”

  He grew very serious. I’d challenged him just enough for one

  night.

  • 306 •

  Better Off red

  “The decision is mine.”

  “I—Sorry. If I become queen, what happens to Camila?”

  “That is entirely up to you,” he replied.

  “So if I become queen, she can come home with me?”

  “Yes, if that is what you wish. Her rank remains among the

  demon class. I would not have her weakened against others, but she

  will have no authority over the sister-queens within the confines of

  the house.”

  “What about her feeders?”

  “Again, that is your decision, but I am trusting you with my

  daughter.”

  “I have to feed from Benny?” For some reason I didn’t like this

  idea. “No. I am trusting you to care for her. If you prefer that she

  continue on with our Camila, then so be it.”

  “If I don’t want to be queen, then who will do it? What happens

  to Camila and me?” I asked. I didn’t want to leave any nook

  unchecked. I didn’t want Dalhem to catch me in some loophole

  when it came to my future with her.

  “I don’t believe you will refuse me, but if you do, Natasha

  will reclaim Samantha. I will then set you up in another nest. You

  are independent, but you do not truly desire to be alone. You may

  remain near our Camila if you chose, but she needs to remain near

  me. Here. I will only permit her to live amongst my young feeders

  in the Alpha nest if you are with her. Her mate seems to be the only

  one to control her.

  “Cleo is strong, but her recent behavior displeases me. I would

  pass the throne to Kina. She has exhibited excellent control of her

  power and she respects me well. I treasure her as I treasure all of

  my queens, but my Benita trusts you. Her mother and I are never

  far. Though, in an interesting twist, I find that I feel as all human

  fathers do. This is her first time away from home. I worry for her and

  I would like her to have you near. The other sister-queens cannot

  provide her mother and me with that sort of comfort.”

  “I’ll do it. And I’ll take Camila with me,” I blurted.

  • 307 •

  reBekah WeatherspOOn

  “Excellent.” He smiled wider than before, flashing his tiger-

  sized fangs.

  At that very instant, he took my breath, ripped it right from my

  lungs. He held Camila in the same motionless space, the two of us

  frozen as he took a piece of her mind and her soul and switched it

  with a piece of mine.

  I exhaled sharply, feeling a new sense of power, different

  connections to not only all the girls and the sister-queens, but to

  Dalhem himself. The lives of forty-two humans and vampires were

  now my responsibility; Camila was my responsibility. If I failed

  them in any way, I had to answer to our master. The burden was

  immense, and it was mine to deal with. I was Queen.

  “You grow accustomed to it,” he said. “We are done here. In

  thirty-six hours, you will receive a call and you will know the fate

  of your former life. Do not reach out to them, my Ginger. Mistakes

  can, at times, be mended. Certain harms can be healed, but nothing

  can be undone.”

  “Yes, Master.” I didn’t know what else I could say.

  “She asked for a life-bond with you, my Ginger. Did you know

  what that means?”

  “No, Master.”

  “Our Camila asked me for your hand-na’suul, but she asked

  to die once your human form passed on. I would not allow it. Now

  you must excuse me. I’m going to have a few more words with our

  Camila.” Gently, he stroked her soft black spikes away from her

  forehead. “Maybe you’d like to get better acquainted with your true

  maker.”

  At that moment, an enormous man, taller than Rodrick,

  appeared behind the couch. He nodded once to Dalhem before he

  nodded to me, skipping the bowing and the praising. He was dressed

  rather plainly in a white T-shirt, a black leather jacket, and jeans. His

  long red hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail. His thick red and

  blond beard was trimmed close to his face. I swallowed, gazing at

  him and reminding myself that this man was not my father.

  “Seamus serves my sister, Caana. It was hard to locate him,

  but we did,” Dalhem said, then he nodded toward the door behind

  • 308 •

  Better Off red

  me. “There’s another sitting room right out there. Please take your

  time.”We stepped out of the room, but instead of making himself

  comfortable in a chair, Seamus stood across the small space, looking

  at me with his arms folded across his chest.

  “Your name’s Ginger?” His Scottish accent was so thick I could

  barely understand him, but the deep, rhythmic tempo of his voice

  was oddly soothing. I could have listened to him talk for hours. He

  seemed to be in a little bit of hurry, though. The night was moving so

  fast, especially now, the moment when I wanted him to stay.

  “Yes. Ginger Carmichael,” I answered.

  He walked over to me and gazed at my face. He served another

  master, not Dalhem, and I sensed I was still important, but my power

  and rank meant nothing to him. I was just another young demon. I

  looked up, craning my neck to return his studying stare.

  “Let me get a look atcha?” He gently grabbed my chin and tilted

  my head this way and that. “You’ve got the look of your mother.”

  Yes, I did, in a way. I had my mother’s nose and the delicate

  shape of her face, but I had this man’s lips and emerald eyes, even

  his cheeks. And, of course, his thick red hair and his freckles.

  “Are we related?” I asked outright.

  “Yes. I’m your uncle. Your father, Ian, was my brother,” he

  explained, dropping his hand from my face. “Met your mother on

  a trip. I went home to tell my da I was going to marry an American

  girl. I would have made it back to her, but I was stabbed on my way
<
br />   to the pub the night before I meant to come back to Boston. My

  queen found me and changed me.”

  He went on, not skipping a beat. “My worthless brother waited

  a year after my headstone was in the ground, then he came to

  America and found your mother. He won her and you were made. I

  tracked them down. Janet was pregnant with you and he was trying

  to beat the life out of you both.”

  It was strange to hear my mother’s name spoken out loud. It

  had been so long. But for some reason, I wasn’t shocked by my

  birth dad’s behavior. The few men my mother had brought home

  • 309 •

  reBekah WeatherspOOn

  had been abusive creeps. It was no surprise my father had been one

  too. Maybe the violent streak ran on that side of the family.

  “So you killed him?” I frowned.

  Just then Camila came through the door. I’d waited eleven years

  to hear what Seamus had to say, to even find out that he existed, but

  at that moment, Camila was all I could see. We were in each other’s

  arms before I could even blink, hugging each other tight, trying to

  breathe each other in as if our desperate embrace would keep the

  other from vanishing ever again.

  I kissed her hard, and when I pulled away, I wiped her tears.

  She was back to herself, but still on edge.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yes, baby. I’m fine.” She glanced over at Seamus. “I’m sorry.

  I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

  Seamus looked at us both for a second before he answered me,

  acting as if my tearful reunion with my girlfriend had never taken

  place. “No matter. I was just telling Ginger what became of her father.

  Yeah, I killed him. Right in front of your mother. She didn’t know

  what I was at first, but after I healed her, she made me promise I

  would never come near her again. I kept my word. I know I may

  sound a bit callous, but I loved her. Ian had no right to put his hands

  on her.” A muscle twitched in his cheek and I knew then he was

  telling the truth about his feeling for her. He still loved her.

  Camila’s arm came around my waist. I gripped her hand against

  my stomach, more than willing to take her support. Whichever one

  of us was queen, I still needed her. She knew what I was about to say.

  “She killed herself,” I told him.

  “I’ve heard.” He turned his back for a second and stroked his

  beard. When he turned back around, all emotion was wiped from