Page 7 of Ruining Red
Gasps flood the room as the men take a step back and the few women present sneer.I don’t understand the reaction, but it cuts me to my core.Even my mother looks upon me with such hatred, such disgust.Frantic, I try to pull it back up, thinking if I can just hide this abomination…
But no.The matriarch grips the cloak by the shoulders and rips it from my body.My hands flail out in a poor attempt to grab it, to pull it back around me so I’m covered.Before I can so much as move, she tosses it into the roaring fire.
Falling to my knees, I watch, helpless as the one thing that’s kept me safe goes up into flames.Tears flow down my cheeks in earnest as I look about, my gaze drifting over the people gathering around.Not one of them helps me.
I clasp my fingers together, shuffling back until I slide against the wall.Nowhere to go.I’m trapped.Next to me, a door leading to the outside stands just out of reach.I long to crawl over to it, to flee back out into the elements, but something about the sympathetic smile crossing my grandmother’s face gives me pause.
“Poor, little Teagan.So frightened.So confused.”
I slump down against the wall, relaxing under the soothing cadence of her voice.A misunderstanding.That’s all this is.I smile up at her, basking in the warmth I feel drifting off of her, but soon, it turns frigid as she frowns down at me.
“Harlot,” she spits out.“Demon from the pits of the abyss.”
“What?I?—”
“Do not deny it,” my mother chimes in, her finger pointed at my face.It shakes, but whether it’s from fear or fury, I cannot tell.“Do you know how many years I prayed to the gods for a daughter?How many sacrifices I made, how many potions I choked down?Only to have them laugh at me the moment you came into the world.”
My heart stops for a moment as the acidity of her words coats me.“But?—”
“I cannot even bear to look at you.”
“Easy, Mother,” the matriarch croons, comforting her.My heart splits as she murmurs nonsensical words, smoothing her hands over her face and hair.“Sometimes the gods give us trials.She was yours.You passed the test, and soon, you’ll be rewarded.”The matriarch’s hand drifts down to my mother’s stomach.“I’m sure of it.”
“Oh.”My mother beams, sliding to her knees in supplication.“Oh thank you.Thank the gods.”
I sit there, stunned as my mother pays no attention to the daughter she already has.Pain lances through my body, twisting my insides until I hunch over, a cry slipping free from the confines of my lips.More of that maddening liquid gathers between my thighs, reminding me that I’m injured and at their mercy.
“Please,” I whisper, my vision blurring as tears cloud my eyes.
I blink them away, but the scene in front of me doesn’t change.Even now, the men step forward, their eyes darkening like demons.Terror rips at my insides as they continue to press on, only stopping when the matriarch steps forward, waving about a chalice filled with smoke.
“Do not allow her to tempt you.Do not succumb to the filth of her body.It will surely lead you down into the fiery pits.”
“What—” My words are cut off by another flash of pain, so searing I double over, clutching at my insides.
“You see,” the matriarch continues, “the demons that live inside her yearn to be free.They call to you, men of the village.They beg for you to lie with her, to take them into your bodies.”
Turning to me, she shakes her head, a slight hint of sympathy flashing in her eyes.But I cannot be sure.It’s gone so quickly that I haven’t enough time to fully comprehend her shifting moods.
She hunches in front of me, her fingers swiping over my fevered brow.They’re cool, like ice against my fevered skin.With a soft moan, I lean into them, taking what little relief I can.
“You see.The demons demand relief and will take it from anyone willing to give it.”Pulling back, she smacks me hard against the face.
A loud ringing floods my ears as everything dips in front of me.Darkness encroaches, seducing me with soft whispers of relief.I long to give in, to slip into that murky, liminal space that hovers before me.
However, before I can fully succumb, a smattering of roars and growls fill the room.Blinking up, I watch in horror as the men, including my family, come closer, their teeth bared as if they’re animals.
Unbidden, my mind conjures up the wolf’s howl, setting my limbs to shaking.It was an omen after all.Pulling back, the matriarch once more ushers the men back, keeping them at bay with whatever foul scent is pouring out around her.
“You see, little vixen, I knew this day would come.The moment I helped deliver you and saw the shade of your eyes, the paleness of your hair, I knew you were a demon spawn sent to lead these men astray.”
She pauses for a moment before coming back to me.“You see, every generation or so, there’s one like you.Another.But I couldn’t be sure.Not until your eighteenth birthday.And so, I had your mother cover you, keep you from the rest of the village, like an infection that had a chance of spreading.I was right.The way your body responds to these men proves who and what you are.”
Her voice lowers as she showers me with a glare.“You are an omega, and as such, you must be sacrificed for the good of this village.”
Panic beats at my chest as I process her words.“You can’t?—”
“Oh, we will.But do not fret.Think of it as your way of ensuring another generation of peace and harmony for this land.Your death will usher in an era of tranquility for your fellow friends and family.”
