Chapter 171

Chapter 171: Chapter 171

Kath’tan warped over before she could take a step forward, his clawed hand around her bloodless, slender neck. He lifted her off the ground with ease, her attempts to pry his hand off going completely unnoticed.

"Try again," He offered generously.

Aylin’s red eyes blazed, almost dripping blood but she somehow managed to keep her composure. "Hmph," She sneered again, "I already told you I don’t know," She said with some difficulty.

Kath’tan let go of her, but he didn’t move back, staring her down, waiting for her to say the wrong thing.

"I’ll have to do my findings." Aylin went on, the dark fingerprints on her neck rapidly healing.

"How long will that take?" Asael asked, his brows furrowing in impatience.

Aylin studied each Demon, she was faster than they were but to do so she had to escape them first, and there was no chance of that. Not to mention, Aguilar’s coven might be a handful to deal with...

"That depends on whether you’ll be willing to let me leave." She said coldly, completely unafraid despite the danger.

The Vampire Queen might have impressed Kath’tan if he didn’t hold a grudge against her. He took a step back first, willing to do whatever was needed to find Dulce.

Even if she made a run for it, they just had to find another Vampire and shake them down for answers.

"An hour." Aylin said in response to their silent acquiescence, and without waiting to get their approval, she flashed out of the room in a blur, her white blonde hair a streak of light.

With no other choice, they were forced to linger in the Vampire Queen’s study until she returned, the air in the room growing heavy.

-+-

Dulce sat docilely while Moira slept, the shackles constraining her to the stone wall had to be uncomfortable, but she slept peacefully despite that, her wrists rubbed raw.

Unable to tolerate the sight of it, he took the heavy metal cuffs in his hands, attempting to snap them open as quietly as he could-

"What are you doing?" One of their captors caught him before he could manage it.

"Could you at least free her from her shackles?" He asked politely, "I’ll wear it instead."

The Vampire that had questioned him wore a pinched expression, shackling Dulce Montesserat was beyond his capabilities. So after a brief silent conversation with Aguilar, he took out the key and tossed it into the prison.

It landed at Dulce’s feet, he quickly grabbed it with a relieved smile. "Thank you."

The Vampire shuddered and turned away, hurriedly returning to the table to sit in his armchair.

Dulce worked swiftly, gently taking the shackles off Moira’s wrists. With her restraints gone, she fell even more against him, still deeply asleep. It was a little difficult to maneuver but Dulce eventually managed to cuff himself in her place.

Moira was sprawled over his legs now, curled up on the hard stone floor, her bruised wrists cushioning her head.

Now, Dulce could also relax, waiting for Moira to wake up. He would at least attempt to escape a few times before summoning the Demons, but for now, he would let the witch get a much-needed rest.

-+-

Aylin kept to her word, even returning within an hour. Her hair had been blown wild, it added to the blazing fire in her eyes. "I found him." She grudgingly revealed, frowning as she did.

"A rival coven is about to attack them this very night. They were kind enough to reveal their whereabouts." Aylin filled in the details.

Gilles was a past acquaintance and although she knew he was her likely bet, she put off going to him until she had no other choice. And just in the nick of time, because he had been about to step out, a few members of his coven with him.

"We’ll have to ride there by carriage." She turned around to leave as quickly as she had come. "It’s here in Marlen so we’re fortunate."

Soon they were in a grand carriage, riding out the several gates of the royal castle. Aylin had her crown and veil on again, tapping a finger impatiently on the signet ring she wore.

She could very easily go there by herself in record time and have servants bring the Demons over later, but with Gilles’ involvement, things had gotten even more dire for her.

There was no telling what the Vampire would do if she arrived in the middle of their skirmish, even if her only goal was Dulce. So she was stuck with these three monstrous creatures, mutual enmity between them.

"Where’s the dog?" She deigned to ask, unable to curb her curiosity.

Cold looks swept over her, her question going unanswered. Aylin wisely fell silent, troubled. She had thought that it was merely Dulce who was addled by his summoned Demons but Dulce had only been missing for a few hours and the air in the carriage was so frigid that her throat hurt.

It would take about another hour for them to arrive at their destination. Aylin might have been worried if she wasn’t certain that Gilles and his coven would also take carriages. It was night, Vampires wouldn’t miss the chance to leisurely move around. So they would arrive at the Aguilar coven hideout just shortly after him.

Their destination was a large manor in a classic section of Marlen, it stood tall in the dim light of the moon, the windows completely dark. Carriages were strewn about on the pathway, it was evident that they were at the right place.

Inside the manor, the only lively place was the cellar. Two rival covens faced off, the attack coming a few days earlier than Aguilar predicted.

Moira had unwittingly been woken up by the ruckus, quickly realizing that she had switched positions with Dulce and the Vampire was now the one shackled to the stone wall.

"It’s alright," Dulce whispered with a benign smile. He could protect Moira if it came down to it and in the ensuing chaos, they could make a run for it.