Red

Chapter 1

No Love Like Mine

It wasn't her screams that froze the blood in my veins and made me watch on in absolute horror. It was the sinister grin that twisted across his face. It cast a shadowed gleam to his teeth where he salivated with pleasure.

Their bedroom door opened, and I hesitated to say something--anything. Every heartbeat grew faster, louder, as I waited. My lips quivered and I swallowed hard against the fear.

He towered over her as she stumbled to the floor. She frantically clawed out, searching at her sides for something to save her, unwilling to let him out of her sight. It was futile.

Before I could speak, my mother pleaded, "Stop it! Lyric's right there!" Her voice wrought with desperation as she pointed at me from her spot on the floor. My father's face turned to me.

A flicker of light caught on his blade as he let it swing by his side. Blood dripped from his hand onto its sharp edge. It slithered down, cutting across it before hitting the floor with the even drip of a leaking water faucet. It was the same blood that pooled at her knees. Her blood. He was teasing her with her own imminent death, letting the fear build in her eyes. She would be his next victim. They both knew it to be true.

The look in his eyes as he stared back at me was of primal sadism.

After all she had been through to escape this mad man's efforts, she would die.

Or at least that's how the typical horror movie tends to end. Give you hope, then take it away. Always making it seem as if the Final Girl made it out by the skin of her teeth but revealing in some small way that she never would.

Because bad guys always win, I thought to myself, sighing. A void of unholy memories pulled me into myself. It took everything I had to shake off my mind's attempt to mirror my past with the movie as I vacantly watched the credits roll across the television screen. A weight settled onto my chest. It emptied my lungs of air until it was finally too much, and I inhaled sharply.

Stop. Stop thinking about it, I chastised myself. Just breathe.

Besides, I'd never had a psychopath chase me while he killed off all my friends. I was just raised by one.

"Is something wrong, Ging?" Ethan's warm brown eyes darkened with the shade of his tensing brows.

"It's nothing," I lied. "I'm just tired," I emphasized with a stretch of my legs, "and I need to get ready for tonight. Maeve's gonna be here any second to pick me up for that show." My forced smile didn't waver. He would never know about the demons I kept hidden in my closet. Even if I'd have to keep the secret forever. I couldn't stand it if he pitied me.

We had been interlacing our fingers, our arms reaching across the gap between the couch and the recliner. A restrained embrace we held throughout the whole movie, no matter how uncomfortable, and now it was over. The prying eyes of my mother had left us alone for what would only be minutes as she went to pick up dinner. My eyes traced the bridge of our outstretched arms. They followed the pattern of my pale skin and freckles to the contrasting russet of his, travelling up until our eyes met. Where my pale brown eyes were the color of honey, his brown held the warmth of fire. They ignited the heat in my veins. He raked stubborn strands of black hair away from his face. They fell over his eyes anyway. But that wasn't why his eyes darkened now. The corner of his mouth twitched upward. The smell of desire mixing into his already intoxicating scent of jasmine sent my toes curling. I kept his hand bound to my own as I moved with swiftness to climb into his lap, bashfully fluttering my eyes. A heat burned in my face that only grew as I pressed my body close to his. It burned bright with inexperience and longing.

Ethan exhaled heavily, his breath catching before he swallowed hard and bit his lower lip. A gentle hand cupped my face, keeping me at a distance as he caressed my cheek with his thumb. His eyes searched my face with tensed brows that softened with a coy smile as he shook his head, "Ugh, I hate that Maeve gets you every Saturday night. Saturdays should belong to me. In fact, every day should belong to me." He freed his hand of my grip and grabbed hold of my thighs, pulling me into his lap further so that my legs straddled either side of him. A low growl caught in his voice. "I love you," he whispered into my ear as he buried his face into my neck. The heat from his breath tickling me down to my very core, causing me to shudder.

My pulse beat wild and loud, drowning out the sound of a small gasp that escaped me as he buried a kiss into my hair before tenderly kissing my neck. My skin tingled in anticipation of each caressing touch. His mouth traced along the curve of my jaw until finally reaching its destination where he placed a gentle, lingering kiss on my lips. The sound of his heartbeat drumming in rhythmic harmony with my own drowned out the rest of the world around me. My long red hair fell forward, draping over us like a curtain. It's promised shield giving me courage. I parted my lips and invited him to do the same, flicking my tongue against him. His nostrils flared, inhaling deeply before hungrily accepting. The kiss became a frenzy of lashing tongues that desperately explored each other's depths. I arched my back, digging my hips down to grind against him. The thin shorts I wore offered little barrier between his jeans and what they tightened against. My body screamed for the hardness I found there. A growl vibrated from Ethan's lips in unison with a moan that parted mine.

