Bride To His Darkness
Chapter 38: Are You Going To Confess?

Chapter 38: Are You Going To Confess?

When he approached where Samantha stood, frozen in her steps, Lucy quietly squeezed herself in a corner, giving the two of them some space. She dared not raise her head to look at them, but when her gaze lingered on Ivan’s feet, she noticed the Vampire Lord take off his black royal fur coat, wrapping it gently around Samantha’s petite body as though it was some sort of shield. To Lucy’s unexpected bewilderment, he pulled the stunned Samantha closer to him, holding onto the end of the fur coat whilst looking into her round doe eyes.

"Do you want to die?" The slight arrogance in his tone carried a difference to the look in his eyes, and Samantha, who was solely afraid that he was acting this way because he caught her hatching a plan on his sister, nervously gulped hard. Her lashes fluttered spontaneously, and when she opened her mouth to utter a lie, he raised his palm, shutting her up.

Samantha, who wasn’t sure what type of punishment she’d be getting this time around, immediately turned flustered when Ivan brought his cool lips to her ear, and then he whispered a warning. "Step out in this dress again, and I will mark every bare part of your body I lay eyes on, am I understood?"

His cool breath against her earlobes sent multiples of shivers running through her body. Her lips trembled, and she hated how he spoke like he owned her, but when it came to retorting his statement, her voice effortlessly betrayed her. He didn’t give her a chance to answer before dragging her away, keeping her in the captivity of his warm fur coat.

Lucy, who’s eyes had widened in pure amazement, met the gaze of Samantha who’s green orbs cried for help as she was taken away by Ivan. The scene she had seen with her own eyes was quite unbelievable, and Lord Ivan.... Was he angry because she stepped out wearing that dress? Or was she hallucinating his reaction? Lord Ivan, the Youngest Vampire Lord was pretty obsessive, that she knew, but him being possessive over a blood servant was something one wouldn’t witness everyday.

He hardly noticed her presence.

Snapping out of her dazed trance, Lucy looked around to make sure no one had caught her daydreaming before taking her leave. She ran into Gustav in the central part of the Palace, and he just happened to be looking for her. Lucy knew her work for the day was yet to begin.

Samantha stayed in the room with Ivan, attending to all his demands and errands as usual. Not surprisingly, Alistair joined Ivan in his room, and while she remained enclosed in her part of the room that was divided by a curtain, the bored Samantha could make out the silhouette of Ivan, who was sitting on the chaise lounge that was situated in the corner of the room.

Sitting on the bed and picking at her nails, Samantha could do nothing more but feel legarthic, or she could eavesdrop on the conversation Lord Ivan was having with the prince. He already warned her to behave herself, but as long as she did nothing but listen to their conversation, that won’t count as misbehaving, right?

"After the soiree, we’ll be going hunting at dawn tomorrow. Feels like a decade since we went on one." Alistair reminded Ivan who still looked temporarily spaced out, and the fact he wasn’t paying attention to their conversation made Alistair frown at the Vampire Prince’s unresponsiveness.

"Are you listening to me?"

"I’m not deaf, Alistair." Ivan’s retort made Alistair purse his lips. "I’m aware of the hunt, Uncle wouldn’t let such information pass me by, now would he?" Tired from all the royal hassle, a weary sigh exited Ivan’s lips, and he leaned back against the Chaise lounge, closing his eyes.

"Are you still....?" Alistair, who sensed the major problem with Ivan, but didn’t want to utter the name, made a motion of someone who had been drinking, and Ivan, who understood Alistair’s silent question firmly shook his head, but the stillness in the way he denied it only said otherwise.

"Are you lying to me?" Alistair’s gaze turned stern. "Listen, If you die, I’m sending your corpse to the Fireplace." He whispered, looking at the curtains from time to time to ensure that the human wasn’t listening to their conversation. "What were you thinking drinking that specific poison? You know very well it affects Vampires! How many doses did you take?? When did you start taking it??"

Ivan’s sudden tiredness was one of the early symptoms of the poison, and Alistair could only make a rough guess regarding why someone who was meant to rule would take poison. Scratch that! No matter how valid his reasons may be, Alistair still found it dumb and stupid.

"Hey! I’m talking to you."

"I owe you no explanation for my foolishness." Ivan answered flatly, "go, make sure the supplies for the hunt tomorrow are ready. Take Herbert with you." He waved Alistair off, "I have tonight’s soiree to prepare for, and I don’t need you monitoring my life. Thank you."

