Page 38 of Change

That’s why her name seemed familiar. Jiayi had mentioned her once. She said Catalina was too softhearted to get involved in her and Xavier’s questionable research.

Which was odd, because the nurse didn’t seem to be timid. Although to be fair, Jiayi and Xavier’s affinity for human-skin bound books written in blood ink might break some highly regarded medical ethics.

But she—along with Ada—marked the last of the Tongjun quintet. I’d already known Du Yun for some months, as a secondary therapist under Dr. Kohler, then there was Xavier and Jiayi.

A knock at the door pulled me out of my thoughts, and Dr. Kohler stepped into the room.

“I came as soon as I heard,” she stated, closing the door behind her. She barely seemed to notice Julian or Titus. “What’s going on? It must be important for you not to want to wait for your appointment.”

“I-I…” My words faded as my throat closed, and I touched my fingers together and stared at a discolored portion of the tile floor. This was it—it didn’t even matter that Julian and Titus were in the room. What I felt was beyond embarrassment. I didn’t even want to be here, but…

Like I’d admitted to Titus once, I was afraid that there might be something seriously wrong with me.

It wouldn’t be so bad, so long as there was no exam. She’d be able to tell, right?

“It really hurts,” I admitted, my voice a near-whisper.

Papers rustled through the otherwise silent room before Dr. Kohler finally asked, “What hurts? Yourhusbandonly says you fainted.”

Stupid Bryce. If he planned on getting all up in my business and dragging me here, he could have been more specific. The man was a scientist for goodness’s sake, a little human biology shouldn’t gross him out.

But then again, hadn’t my revenge hinged on him being disgusted? He was a botanist. They didn’t do people.

That settled it: I was going to purchase a box of tampons and put them on his pillow. If he planned on being bothersome about this, he should follow through.

But my throat closed, and my thoughts halted. This time, I pulled myself out of my tangent, and forced out a low breath, trying to focus.

She was watching me in calm expectation now, and I had no idea where to begin.

“Mother,” Julian’s cool voice washed over me, smoothing at the edges of my nerves. “When did you and Bianca last discuss reproductive health?”

My face heated as Dr. Kohler’s brows drew together and her lips curled downwards. She watched Julian in acute disapproval. “Reproductive health?” She’d never sounded sterner. “Pleasetell me you aren’t—”

“Notthat,” Julian interrupted, squeezing my hand. “The script you signed—it’s for this. She’s in extreme pain and has never come to you about it.”

“This happens every month?” Dr. Kohler asked, tone cautious. “Since when?”

“Not every month…” I corrected, turning my attention to my knees again.

“How often?” Dr. Kohler questioned, and I could feel her eyes on me, but I still couldn’t look up.

“Just when I get my period,” I answered.

There was a brief moment of silence before Dr. Kohler spoke once more, even more slowly than before. “And how often isthat, Bianca?” From her tone of voice, I knew she expected some kind of answer. “You told me you were regular.”

It was too late to back out now.

“Whenever.” I shrugged. I’d been trying to pretend the cramping didn’t exist, to refocus my attention on the situation at hand, but now that we’d started discussing it, the pain was becoming harder to ignore. “A few days every couple of months.”

“What kind of pain are you having?” I could hear her placing the clipboard on the counter. “Where is it?” she asked, and I flinched as the sound of a glove snapping sounded loud through the room.

Before either boy could cut in, I pulled my hands from the necromancer and twisted them in my lap, as I blurted out a short, “It’ll be fine,” in response to Dr. Kohler’s questions. Maybe this was a terrible plan after all. “Just forget about it. I’ll just take some more of the white pills Damen gave me. They work much better than Tylenol.”

“You can’t just pop a bunch of Tylenols!” Julian protested. “Wait, is that what you’ve been doing in the past? How much did you usually take?”

I pressed my lips together.

“I have an idea,” Dr. Kohler said softly, she’d moved closer to my knees. “I might not be as adept as Julian, but would you like me to use my abilities? I can get a general idea of where the pain is and intensity.”