More. Give me more. Drown me in this desire. Devour. I want to devour him. I moaned a curse, my eyes rolling back as all my tethers of sanity snapped. I was only a flame, catching fire to all in my wake as the heat building in me ignited. The burning ache rippled from my toes to my teeth, begging me to sink them into flesh.

Ethan's hands rushed over me, his thumb dragging across the skin of my stomach where my shirt had risen, before slipping under the loose material there. They followed the curve of my waist, creeping their way up the bare skin of my back.

"No," I choked on the word, pulling his hands down before they could get too close. He was too close. Too close to knowing. Too close to seeing the scars that adorned my back. I cursed at myself. "We have to stop," the words came forced. I gasped unsteadily for air, begging my mind to clear. "My mom's gonna be home any second," it was true, but it was also an excuse. There wasn't anything I wanted more from Ethan. I wanted it--I really wanted it--but that didn't mean I was ready for it. Although my body would beg to differ. It might as well have been shouting. It fought to remind me that patience wasn't my strongest virtue. In fact, it would argue that it was a completely unnecessary virtue at that. Then again, I was also reminded that there were things I didn't want Ethan to know about yet, or ever. Like scars. Literally and figuratively. Lying didn't seem like an option, unless by omission, but I couldn't just tell him about my past. So the clothes stayed on. My virtue intact. I wasn't ready for more than fully clothed, albeit creative, kissing. I managed a seductive smile and said coolly, "Gotta save something special for prom night."

I could tell him I was in a horrible accident . . . He doesn't need to know the truth, I considered, biting my lip to stifle the screaming inside of me.

"We don't have to do anything until you want to," he assured me, "but prom sounds good," he added, his lips tightening into a smile that didn't touch his eyes. He kissed me lightly on the cheek, lifting me with little effort to set me back on the couch before returning to the recliner. He stared down at his hands as he rubbed a thumb into the opposite palm.

The weight on my chest returned, crushing the air from my lungs. "We better sit at different ends of the house before my mom gets back," I took a deep breath in, staving off the anxiety threatening to bubble up, "I don't want her thinking I actually like you or anything," I teased, exhaling a breathy laugh.

A smile crept sideways across Ethan's lips as he playfully rolled his eyes. "Sometimes I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or serious," he lamented, a hand draped across his forehead.

I shrugged, tapping my chin with a debating look, and laughed. I knew he was joking but it wasn't the first time I had been accused of being unreadable. After all, my most visible scar drew an inch long line that made it impossible to express my left eyebrow. If I wasn't smiling, I would have looked upset. It was a tiresome mask to wear.

"Hey, I know Maeve doesn't want you falling for a boring human like me. Maybe it's time you please your bestie and find a new suitor," he suggested, folding his arms over his chest.

It was a mistake to tell him about Maeve's pet name for him. They had a hard time getting along as it was. I often felt like there was a secret war between my best friend and my boyfriend and I was tasked at keeping it at bay, but I wasn't about to choose sides.

I whined, pouting my lower lip, "But no one suits me like you." He only rolled his eyes at me, so I added, "And no one calls it a suitor anymore. It's time you joined the twenty-first century, boyfriend."

"Would you prefer I call you lover?" He offered with a devilish grin.

I scrunched my nose in disapproval. "You know what? I think suitor is growing on me . . . my boring little human."

We fell into a fit of laughter and the unease I had been feeling melted away.

Our playful teasing was interrupted when my ears pricked at the noise of an engine stuttering off, "I think I hear my mom's car in the driveway."

Normally, my mother would've never left the house knowing Ethan and I would be alone. She had only left briefly tonight to pick up a pizza. She'd taken off like a bat outta hell after threatening us that she would be gone for mere minutes. Though, living in a small, secluded town like Soundless Cove meant that all options were either a few minutes or over an hour away.

"Maybe I should go sit in your bedroom, do you think that'll be far enough away from you?" Ethan smirked.

"Hey!" I leaned over the space between us and punched him in the arm with all my strength.

