Bloodlust - Helen Harper Page 0,15

at the bottom. Interestingly, there was a remarkably green tinge to his skin.

“You don’t have to do this, you know,” I said, suddenly feeling guilty for dragging him along.

“No, you’re right, it’s a good idea. Just,” he leaned over so his voice wouldn’t carry, “what exactly will your freaky Draco Wyr blood do to a patient?”

I shrugged. “It’s meant to have healing properties. I don’t know how far that carries. I don’t know if donating blood this way will help anyone. But it’s got to be worth a try. It healed a fucking vampire,” I reminded him. “Why can’t it heal some sick kid?”

He looked pensive. “It’s addictive, though, isn’t it? It made that dude in Cornwall, the one you didn’t like, go all nutzoid.”

“You mean Anton. And, yes, it did. Iabartu also said something similar about it. But Aubrey had no interest in drinking it once he’d turned human so it might just affect Otherworlders.”

“And if it doesn’t?”

“The addiction is temporary. And whoever ends up receiving my blood isn’t going to know where it came from. Being cured of cancer is surely worth a couple of days of strange cravings.” I gave the mage a serious look. “I’ve thought this through, Alex. And I’ve got a book that the Fae translated for me that gives lots of information about the Draco Wyr. It definitely said there are no adverse effects on humans if they come into contact with my blood. I’m going to take getting hooked as an adverse effect. I really don’t think it’ll be a problem.”

He yelped slightly, drawing looks from the other would-be blood donors in the room. He lowered his voice again, but his tone remained urgent. “A book about the Draco Wyr? Why didn’t you tell me before? What else does it say?”

I opened my mouth to speak again, but was interrupted as the figure of a smiling nurse appeared in front of us. “All done?”

I smiled back and handed over my forms. Alex did the same, but elbowed me sharply in the ribs as he did so, as if to remind me that this conversation was most definitely not over. I gave him a demure look of innocence and then we both followed the nurse into a larger room, which had various reclining beds set up. I continued forward, sitting down as the nurse bade me to do, then looked back at Alex. He had stopped at the entrance and was staring aghast at the set up. He still looked green. When he clocked me watching him, he swallowed, his Adam’s apple violently bobbing up and down, and then came and sat on the bed next to me.

“I hate you for this,” he murmured sickly to me.

“Is it your first time?” asked the nurse.

The pair of us nodded in agreement.

“Okay then,” she said kindly, taking pains not to notice his trepidation. “I’m just going to prick the tip of your finger to test your haemoglobin levels, and then, if everything is okay, we’ll get started.”

She moved over to Alex first, using a small lancet. He withdrew his breath sharply, then the nurse moved over to a small table.

“All good,” she called out cheerily, a moment later.

“Excellent,” responded Alex, sounding as if it was anything but.

The nurse headed in my direction with a fresh lancet. I barely felt the prick, observing with interest as she collected the tiny sample. She returned to her table, and remained there, frowning slightly. Uh oh.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, suddenly feeling slightly nervous about what exactly my bloodfire might be doing.

“Oh no, not really,” she flicked me a quick glance filled with reassurance. “It’s just that your levels are slightly on the low side. Nothing to worry about, of course, you might just need some more iron in your diet that’s all. It’s completely normal for a woman of your age.”

Disappointed, I watched her carefully for her reaction. “Does that mean I can’t give blood?”

“No, I think you’ll be alright. It’s not so low as to prevent you from donating. We might send your blood in for a couple of extra tests though.” She smiled at me. “Just in case.”

“Um, what kind of tests?”

“Anaemia, sickle cell deficiency, that kind of thing. It’s really nothing to worry about. If you’re concerned in any way though, we can easily delay your actual donation for a few weeks.”

I shook my head vigorously. I didn’t really like the idea of my blood undergoing a battery of tests, but I figured it would