Bride To His Darkness
Chapter 31: Written Tragedy

Chapter 31: Written Tragedy

While most of the guests still stayed inside the Palace as they were convinced by the Family that Ivan had something urgent to attend to, Ivy was not fooled by the misinformation and quietly stood at the vestibule. She hid behind one of the big pillars, staring at the main door that was left slightly ajar with prying eyes.

She was tempted to move closer, but that would risk her presence being caught since there were guards stationed at both sides of the huge black double door. Pursing her lips at the disadvantage, Ivy was determined to know what was going on.

When Ivan came into sight on his white steed, a relieved smile graced her lips to see he was fine, and her tensed shoulders automatically relaxed. When her eyes subconsciously shifted to the lady in a black cloak, her smile gradually dropped, and to her unexpected bewilderment, Ivan dismounted from his white steed, but he was also carrying the unfamiliar lady who hid her face in his arms.

"Strange, who did he bring with him?" She whispered in a hushed tone, her feet itching to move closer so she could listen to the conversation that was being carried by Abdiel and Ivan. And judging from Abdiel’s serious expression, he clearly wasn’t happy.

"Care to explain where you rushed off to in the middle of a celebration that was specifically held for you?" Abdiel questioned the young Vampire strictly, his gaze fixed on the same green-eyed woman whom he remembered to be Ivan’s blood servant.

"This is not the time to explain but I shall brief out the important part." Saying this, Ivan turned around and motioned at the chained man who had twigs and sticks puncturing his skin as he remained unmoving on the ground.

"A mole." He said to Abdiel who’s brows wrinkled in dubiety. "A mole?"

"Tobias and I were informed yesterday, and those witches are starting to get on my nerves. I just needed to be ready." He clicked his tongue and met Abdiel’s perplexed gaze, "do not kill him just yet, I still have a few questions that I’d like to ask him before doing that."

"And where are you going?" Abdiel asked the Vampire Lord who was starting to walk away, heading into the Palace with the servant cradled in his arms.

"To tend to my pet." Came Ivan’s retort as he left the mole for his uncle to handle. Up to four guards already had the mole surrounded with their swords and spears pointing at him, daring him to move an inch while they waited for Abdiel’s command.

Samantha, who felt slightly relieved to be away from Abdiel’s menacing glare, wanted to dig a ground and bury herself in it. She wanted to die right here as Ivan had chosen to embarrass her even further by carrying her like this. The feeling of jumping out from his arms kept gnawing at her, and she looked up with desperate eyes to meet his gaze, but they were fixed straight ahead, hardly looking at her.

"I... I can walk... I’m fine now.... please... drop me down, I beg you."

Turning deaf ears to her constant pleas like he wasn’t the one she was talking to, Samantha anxiously buried her face in his chest when Ivan passed the vestibule where Ivy stood, barely noticing her presence, and Samantha squeezed her eyes shut when he carried her into the Hall that was filled with royal guests and important Ministers.

As if timed, a deep silence fell on the hall as all attention was fixed on Lord Ivan who carried his little lamb up the long stairs, not minding the awed, shocked, and disbelief looks on the faces of his guests, but no one appeared as shocked as his own family, especially Grandmother Abrielle whose mouth fell open, displaying her speechlessness.

Everyone had started murmuring to themselves, expressing their unhidden bewilderment, and Grandmother Abrielle called forth her Minister who seemed to be at loss at what was happening.

"Who is that girl?" Grandmother Abrielle asked the privy minister the minute Ivan disappeared from the top of the stairs.

Turns out, Ivan had left everyone, including the guests tongue-tied with his actions tonight. As far as they knew, this would be the first time Ivan shared this much physical contact with a woman, and Grandmother Abrielle’s interest was instantly piqued.

"I do not know, Queen Mother, it is my first time laying eyes on that human." The middle aged man with short brown hair responded to her question, and Agathe came to stand beside the Queen Mother, equally fazed.

"Who else noticed the color of her eyes?" Out of everything, those unique eye colors were what grasped Lady Agathe’s attention. Claire, who noticed everyone’s interest was fixed on a common slave, couldn’t hide her indignation, it made the skin on her face crawl with pure lividity.

"She is Ivan’s blood servant, Grandmother, no one special." Claire answered the question raging in everyone’s mind, her glaring gaze shifting to Alistair in the hopes that he didn’t lie to her and was making her sound like a fool in front of everyone, and Abdiel, who had returned to the hall whilst carrying a grim expression, nodded in agreement to his niece’s words.

"Yes Mother, she was brought to the Palace a week ago. Ivan had introduced her to me."

"Blood servant?" A frown settled on Grandmother Abrielle’s eyebrows, not willing to buy such false information as it didn’t make any sense to her. "Why does he suddenly need a blood servant? It is unlike Ivan to have one, something isn’t right here. Gustav." She called for the butler who reached her side as though he knew his name would be mentioned any second from now.

"Yes? Queen Mother?"

"See the guests to the drawing room, the accolade celebration will continue from there."

"It shall be done right away." He bowed once more.

"Abdiel, come with me." After giving her orders, she took Abdiel up the stairs with the Minister consciously following behind.