He recoiled, massaging his arm in false injury, "Ouch! You might have left a bruise this time, tiger."

"Well, don't even joke about that unless you want me to get locked away in a tower. Surrounded by giant thorny bushes and a dragon," I crossed my arms, childishly sticking out my tongue.

"I could be your knight in shining armor," he offered thoughtfully.

Before I could say anything back, my mother burst through the door in an overly obvious attempt to catch us in a compromising position. Instead, finding us sitting apart from each other. She nodded approvingly.

"I've got pizza and soda, so get in the kitchen and eat up," she ordered as demanding as her soft voice would allow.

The heated kissing had left me hungrier than pizza could satiate. Like a starved animal, I obeyed. I immediately began stuffing my face while Ethan described the ending of our movie and all of its twists and turns to my mother. I watched her face contort and her body squirm. Uncomfortable with all the same scenes as I had been for all the same reasons.

"Ah, crap!" I exclaimed, checking the time, "Maeve's gonna be here any second and I haven't even changed." I ran upstairs while Ethan continued to entertain my mother with a parody of one of the cheesier death scenes.

I swiftly threw on a simple black sundress and a pair of black boots, nodding my head in approval at my reflection in the mirror. Maeve had suggested I dress as rockabilly as possible for the show. Seeing as I had no idea what that meant, I put on whatever seemed the most versatile. The nights had gotten warm enough that I wouldn't need a sweater, but the humidity promised to turn my curly hair frizzy. I whipped it into a high ponytail. Although even that would be at risk with the sweaty heat typical for a rock show.

I took one last glance in the mirror. The scar on my eyebrow really wasn't so horrible. I could easily hide it with a light foundation. It was the way it pulled my eyebrow down to appear tense with sorrow that bothered me. Or maybe that was just my face.

A honk came from the driveway, and I jumped with surprise. If I had been barefoot or running on the track at school, my grace would've been evident. As I was not, I stumbled and tripped with the weight of my boots, catching my foot on the third from last step and launching myself forward.

Ethan appeared at the bottom of the stairs, just in time to catch me. "You sound like a herd of elephants stampeding," he teased, cradling me in his arms. "I have no idea how you manage to be a track star with your inability to walk like a normal human being. You look nice though," he offered, twirling me to arm's length to fully examine my outfit. "Should I be jealous?"

"Jealous of who? Maeve? You should definitely be jealous. They get me all alone, for hours on end," I punctuated the last words with a couple sharp pokes to Ethan's chest.

Ethan twirled me back into his arms with a disgruntled sigh, "It's just not fair." He dipped me back and pressed his lips to mine in a delicate kiss.

"Ahem," my mother forcefully cleared her throat behind us.

Ethan released me and I stood frozen and blushing.

"Alright, I'm going to bed," she announced. "Say goodnight, Ethan."

"Goodnight, Ethan," he mimicked while bending into a deep and ridiculous formal bow.

"Funny." A smirk fought at her lips.

I walked Ethan to the door and hugged him with as little contact as I could manage while my mother watched over my shoulder. "See you later."

"Yep, later," he winked.

I widened my eyes at him threateningly, hoping she hadn't caught the gesture, and continued to wave goodbye.

I spun around to face her, attempting to read her face for any suspicions. Constant worry and stress had aged her beyond her years. The long, straight hair that had once been a similar vibrant red to mine, was now streaked heavily with grays and whites. Wrinkles and scarring made the many freckles she once had fade away. Her blue eyes were now a dull version of themselves hidden behind a fog. The radiant person who I resembled so much in her youth was now a worn old woman at too early an age. I never understood how someone so healthy could look so beaten down simply by surviving my father.

The only look on her face was a tired one as she hugged me. "Be careful tonight, Lyric," she warned. "Don't accept any rides from strangers and stay close to Maeve. Pee holding hands if you have to," she smiled warily and pecked my forehead with a kiss before ascending the stairs to her bedroom.

Why my mother trusted Maeve more than Ethan was baffling. Sure, he was a guy and so far in my life those were the least trustful of the human race. On the other hand, he had never coerced me into getting my navel pierced or gotten me to sneak into a movie theater without paying. No, that was all Maeve.

Maeve laid their strength into the car horn. My best friend had about as much patience as I did. At least I knew how to show some restraint.

I hurried out to the driveway and flung myself into the passenger seat. "You know my neighbors hate you, right?"

