Page 246 of Halfblood Deceived

There was a lot of blood. So much of it. Where was it coming from? Why was her disease back now? She’d been fine. No, she’d been blissful just a minute ago.

“Aella?” Zeydan asked. “Can you open the door?”

Even through the hollow ringing in her ears, Aella heard the tension in Zeydan’s voice.

She coughed, spitting more blood into the sink. “N-no.”

She couldn’t move. If she did, she’d fall.

“I’m coming in, alright?” Zeydan asked.

Aella’s panic ratcheted. Being alone in a bathroom with a male had never ended well before for her.

It’s Zeydan. She reminded herself. It’s Zeydan, not him.

“Alright,” she managed.

The door unlocked, and Zeydan was inside, right behind her, before she could even blink. He wrapped an arm around her waist, jade eyes with round pupils utterly horrified. “What’s wrong? Are you in pain?”

Aella shook her head, coughing up another mouthful of blood. “It’s the anemia,” she croaked.

“Anemia?” Zeydan asked. “This has happened before?”

Aella managed a nod. “Not as b-bad.”

She coughed again. Blood splattered the sink. Her body sagged, and she would have fallen to the floor if not for Zeydan holding her steady. His body was tense against hers. Worry buzzed from him in a low undercurrent that Aella could feel even through her dizzy panic.

His nose twitched as he sniffed at the blood.

Aella’s eyes widened.

He was a vampire. And she was bleeding a lot right in front of him. There was no drunken lust easing her ingrained fears now, and for a second, she wondered if his control would snap.

But…

Zeydan’s eyes weren’t shifting, and his brow was tight with confusion and concern.

“What?” Aella asked.

He blinked, meeting her eyes in the mirror. “Your blood smells… bizarre.”

Bizarre how? She couldn’t ask aloud because more blood crawled up her throat. She spat it out and closed her eyes, begging any goddess willing to listen to help her. A few minutes went by and no more blood came, so it seemed to work.

Aella opened the faucet to wash her face with the vanilla-scented bar of soap. Her hands shook so badly that she dropped the soap.

“Let me,” Zeydan said, gently lifting her off the floor to place her on the counter.

She held onto his shoulder for support as he got a small towel wet and soapy. He cleaned her face with utter gentle dedication, wiping off the remnants of blood and her ruined makeup, too. Some warmth returned to Aella’s frozen insides. Her eyes burned. No one but Kamilla had taken care of her like this before.

She swallowed hard. “What did you mean by bizarre?”

Zeydan rinsed the bloody towel until the water was clear, but the fabric was stained. He continued cleaning her face, brow tight with worry. “I’ve smelled your blood before, and the scent was…” He hesitated but met her gaze. “Appetizing. Slightly tangy but sweet. This blood is too loaded with iron. And oxidized. As if it were old and not fresh.”

Aella frowned. “What does that mean?”

“I have no idea,” Zeydan admitted, clearly unhappy. “We should go to the hospital.”

Aella grimaced. “I don’t like hospitals.”

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