Alistair, who could say nothing to convince his cousin to stop, only shook his head with his lips pursed. He had more to say to Ivan, but he kept his advice to himself and quietly exited the room. Samantha, who heard the door click, looked up to see Alistair had left. With a smile of mischief, she peeped through the curtains that separated her room from Ivan’s, and she noticed how the Vampire Lord looked solemn in his dark corner. Her part of the room had been lit with a candle, but Ivan had stopped her from lighting his side of the room.

"Lord... Ivan?" Calling his name, she gained the attention of the Vampire Lord whose dark red eyes looked in her direction, and she lowered her gaze before asking. "Can I.... Come with you on the hunting trip tomorrow?"

"No." He turned down her request without giving it a second thought, "ladies aren’t allowed in the hunting ground. Even if they were, I still wouldn’t take you." He plainly told her, causing a disapproving pout to form on her lips.

"That’s offensive, I’m not surprised." Her dull eyes brightened again, "but I hold more advantage in hunting grounds. I can be useful there too... I’m good with traps, I can’t shoot arrows, my aims are extremely terrible, but--"

"You want to escape." He cut in, silencing Samantha at the spot. "That’s your plan, you want to get out of the Palace, and this hunt will be your biggest chance of escape. No?" He kept speaking like her intention was displayed boldly for him to see, and Samantha failed to hide her speechlessness.

"I--"

"Do you wish to hear the truth?" Ivan raised an eyebrow at her, and then he said. "Let’s say you eventually succeed in escaping from here, that doesn’t guarantee your chances in finding your brother." And that was the truth Samantha didn’t want to hear. Frowning at his statement, Samantha got out of bed and marched into the darkness where Ivan found comfort in.

"What do you mean I won’t find him?" Her fists had balled tightly at her side, and she really tried to control it, but in the end, she ended up glaring at the Vampire Lord who returned her stare. When he rose to his feet, their height difference made Samantha take a step back. His imposing height made her curse him between her teeth, but her gaze remained unflinching since they were speaking about her brother here.

"You won’t find your brother." He said again, more firmly this time around. "And that is because the world outside is more dangerous than it appears to be. I don’t have to explain it to you, you should know this since you’ve had experiences of your own." He tsked and walked past Samantha, "I won’t let you escape, and as for your brother, I have nothing to say regarding him."

"But you found me, if you can easily locate--"

"I never came to the Brothel for you." He cut in yet again, earning another moment of silence from Samantha. "I was there to catch a mole, and it was just a coincidence that I ran into you there. More coincidental that I still remember what you look like." His gaze bored into hers, penetrating deep into her soul, and when Samantha took a step back so she could breathe, he took a step closer, closing their gap.

"The orb connects with its keeper, and since your Father was the last to hold it, the connection of the orb had been passed down to him. With him gone, the orb no longer shares a connection with him, thus, it is passed on to his offspring. Your eyes are different, a replica of what the orb looks like."

"Lord Ivan!" Samantha gasped his name when her knees hit the edge of the chaise lounge, and she ended up sitting on it. When she tried to stand, Ivan trapped her there, his hand resting on the wall beside her head. Samantha could barely breathe, and when he leaned closer, her grip on the edge of her night dress tightened further.

"Stop glaring at me." She said to the Vampire Lord who paused in his move, amusements flashing in his red orbs, and then he asked. "How dare you order a prince?"

"Don’t I have the right to--"

"No." He answered before she could complete her question, "you’re quite daring for a blood servant. I guess it’s time that I taste your blood. I’d like to see you become this bold afterwards." When his lips pulled to the side, forming a smirk, Samantha’s gaze fell on the sharp fangs that were visible to her gaze, and she bristled back from the sight.

"Get dressed." He ordered, finally pulling back from the woman whose face was all flushed and flustered. "You’re attending tonight’s soiree with me."

"What?"

"If you behave and listen to my orders," he stopped walking and turned his head to the side, but he didn’t look at her. "Just maybe, I might help you find your brother."

"Really?!" Samantha immediately got up from her seat, but before she could speak further, a shrill cry from outside disrupted their conversation. Knowing the owner of the voice, Samantha clasped her palm to her mouth to avoid laughing out.

Ivan, who guessed the sudden cry belonged to Claire, looked at Samantha who tried to sneak off.

"Hold on." With his eyebrows marred into a frown, he stood in front of Samantha who was startled by his sudden order.

"Are you going to confess?"