They beamed a smile of beautiful white teeth, fluttering innocent big eyes, "Moi? I don't think so. Everybody loves me."

It was true, everybody did love Maeve. Although it seemed like their personality was too big for the small town we lived in. Where I was constantly only wearing a mask of effortless popularity, they were truly wild and charismatic. Their ability to flirt could've won Olympic gold. It came easily enough for someone with such magical green eyes that seemed to glitter with the escalation of mischief they produced in their wake. They certainly knew they were attractive, even if not in the conventional way. Their body held the voluptuous curves of a Greek goddess. Although they would claim the remnants of their former self made them still look too much like that of a god. The alpha and the omega, they'd said. I am everything, they'd added with a wink. And my throat had tightened because not even I was immune to their charm.

"I saw that boring human leave your house," Maeve baited.

"That boring human has a name and it's Ethan," I spoke through gritted teeth.

Maeve met my eyes with a glare, "Tell me why it is you couldn't date Eric instead."

My head swam in a rage filled cloud of thoughts. "I could never think of Eric as more than a friend. Especially not now that I have Ethan. I love him. I'll never love anyone else," I answered bluntly. The words echoed into the silence that followed. I shook my head and looked out the window at the dark shadow of the forest passing us by as we drove.

For whatever reason, Maeve had never warmed up to Ethan. It was possible they just didn't consider him on the same social level. Then again no one was really on Maeve's level. Maeve liked to say it was because he was just another boring human. Which was probably the most adorable way to describe Ethan ever, but Maeve said it like a curse. Like maybe boring wasn't the word they were looking for.

I let out a deep sigh and rolled my eyes. It was the same predictable, frequent, and hopeless argument we always had. "I don't understand how Eric doesn't fall under your categorization of boring humans. Besides, Eric is just a friend--a nerdy friend that I used to play videogames with. Ethan, on the other hand, is quite possibly the love of my life. I don't even know if Eric and I are still friends. Ever since that super awkward Halloween party," I bit my lip, blushing at the embarrassing memory from six months ago. It was the same night I'd met Ethan. Eric and I had barely spoken since. "Anyway, if I dated Eric, I'd have to put up with his evil twin sister. And there's nothing more boring human than those two together." They were real killjoys when they were in the same room. Apart not so much, but together it was as if they were reminding each other not to have fun. "So, hang it up, Maeve," I gritted my teeth more forcefully.

Maeve's narrowed eyes glared at the road ahead, completely ignoring my irritation. Several long minutes passed without them saying another word until we were well out of town. "I just don't understand why it's not working," Maeve muttered.

"What?" I asked, dryly.

Maeve slammed their fist on the steering wheel, startling me. "Every time I tell you to date Eric, you brush it off. I can get you to do most anything else except ditch that human! Your mother is a whimpering coward. She worries about everything and everyone except me because I made her forget who she is. But you," Maeve scoffed, "you refuse to listen all because of this human! Shit is going to be hitting the fan, Lyric. Soon. If I can't get you to listen, they'll do worse. So why won't you listen?" They pleaded, groaning in frustration.

I sat speechless.

Narrowing their eyes at me, Maeve hissed, "Uita! Forget what I just said."

There was a sharp ringing in my ears, and I suddenly realized we'd been driving in complete silence. "We don't have to sit here in awkward silence. We could listen to the radio," I suggested, reaching for the dial.

"Ethan just irks me is all." Maeve's puppy-dog eyes were big and pitiful as they placed a hand over mine.

It was a sincere gesture but irritating, nonetheless. As my best friend, they were concerned about my relatively new boyfriend, but Eric wasn't exactly innocent. "How could he irk you and Eric not? You know, I've known Eric forever and never even met his parents. They could be dead for all I know. He could've killed them," I added teasingly.

Maeve just giggled at that. "Killed them? Ging, his dad works nights and sleeps all day, and his mom lives in like Florida or something. Just because they're divorced doesn't mean they don't exist - or that they're dead," Maeve scoffed.

"Sure, whatever. We'll see who's right in the end," I flashed a toothy grin and winked. "So, where's this show?" I asked, changing the subject.

Maeve burst into maniacal laughter. "Strix's," they answered mischievously.

