Thrall of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 4) by Bella Klaus (elon musk reading list .txt) 📕

Widening her blue eyes, she said in an innocent voice, “Is that cold enough, dear?”

Hades' snickering laugh made my skin tighten with irritation, and the anger that had been simmering in my veins boiled. The woman wasn’t even pretending to be nice anymore. Perhaps Kresnik had already told her about his plans to extract my magic with her needle. Perhaps that meant that she didn’t expect me to survive the procedure.

Still holding the expression, I inclined my head and said through clenched teeth, “It’s perfect. Thank you.”

I had to wrap my hand in the sleeve of my cloak to provide a buffer from the extreme cold, but I took the jug into Aurora’s room and set it down on the table. I’d read enough articles in Psychology Today to recognize Healer Calla’s tactics as passive-aggressive, but this might work to our advantage.

Back in the cupboard by the door, I rifled through its contents, finding a bottle of food-grade aloe vera and a jar of papaver honey I hadn’t noticed the first time I’d searched. Istabelle had taught me herbal medicine as part of my apprenticeship, and some of that had included the production of teas and tinctures using items found in nature.

I lowered myself to my knees and searched the bottom shelf, which contained glass jars of dried herbs, and found some that Istabelle had said could reduce fevers, such as white willow bark, which humans used to create aspirin; lemon balm; Echinacea; and elderflower.

After placing them into the warm water Healer Calla had left out for Aurora, I pulled out a small mixing bowl for the aloe vera and honey to create a sweet paste.

“What are you doing?” Aurora said, sounding pained.

“Making a cordial,” I replied. “The aloe vera will cool you from the inside out, and the honey will act as a painkiller.” I dashed into the cupboard, found a tub of activated charcoal, and poured half its contents into the mixture. “This will soak up any impurities in your system.”

I poured half the herbal tea into Healer Calla’s ice water and stirred, adding the honey and aloe mix for sweetness. Afterward, I shifted Aurora a bit and balanced the jug and straw atop a pile of books, so Aurora could drink while I worked on her back.

As soon as she swallowed a mouthful, a long sigh escaped her nostrils. “That’s wonderful.”

I uncovered the bowl of salve I’d made on my last visit and rubbed the cooling gel on her back, making her gasp with relief. “One more thing.”

“What are you doing now?” Hades hissed.

I crossed the room, rifled through the cupboard, and pulled out the gauze and a sack of Dharma salt. “Now that the wound has crusted over, I can be more aggressive in drawing out the heat.”

After covering the whip marks in gauze and more of the aloe vera salve, I poured half the contents of the sack onto Aurora’s back and took a few steps toward the door.

A sizzle filled the air and steam rose off the salt, glowing yellow in the light of the candles. Aurora panted and moaned, but I wasn’t sure if it was out of pain or relief.

“You’ve overdone it,” Hades said.

“I hope not,” I murmured under my breath. “Her body has already created a natural crust over the molten flesh. That drink is cooling her insides and chasing the heat to her back, and the salt is just drawing it out. Think of it as water evaporating when you throw damp potatoes into boiling oil.”

“I have no idea of what you’re talking about,” he muttered.

Steam filled the room, and dampened my skin, reminding me of the steam room in the basement of Valentine’s Notting Hill villa. Aurora’s breathing deepened, and my stomach plummeted. What if I was suffocating her?

As soon as I opened the door to let out the vapor, Healer Calla jogged inside, her cheeks flushed. “Did you use magic?”

I raised my palms. “I don’t have an ounce of power. Only the contents of your shelves.”

She stared into the steam, her lips frozen in a smile. “Congratulations. Sister Aurora will be up and ready to serve Our Lord within the next few hours. Perhaps this time, she might complete her mission with success.”

A band of alarm wrapped around my chest. Aurora told me that the next time she received the flame whip, the fire would consume her body. The smoke cleared, leaving Aurora lying on her front, having nearly finished the jug of sweet herbal tea.

Healer Calla flipped her pigtails over her shoulders and bustled out of the room.

My throat thickened, and I swallowed over and over, wondering what the hell I’d done. By healing her wounds, had I condemned Aurora to another potential punishment that would lead to her death?

Chapter Twenty

I leaned against the doorframe, glowering after the disappearing Healer Calla, wishing I could tackle her to the ground. Every fiber of my being knew the wretched woman was hurrying to find Kresnik, so he could put Aurora to work.

“Go now,” Hades roared into my ear.

My heart flip-flopped, and I hurried across the infirmary reception. Hades guided me to the door at the far right of the room, which he said contained the old woman’s private quarters. I pushed down on the handle, hoping she hadn’t warded it, and exhaled a sigh of relief when it yielded under my fingers.

The door swung open, letting out the scent of lavender. I stepped into a room that looked more like an office than a bedroom, with a counter that took up its entire left side above which was a wall scrawled with all manner of ancient symbols. Hundreds of images hung among the symbols, some Polaroids, others computer printouts, and others pen-and-ink drawings. Each of them depicted babies.

Bassinets lay on top of the counter, making a shudder run down my spine. I tried not to think that I might have once lain in one of