“When I give myself up and meet my end…Amelia is pregnant. I’ll never see them again, and I won’t be there to protect her.”

Torija walked over to Byron. “You will be, because I’m going to go.”

“What? No. This is not going to be an opportunity for you to rejoin your friends.”

“They are not my friends, they want Daisy dead, and I can’t allow that to happen. I will take Sera’s place. I can make up for some of the hurt I caused, break the blood bond so that Daisy can have a normal life, and I will be able to face those I’ve hurt along the way.”

Byron shook her head in disbelief. “Victorija Dred wouldn’t do that.”

“No, she wouldn’t do that, but Torija would. Let me do this. It’s important for me to do this. Besides, I am the senior in the family here.”

Byron considered her offer silently.

“Let me do this, Byron, please?” It took a lot for Torija to beg her former enemy, but her whole world had been turned upside down and shaken about.

“If you do this and Sera is freed, then you will die a Debrek, not a Dred.”

“Thank you.” This felt like how her life as Victorija Dred was meant to end.

“You give me your word?” Byron asked.

“Listen, Anka needs a born vampire, and I’m it. You need to look after the descendants and make sure Daisy is okay, and Sera. It should be me—it was meant to be me. I’m going to continue to get sick—Sybil says I’m like the Celtic Green Man. I need to walk into death for forgiveness. Let me do one good thing in my life. Remember I’m your great-aunt.”

“That you are. Daisy believes in you. You’ve made quite the impression on her.”

Torija smiled. “She sees me through romantic eyes, and too much good in me. I tried to come here alone, so that you would take my head and my heart, but she saw me trying to leave, and I couldn’t say no to her.”

“I never thought I’d see the day,” Byron said. “It wasn’t too long ago you were referring to humans as portable lunch boxes.”

Torija looked down in shame. “I know what I did and said. It haunts me. That’s why it’s so important I break this bond. Daisy has this unshakable belief in me that I’ll keep following the light. But I think you understand better than most what it’s like to have darkness inside you. Given time, it might grow, and I couldn’t bear to hurt Daisy. She deserves so much more in life.”