"As in the Strix Street Nightclub? My mom's gonna be so pissed. That's like an hour and a half away," I groaned. I would've argued that it was also a twenty-one and over club, but Maeve had ways around that. "I'm gonna be in so much trouble when I get home."

"And that's why you're not going to tell her." Maeve looked into my eyes, and I felt my apprehension subside.

I scowled and crossed my arms, "This better be worth a thousand-year grounding if she finds out."

"Oh, it will be." Maeve slipped a CD into the car stereo and turned the volume up. "They're this super-hot Irish punk band from Seattle," their voice barely audible over the music. It started to vibrate the seats in the little powder-blue Beetle. For being cheap and old, it handled Maeve's excessive use of volume controls and chaotic driving well.

I had to yell back over the music, "If they're Irish punk rock why did you want us to dress rockabilly?" I was starting to wonder why I ever listened to the fashion guidelines set by my best friend.

"Because rockabilly's in right now," Maeve dismissed my concerns with a wave.

I sighed and looked out the window. There was no use arguing with them.

When we reached the open highway, Maeve made little effort to regard the speed limit signs. In the pitch black of the night, it was hard to make out the trees that blurred alongside us. After an hour and a half, and the CD completing its second full playthrough, we made it to the nightclub.

Parking was hard to come by and we ended up illegally occupying space in the alley by the back door. Not that it ever mattered to Maeve if something might be illegal. Smoke, vomit, and other unmentionable smells permeated the air outside the club. Only one scent among them was palatable and I could only hope it was coming from inside so I could escape the other foul odors. Further down the alley, a man and a woman canoodled enthusiastically next to a dumpster.

How romantic, I rolled my eyes.

A sharp whistle screeched into my ear, and I jumped away from the source of the sound. Maeve smiled at the man as he looked over his completely inebriated girlfriend at us. "Fugi," Maeve's voice was sharp and commanding, a sneer followed the words.

The man's face twisted in horror, and he dropped his girlfriend, running away.

"What the hell was that all about?" I stepped toward the dumpster to check on the now abandoned woman.

"Don't," Maeve grabbed my arm, spinning me around to meet her gaze, "Just forget about that drunk couple, okay?"

I relaxed my arm. "Yeah, okay," I nodded in agreement.

As we came to the door, Maeve used that seductive charm to dumbfound the bouncer. We passed through without ever bothering to show him the fake IDs we'd procured. I shook my head at their coercive abilities.

Inside, a small crowd milled about the venue as the first band began setting up. Music poured from the speakers to fill the space while they got ready to play. To Maeve's delight, a small table was set up to sell merch that not many had lined up at yet. They twirled around in their black swing dress, deftly maneuvering in high heeled pumps. Their long black hair was coiffed artfully high with curls that fell in perfect tendrils down the back. A big red flower pinned the tendrils away from their face, it matched the crimson lipstick they wore. Maeve could have passed for a pin-up girl, easily. They liked to stand out and knew just how, a heartbreaker for sure.

"I'm going to get a button from the swag counter. Gotta have something to represent my boys," Maeve said with a wink, thumping their full hips against mine and throwing me off balance as they danced away with the grace of a confident predator.

It was easy to get distracted by whatever shenanigans Maeve was up to. I sat down at the bar to grab a soda and watched them flirt with the guy at the merch table. Poor kid. I rolled my eyes and scanned the crowd. Most of the girls had dressed to impress. The guys in the crowd seemed half as thrilled about the band as they were about the scantily clad girls. None of them were as eye-catching as Maeve though. I couldn't help but smile thinking of all the ways Maeve would make this night interesting.

At two stories tall, the club would've been barren without its patrons. A few lounge areas on the balcony and the bar on the first floor were all that cluttered the venue. The walls in the club were all painted black metal. It gave a thrown together industrial feel as if the owner of the club could abandon it at any second without care. It could only be eerie during the day when the club wasn't in use. Thick red drapes with delicate gold etching hung from every window on the second floor. They cascaded all the way down to just barely graze against the floors on the first. Gold tassels tucked them away from the windows, letting in the moonlight. The air inside was substantially better than the air in the alleyway. It was warm, full of a sweet and bitter aroma that lingered on my tongue as I inhaled. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in, letting my taste buds decipher the scent. It tickled my throat causing me to salivate. Whatever it was, it smelled absolutely delicious.

"I didn't take you for someone who would like this kind of music."

I blinked.

In front of me stood none other than Eric's evil twin sister.