Page 28 of Halfblood Deceived

Aella huffed. “What’s gotten into me? What is that supposed to mean?”

Claudia’s throat bobbed. “You openly defied Micah, Eli, and Father Israel. That’s not wise. Not right.”

“And it’s right for them to hurt me, is it?” Aella demanded. Rage bubbled inside her, almost reaching a boiling point again.

Claudia’s brow furrowed. She shook her head. “Of course not. It’s not right. But Aella, what you did was wrong, too.”

“And why did it feel so right?” Aella mused. Admitting it aloud felt liberating.

Claudia’s eyes widened. “You don’t mean that.”

“But I do,” Aella told her. “I am tired of the double standards. How can defending myself be a sin?”

Claudia sighed, standing and crouching next to Aella, taking her hand. “I know it doesn’t seem fair, but we have our duties, our place. If you didn’t provoke them, if you were humble as you once were—”

Aella ripped her hand from Claudia’s grip, eyes burning, and God, how could she still have tears to shed?

“I’ve done nothing more than exist to ‘provoke’ Eli,” Aella ground out. “He’s no different from the demons he hunts.”

Claudia gasped and stood. “You can’t mean that—”

“And so is Micah,” Aella continued, voice tight. “He’s a monster, and I’m done pretending otherwise. I am done with everything, including you.” Claudia flinched back. Aella wiped her cheeks roughly and sniffed. “If you were truly my friend, you would offer support, or at least comfort, not blame me for being beaten for merely existing.”

Claudia gritted her teeth and leveled a disappointed look at Aella. “I am your friend. I want you to be safe. That’s why I am advising you to come to your senses and ask for forgiveness before it’s too late.”

Aella couldn’t believe her ears. Claudia’s betrayal was like a knife to her chest. “Get out. Get out of my sight.”

Claudia’s lip trembled, but she lifted her chin imperiously and headed for the door. “Servimus lucem. We serve the light, Aella, not ourselves. Remember that.”

Aella glared at her.

Claudia left, closing the door behind her.

Aella stood, her breathing speeding up, the desire to break something too much to control. She grabbed the first thing she could get a hold of and tossed it at the wall.

As the book landed on the floor with a dull thunk, she realized she’d thrown the bible.

A hysterical sound left her throat.

She was definitely going to Hell for that.

But could Hell be any worse than her gilded prison?

Maybe yes, maybe not.

She might find out soon enough.

* * *

Aella gingerly crouched in the corner of the cold storage room, sharpening her ears.

The shadows in the dark space, cast by the old furniture, seemed eerier than ever. Like monsters ready to devour her or massive males cornering her.

“Rather pitiful-looking for a vampire, no?” came Eli’s voice.

Aella gritted her teeth. Revulsion and rage clashed violently in her gut.

Casting her turmoil aside, she focused back on the conversation.

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