Claimed by the Prince of Darkness

Chapter 103: Before the Apple Ripens

Before dawn had the chance to break, the Belmonts and the Henleys were already inside a carriage bound for Sexton, determined to fix the trouble Caroline had brought upon herself.

But when they arrived, they were made to wait until eleven in the morning. Edmond Mortis, the man in charge of the office, had arrived late.

"Mr. Mortis will see you now," the attendant finally said and Caroline shot to her feet at once.

Inside the office, Mr. Mortis’ gaze settled on Ezekiel standing among the humans and he raised one of his eyebrows. He remarked,

"It is Sunday, Mr. Henley. I would assume you had better use for a holiday like outing outside Sexton."

Ezekiel bowed, the smile on his face tight. He apologised, "Forgive me for troubling you, Mr. Mortis. There has been a little problem—"

"Little problem?" Caroline burst out, her eyes swollen from crying the entire previous day. "These hexed earrings won’t come off. They need to be removed, mister. I wore them for fun. If I knew they would lock like this, I would never have touched them! Please...we need them taken off."

The vampire behind the desk barely reacted. His gaze shifted away from her and returned to Ezekiel instead, while silence filled the room. Before Caroline could continue rambling, Ezekiel caught her wrist gently but firmly, urging her to be quiet. She looked up at him with tearful desperation.

"Mr. Henley," Mr. Mortis called, placing his glasses carefully on the bridge of his nose, "can you explain how you failed to complete the task required of every first year Groundlings?"

"The assignments were given..." Ezekiel replied, exhaustion evident in his tone despite his effort to remain polite. "It appears Ruelle failed to wear them and I didn’t check the result. She often keeps her hair down, which covers her ears and we missed it. It was—"

"I hope you were not attempting to keep Ms. Belmont out of the contract. No one has ever failed the contract from being completed in Sexton’s history," Mr. Mortis interrupted curtly, leaning back in his chair with a faint, disapproving look. "Especially considering she is related to your wife."

Mr. Mortis’ words struck a nerve in Mrs. Belmont. Her eyes widened, suspicion flashing across her face as if this had been Ezekiel’s plan all along after all, as he had once spoken of marrying Ruelle. She glared at Ezekiel and demanded,

"Why didn’t you make her wear it?!"

Mr. Mortis didn’t find it surprising that the student’s very own mother wanted the contract to be fulfilled. When money was involved along with survival, relationship meant very little in this world.

"Were you trying to protect her?" Caroline asked, frowning deeply, confusion and hurt mixing on her face. "But it backfired... I— I’m the one trapped now."

"Like I said," Ezekiel snapped, his composure turning thin, "I never noticed her ears under all that thick blonde hair."

Mortis’ gaze drifted to Mr. Belmont, who stood stiffly with his hands drawn close to his chest and the man looked nothing less than a chicken with its wings resting on the sides. His eyes returned to others and he said at last,

"The earrings can be removed."

Relief flooded Caroline’s face. She stepped forward at once, tilting her head to expose her ear before saying,

"Oh, thank goodness! Then please remove them. The sooner this is over, the sooner we can go back to our lives."

"Mrs. Henley," Mr. Mortis said calmly.

Caroline straightened at once. "Yes?" she asked, a hopeful smile already forming.

"Sexton has its rules. We do not null the contracts simply because someone regrets their decision. You should have thought more carefully before trying them on." His voice remained even, almost polite. "With those earrings on you now, you now belong to Sexton. They can be removed under one condition."

Mr. Belmont’s brows drew together. He asked, "What condition?"

"Ordinarily, young unmarried women are valued far higher," Mortis continued, lifting a hand as if discussing market goods. "However, Mrs. Henley is already married. Her value is reduced, though not void."

Caroline’s smile faltered at the word value. She asked, "S–So... how much? Two hundred gold coins?"

At the back, Mr. Belmont flinched at the number.

Mortis shook his head once and finally said, "Five thousand gold coins."

the money on them, but that such a number might as well have belonged to

fingers tightened around the edge of the

much money, don’t you, honey?" She asked quickly, words tumbling over one another. "We don’t need to host any soirees for a while, and I don’t need new jewellery. We can manage that much,

the end, fragile hope

at the woman he had

but from the

he could raise that sum. But he

strained and regretful. He

fully, panic widening her eyes. She asked, "Then what are we

said smoothly as though discussing paperwork rather than a life. "Mrs. Henley will attend Sexton as any

married woman! Sexton takes only unmarried women in," Mrs. Belmont argued while devastated. But Mr.

Mr. Mortis added, adjusting the glasses on his face, "it is essential that you attend your classes and do not fall behind. Failure will place you at the very bottom of the barrel. And I assure you, Mrs. Henley, that is not a position you would

"I trust Mr. Henley will explain the remaining details to

harder than

ever tied to June Clifford’s death. The possibility of execution was rare when there was profit to be made. Humans with value were

else. But this? Not only would

carefully planned to get Caroline out of the picture by placing her necklace near the body. Not knowing she wasn’t just in the picture,

She tried to smile, as though they were facing a minor inconvenience. "Maybe we’ll figure something out. And in the meantime... we can spend some wonderful time here together,

gently on

Slaters’ mansion, Ruelle who had slipped back into sleep,

the surface. The housekeeper brushed and tied

with the hem of her dress sweeping softly across the carpeted floor. Her brown eyes looked around

"Where is everyone...?"

had been

of the instrument room, she couldn’t resist taking a seat in front of it. Music had always been the one place

stretched her fingers before beginning to play. The sound drifted and lingered against the walls, light enough that she almost forgot she was the one making it. She closed her eyes, letting the music

her eyes, her fingers faltered and she ended

at the doorway and he wore a grim expression

apologetic expression and offered a quick bow. "I—" her words tripped in her mind. "I didn’t mean to disturb. I will stop,"

Lord Azriel asked, his voice deep and his gaze one that

was taught when I was little," she replied before

used to play it often when she was

painful ones of his wife. From the portrait she had seen, the lady’s smile and

melodies like this to be passed and learned. To fill the

off from its original piece," Lord Azriel pointed

with time," Ruelle

turned heavier with seconds that passed. She wondered if he was going to ask

not gentle to those who linger. And once attention is given here, it is rarely withdrawn. If you hope to leave from here unchanged, you must be

another word, he left the place, his footsteps echoing through

meant to be advice or a warning. Truthfully, his words felt puzzling. Did he think she

the library that didn’t hold only books of laws, world or history but

one careful step at a time, her fingers brushing the leather-bound edges as she read the

to a particular

rested the book against the ladder rung and opened

few lines. Then a page. Minutes

the warmer her skin felt, as if the pages carried a heat. She had spent her life being useful and needed. This was the

at a particular scene as the words she

came from behind her,

Ruelle shut the book in her hands with a sharp thud. Shame rose too quickly, as though wanting anything for herself was

be

moved to climb down, her foot searched blindly for the next rung but this