RED

Red {9}

Katy swept her blonde hair into a messy bun. Already immaculately dressed in red jeans, white heels, and a low-cut white blouse, she looked pretty, but not beautiful. Part of her beauty was in the fact that she was always surrounded by a posse of blondes to back her up, but alone and halfway through getting dressed she was hardly anything special. Catus could barely believe that this was the evil Katy Mandon that Leia had been so afraid of.

But she matched the description Melodie had given him. Blonde hair, dark eyes, smug expression, and this was definitely the right address. So he was in the right place. Catus cracked his knuckles and pulled what he needed out of his pocket. This was it.

He was doing it for Melodie. It was quite sad that Katy and her family had affected her so deeply. He was doing it for Leia, lying in her coma. And of course, for himself.

If Katy was out of the way, then he had Leia: all for himself. So you could barely blame him for doing this, could you? He knew Leia probably wouldn't like it, even if she did hate Katy, but he had to do it. For revenge, for satisfaction ... for love. As Katy applied lipstick, he slipped behind her wardrobe. Being a vampire he was almost impossible to detect if he wasn't able to be seen. It used to drive Leia crazy. Tears stung his eyes, but he shook them away. This wasn't the time to get sentimental.

Quietly, Catus loaded the gun. Katy stepped past the makeup table.

How ironic that she was going to die the same way that she had planned for Leia to.

*

Melodie sat on the hospital bed, already sick from the chemotherapy. She pulled off the bright red wig. Though an exact copy of her real hair, it never fooled her. She still always knew that she was bald underneath. Bald and dying, she thought glumly. And if the way the doctors were treating her was anything to go by, she was hardly dying but dead. She would be lucky to survive tonight.

* 

Catus positioned the gun, pointing at the back of her blonde head. His face was contorted with hatred. He was ready to kill her - but no, not yet. He wanted the satisfaction of seeing her expression, the shock on her face, before she died.

In five minutes, she would come to the door, and she would be facing him. And then Katy Mandon would be gone. Ridden of this world. Forever.

*

Melodie could barely move. Her face was white. Her breath came in rattling gasps. She wanted to talk to Leia, ask for forgiveness, before she died. And she knew that that time was soon. 

She called the nurse.

"Leia Bingham," she wheezed. "Ward 14 ... she's in a coma ... please try and wake her up. I'm ... going ... to ... die ..."

The nurse didn't usually take requests. But there must have been some truth in what Melodie said, because she nodded and left.

All Melodie could hear were the beeps from the machine next to her, measuring her heart rate. They were getting slower and slower.

When she came in, Leia with her, Melodie could not have been happier.

"Leia ..." she whimpered, "I'm sorry ..."

And the beep from the machine depleted.

*

It was three hours later. Melodie was dead. Katy was dead. Leia was awake. 

Should Catus be sad, triumphant or happy? He did not know. But there was one thing he was happy about.

Leia was the only girl in Red left. She was his wife.