Irredeemably Me

"Who is Camila?"

"What was that that she did to you?" Camila followed the pair out into the looming light of the moon.

"She allowed our hearts to beat for a moment," Lucy explained, knowing her cousin would be far less forthcoming about any kind of information relating to their species. "See, when we died and became the creatures you see before you, our veins thinned to almost nothing. By allowing our hearts to pump, it circulated the the blood we've consumed through our bodies, stretching every vein we have within in us."

"I thought the blood you drink flowed through you anyways?" The not-quite human girl frowned.

"We drink the blood, yes, but our body absorbs it. We do not digest it...we simply allow it to keep our skin fresh and living." Lucy saw Lauren's eyes briefly glance at Camila with a mild look of annoyance shining within them. "If we do not drink blood, we shall not die, but we will look the monsters you so often see in the myths and films."

Silence settled upon the trio, each consumed with thoughts that they did not know co-related with one another's. Lucy had never seen her cousin so concentrated before, at least, not for a very long time.

Lauren lived for the thrill that the night allowed her to embrace. She longed to hunt and indulged in the fear she aroused from her victims. She was most...alive when she killed.

But here she was, plagued by the thoughts of what Normani had said to Camila. Plagued by the unknown and how uncertain she was about her own immortality.

"So what am I?" Camila spoke softly, her tone dejected. "Because she confirmed I'm not human."

"You know nothing of your parents? Are you certain?" Lucy pulled Camila to a stop, forcing her mind not to focus on the girl's alluring scent for too long.

"The only parents I've ever known are Alejandro and Sinuhe," Camila shrugged. "They were my last foster parents and they stuck, but I don't know of any blood relatives." She ran a hand through her hair before looking to Lauren. "I could be some kind of alien," A humourless smile played on her lips. "Why are you still here? You've made it pretty obvious you don't care whether I live or die."

"You're an insurance policy," The green-eyed vampire smirked. "Having you as an ally seems smarter than having you as an enemy. I am almost certain that with her dying breath Normani released the information of your existence through any telepathic link she could muster in that moment. So," Lauren approached the mystery girl, tilting her chin up so their eyes could meet. "If I save your life once...you will be indebted to me and I will call upon that debt when what you are is revealed." Her smile was cold and venomous, it raised every hair on Camila's body. "Do not mistaken my tolerance for compassion, I assure you, Camila, I am incapable of the emotions you hold so dear to you."

Stepping back, Lauren smirked, raising a brow as if challenging Camila to argue with her.

"You save my life once," Camila scoffed. "I owe you nothing, you still owe me another life. So," The brunette bravely put her hand to Lauren's chest, a smirk of her own settling in place. "It looks like we're stuck with each other for a while."

Lucy watched in amazement as her cousin remained perfectly still, her eyes not betraying her with any emotion but her jaw stiff after being bettered by Camila.

It was only when the three arrived back at the hotel that the weight of what Normani's words meant pressed down on Camila's heart. It was only then that Lauren's words rang through her ears again and she understood what her life had turned into.

No longer was she simply a waitress or bartender, no, now she was a creature sought after for the mystery that flowed through her blood. She was something new that could be feared...or controlled.