Awakened

that matters is that you’re here and you’re okay.” Her mama pried Stevie Rae off her so she could look her over while she wiped her eyes. “You are okay, aren’t you, baby?”
    “I’m fine, Mama.”
    Mama Johnson reached out and cupped Stevie Rae’s chin, forcing her daughter to meet her gaze. She shook her head and in her firm, familiar, mom voice said, “It’s not nice to lie to your mama.”
    Stevie Rae didn’t know what to say. She stared at her mom as the dam of secrets and lies and longing began to break apart inside her.
    Mama Johnson took her daughter’s hands, one in each of hers, and looked into her eyes. “I’m here. I love you. Tell me, baby,” she said softly.
    “It’s bad,” Stevie Rae said. “Real bad.”
    Her mama’s voice was filled with love and warmth. “Baby, there ain’t nothin’ as bad as you bein’ dead.”
    That was what decided Stevie Rae—her mama’s unconditional love. She took a deep breath, and when she let it out she blurted, “I’ve Imprinted with a monster, Mama. A creature who’s half human and half bird. He’s done bad things. Really bad things. He’s even killed people.”
    Mama Johnson’s expression didn’t change, but her grip on Stevie Rae’s hands tightened. “Is this creature here? In Tulsa?”
    Stevie Rae nodded. “He’s hidin’, though. No one at the House of Night knows about him and me.”
    “Not even Zoey?”
    “No, ’specially not Zoey. She’d really freak. Heck, Mama, anyone who knew would freak. I know I’m gonna get found out. It has to happen, and I don’t know what to do. It’s so awful. Everyone’ll hate me. No one will understand.”
    “Not everyone will hate you, baby. I don’t hate you.”
    Stevie Rae sighed and then smiled. “But you’re my mama. It’s your job to love me.”
    “It’s a friend’s job to love you, too, if they’re real friends.” Mama Johnson paused and then asked slowly, “Baby, does this creature have somethin’ on you? I mean, I don’t know much about vampyre ways, but everyone knows Imprinting with a vampyre is a serious thing. Did he somehow make you do it with him? If that’s what happened we can go to the school. They’ll have to understand and they must have some way to help you get rid of him.”
    “No, Mama. I Imprinted with Rephaim because he saved my life.”
    “He brought you back from the dead?”
    Stevie Rae shook her head. “No, I’m not sure how I un-died, but it has somethin’ to do with Neferet.”
    “Then I should thank her, baby. Maybe I’ll—”
    “No, Mama! You have to stay away from the school and away from Neferet. Whatever she did wasn’t because she’s good. She pretends to be, but she’s the opposite.”
    “And this creature you call Rephaim?”
    “He’s been on the side of Darkness for a long time. His daddy is seriously bad news and has messed with his head.”
    “But he saved your life?” Mama Johnson asked.
    “Twice, Mama, and he’d do it again. I know he would.”
    “Baby, think hard before you answer me two questions.”
    “Okay, Mama.”
    “First, do you see good in him?”
    “Yes,” Stevie Rae said without hesitation. “I really do.”
    “Second, would he hurt you? Are you safe with him?”
    “Mama, he faced a monster more terrible than I can describe to save me, and when he did that, the monster turned on him and hurt him. Real bad. He did that so I wouldn’t be hurt. I honestly think he’d die before he hurt me.”
    “Then, here’s the truth from my heart to yours: I can’t begin to understand how he could be a mixture of a man and a bird, but I’m settin’ that craziness aside ’cause he saved you and you’re bound to him. What that means, sweetheart, is when the time comes for him to choose between the bad things in his past and a different future with you, if he’s strong enough he will choose you.”
    “But my friends won’t accept him, and worse than that, the vampyres will try to kill him.”
    “Baby, if your Rephaim’s done the bad things you say he has, and I do believe you, then he’s got some consequences to pay. That’s for him to do, not you. What you need to remember is this: the only person’s actions you can control are you own. You do what’s right, baby. You’ve always been good at that. Protect your own. Stand up for what you believe in. That’s it—that’s all you can do. And if this Rephaim stands beside you, you may be surprised at what happens.”
    Stevie Rae could feel her