Irredeemably Me

"Camila is gone, Lucia."

The sun streamed through a crack in the curtains, a small sliver of light in an otherwise blackened room and Camila watched it. Her eyes lingered on the ray of gold, her mind exploring how violent something so beautiful could be to the girl currently sleeping on the bed. The beauty of the sun had always kept Camila sane, the very knowledge that it's warmth could comfort her skin had been something she held onto so tightly she thought herself mad.

But it was the opposite for Lauren, for Lauren the sun meant death.

And Camila had been thinking about that a lot. She'd been thinking about Lauren's mortality a lot.

In that moment, Camila pictured herself drawing the curtains wide open, letting the fire of the sun take Lauren's life. She could picture the vampire squirming on the bed, her skin searing, her flesh turning to ash and her bones being the only evidence that she'd ever existed.

Camila could only imagine how many other creatures would thank her for doing it. She could see the tears of a mother who'd lost her daughter by Lauren, she could see the children of the fallen wolves smile as their parents were avenged. Camila could see the influence of Lauren's evil through the glee her death would bring those whom she'd encountered over the years.

And Camila felt as if even she would feel some kind of relief. She wouldn't feel that nagging guilt follow her everywhere. The guilt she held onto because she was seeing change in a creature that took pride in her kills. Camila felt guilty because she kissed Lauren, because she found comfort in Lauren...because she cared about Lauren. She let the vampire hold her despite the cruelty Camila knew Lauren committed and would still keep committing.

So yes, the idea of killing the vampire...it brought a sense of relief to the brunette.

But with that idea...also came this wave of sorrow Camila couldn't bare. Because Lauren would caress her face with a gentleness she'd never known. Lauren would cook for her, she would offer her smiles that she would never allow others to see.

With Camila...Lauren was...human. She was kind...she cared. And that was who Camila could not kill. That was who she saw when she looked to the vampire now. No longer did glowing red eyes linger in her mind but instead...she saw the warmth of a thousand galaxies shining in those endless green eyes.

And she knew to everyone else who knew the vampire...she looked every bit the predator she boasted to be...but to Camila, Lauren was so much more than she thought herself to be.

Camila leaned forward and swiped the hair out of the vampire's face, still taken aback by how peaceful the older girl could look as she slept.

"Part of me fucking hates that you chose me to be so...open with." Camila spoke softly. "Because I really wanted to keep hating you, Lauren. So it kind of sucks how hard you're making me fight to stop from falling in love with you."

And when her phone rang, she both hated and loved the sound.

She forced herself attention away from the vampire and pulled her phone from her pocket, looking to the screen and feeling her body turn to ice as she took in the caller ID. It wasn't possible, there was no way she could be receiving that call.

They'd taken damn near every precaution they could to prevent her from ever receiving that phone call.

She answered the call and put the phone to her ear, feeling her hands shake and waiting for the familiar voice to reach her ears but instead...she was met with a stranger.

"Clever hiding spot, you know that?" The voice on the other end spoke. "I mean, I wouldn't ever step foot into that town, the wolves would probably devour me before I could really catch a glimpse of it and the witches...that place is like a nightmare for them."