Page 169 of Halfblood Deceived

It took her cloudy mind a moment to click and identify him.

Aella sighed. “What the Hell do you want?”

The black-haired witch who had insulted her and Diana chuckled darkly, all but prancing toward her, exuding cockiness. “Look who’s gotten mouthy in such a short time.”

Aella frowned. “How would you know?”

He raked his eyes from Aella’s head to her black sneakers, mouth curled in a half-leering, half-disgusted gesture that reminded her of Micah.

“I’ve heard many rumors about you,” he drawled. “Meek, prone to babbling, self-righteous, pathetic.” He snapped his fingers. “Oh, and a race-traitor slut.”

Aella flinched.

He came closer to her. “Oh yes, rumors spread fast in this town, gargoyle. Everyone knows you’re fucking a vampire royal. Zeylan? Something like that? I don’t care.”

Everyone thought she was sleeping with Zeydan? Was that true, or was the witch lying?

Aella gritted her teeth. “You seem awfully interested for someone who doesn’t care. And why are you still here?”

He laughed, low and nasty. “In case you haven’t noticed, whore, you are all alone.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, you are human and quite smaller than me,” Aella remarked, surprised at herself. There was no fear, but adrenaline rushing through her veins.

He scoffed, aiming for disdain, but his nostrils flared, and his eyes darkened with anger. “Magic is not about size.”

With that, he cast a crimson spell that hit Aella in the chest, slamming her against the wall and winding her. Tendrils of stinging magic wrapped around her neck and lifted her off her feet.

“All mouth and no action, eh?” the witch mocked, getting closer to Aella. “Maybe that mouth of yours is what the vampire duke likes, yes? Maybe I’ll put a control curse on you and make you give me a little demonstration. Would you like that?”

Dread coiled in Aella’s gut, she scratched at the wall, struggling for enough air to muster a scream.

Fight! Demanded an angry voice in her head. A rebellious side of her that hated meekness and wanted to strike back. Fight him!

The witch laughed again, rummaging in his coat pocket for a moment, extracting a metallic syringe with a needle.

Aella let out a soundless cry.

Fight him, dammit!

Heat built in her solar plexus. Uncomfortable heat that demanded an out.

So she let it explode.

An arcing blast of blue energy left her with such violent force that it took the witch off his feet and smashed him against the other side of the alley.

The magic holding Aella immediately vanished.

She fell and landed on her feet, her knees bent just like Aylana had taught her, and breathed in, coughing.

The witch was no better. He was wheezing and panting, struggling to get to his feet. His syringe was on the ground, bent in half.

“What was in that thing?” Aella demanded.

The man sprang to his feet and fired a blast of red magic at Aella.

She dodged, and it collided against the wall, cracking several bricks.

He growled and charged at her with a magic-infused dagger.

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