Ivy, who had stepped into the crowded hall, felt a strange unsettling feeling in her heart, and it was a new feeling she didn’t like. This would be the first time Ivan hardly noticed her presence, and that lady he brought, why would he carry her so intimately if she was just a blood servant??? According to the rules of the Palace, a servant has no right to even look them in the eye, talk more about carrying them???

"Something’s definitely fishy." She muttered underneath her tone, doubts clouding her eyes.

Only after the guests had moved to the drawing room did Tobias step into the quiet Hall. He hung his dangerous-looking scythe on his right shoulder, heading towards the vestibule that led to the main door like there was not a single trouble in the world for him.

"And where are you going?" Claire asked Tobias who managed to steal a glance in her direction. He simply hummed, "and here I thought only Alistair was my watchdog, when did you join him?"

"I am nobody’s watchdog! How dare you!"

"Then mind your damn business, it’s not that difficult."

Shrugging nonchalantly to her dramatic outburst, Tobias stepped out of the Palace, his other free hand tucked in his trouser pocket as the guards opened the door for him to take his leave. Alistair and Claire were the only ones left in the hall, he could see the disgust and displeasure painting her face as though her good night had been ruined.

"Hungry?"

"I’ve lost my appetite." She quipped, waving him off before heading up the stairs as well. Finally alone, Alistair’s gaze lowered to the chains that wrapped his wrist, and he impulsively touched the chain that wrapped his neck as well, as though one day he would be able to get them off and free himself from its uncomfortable bondage.

"Sigh.... Everyone grasps at straws only to end up in the same vicious cycle." He tsked at the imposing thought before moving to the drawing room to keep the guests company along with his Mother.

In Ivan’s room, Samantha was in her moment of panic. She had completely forgotten about the celebration, and it had slipped her mind that she would be walking into a hall filled with guests she could only dream of meeting in real life. What will happen to her now?? She was nothing more than a plain servant, a degradable property, and those looks Abdiel had given her, will she survive tomorrow???!!!

Will she even make it past tonight???

"Ow!!"

Snapped back to reality by the pinching pain, Samantha flinched when Ivan pressed the wound on her knee with his thumb. He had pulled a chair from the corner of her bedside and was sitting in front of her whilst nursing her injured knee with an ointment.

"What are you thinking?"

"I dare not say, My Lord." Samantha sealed her lips without being told. She knew if she dared to utter the curses in her mind right now, her head would be the next one hanging as part of his uncle’s collection tomorrow morning.

"Fear is only as deep as the mind allows it." Ivan, who was carefully bandaging her wounded knee, spoke softly to her for the first time. "If you keep thinking about my uncle’s head collection, you will find your head amongst it, little lamb."

"Wha-??" Her eyes widened. How did he know?? "I.... I wasn’t..."

"Then don’t." He finished wrapping up her wound, his movement innocuous and neat. "If you don’t think about it, nothing will happen to you, and I’m going to make sure of it." Lifting his gaze to meet her dazed ones, Ivan cleared his throat as though he understood the shock in her eyes, and he gently dropped her leg before rising from the chair.

"Get some sleep."

"Lord Ivan." Samantha called after him when he turned his back on her, ready to leave, but when she called his name, he stopped in his attempt to walk away. Looking at his little lamb standing on her feet, his gaze lowered to her injured knee before meeting her eyes.

"Sit down." He ordered, and Samantha immediately sat down back on her bed. "Now speak."

"Can I ask you one... just one harmless question?" She emphasized by raising her index finger, signifying she only wanted to ask him one question.

"And that is?"

"I just..." she took a deep courageous breath of air into her lungs before saying, "I want to know the name of the person who told you about my Father’s crime, I mean the one who informed you that he killed the King--" she involuntarily paused when Ivan’s eyes narrowed arrogantly, and she cleared her throat when her heart began to race due to his reaction.

"My Father isn’t a killer, I can swear on my life for him. He has told me many great things about your late Father, and I assumed they were close, but my Father respects your Father so much, it’s impossible for him to take the life of someone he---"

"You don’t have to tell me, between you and I, I was already born at that time to witness their friendship." He cut her off smoothly, and Samantha was forced to keep quiet whilst she bit the skin in her cheek to avoid speaking out of tone.

Ivan, who was facing a stubborn human for the first time in his life, found it difficult to not be amused. She was whiskey in a teacup, and a little too impetuous for his liking.

"Listen, I think we both share the same pain here." He moved closer to where she sat. "We’ve lost our parents, our sanity, our rights to live or die.... we’re both utterly alone in this unkind world. Aren’t we?" As he spoke, Ivan wasn’t only talking to her but himself, and now that he thought about it, did he take her in because he assumed she would understand him better since they both had tragedy written in their lives?

"I.... Am the witness you seek, little lamb." He said in a whisper, leaning so close to the bemused Samantha till she felt his cool lips brushing against the shell of her ear, his warm breath tingling her senses. "I witnessed the scene on that rainy day, I saw it happen, and I made it my number one motive to find my Father’s perpetrator, so I can kill him before I grow of age to take the throne."

Samantha’s heart sank deeply, he pulled back to meet her emerald green eyes that shimmered, and his gaze subconsciously landed on her parted lips. The tension in the room dispersed like mist when someone knocked on the door.

"Speak."

"The Queen Mother requests your presence in the central Palace, My Lord."

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