The Vampire King's Pet-Chapter 276: What Dangrey wants!

Aria had no intention of taking the vial with her at first. It was small, fragile, and she wanted nothing to do with it. But the thought that Liora—stubborn, impulsive Liora—would surely break it the second she left made her stop mid-stride. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

That image alone changed her mind. With a resigned breath, she turned back, picked it up carefully from the table, and tucked it inside the inner pocket of her cloak. The glass felt unnervingly cold against her skin, a silent reminder of all the secrets it contained.

She stepped out of the villa and into the night. The air was still and heavy, the moonlight faint behind a veil of mist that lingered over the courtyard. Gravel crunched under her boots as she crossed toward the waiting carriage, her breath forming thin clouds in the chill.

She said nothing to the servants who lingered at a distance; their eyes followed her, but none dared speak.

Climbing into the carriage, she shut the door behind her, the faint clink of the vial echoing inside her cloak. She leaned back against the seat, rubbing her temple as she signaled to the driver through the small window. "Head back to the castle," she said curtly. "Lady Savira must have already returned."

The driver nodded once, the reins shifting in his hands. Aria closed her eyes, exhausted, her mind already replaying the day’s chaos. But just as she opened her mouth to confirm their route, a soft, deliberate knock sounded on the carriage door.

Her eyes snapped open.

It was faint at first—so gentle she almost thought she imagined it. Then came another knock, slightly firmer, persistent. Her first instinct was to ignore it, to order the driver onward. She parted her lips to do just that when a voice drifted through the thin crack of the door—soft, low, familiar.

Her heart stilled.

She pushed the door open without hesitation, her hand trembling slightly as she peered out into the night. The sight that greeted her made her breath hitch.

Standing in the pale moonlight was her mother.

Even in darkness, Aria would have known Selira anywhere. Her mother stood barefoot on the cold ground, clothed in nothing but a thin white, transparent cloth that shimmered faintly in the dim light. Her hair hung loose and unkempt around her shoulders, her eyes wide yet eerily calm.

For a moment, Aria could only stare, frozen with disbelief. Then instinct surged through her—she half-rose from her seat and leaned forward, desperate to close the distance, to throw her arms around the woman she thought she’d lost.

But she stopped midway.

Something in Selira’s eyes made her falter. There was no warmth there, no grief, no flicker of human emotion. Just a smooth, placid calm that chilled Aria to her bones. She lowered her arm slowly, her brow furrowing as she forced herself to look closer.

"Lord Dangrey?" Aria asked cautiously, her voice catching slightly. "Were you able to escape him?"

Selira shook her head at once, the motion slow and mechanical. Her tone was soft, her words flowing with unnatural ease. "He wants to speak to you," she said. "But he allowed me to speak to you first."

The sound of her mother’s voice—familiar yet oddly hollow—made Aria’s pulse quicken. Warning signs blared in her mind as she recalled Zyren’s words, every caution he’d ever uttered about Lord Dangrey and his bloodline.

He has the ability to control minds.

Aria’s breath came unevenly. She studied her mother’s face in the dim light. Selira looked delighted to see her, but there was no sign of sorrow, no mention of the husband or children she’d been torn from. No pain. No confusion. Just a fixed smile and placid contentment that didn’t belong to her.

Of course he would have used his powers on her, Aria thought bitterly. The realization burned through her chest like acid.

"Is that all you came to tell me?" she asked finally, her voice sharp but low, cutting through the air like a blade.

Selira’s expression softened, a faint tremor passing over her lips. She stepped closer, her bare feet whispering against the ground. "I’ve been dying to speak to you," she said with a bright, almost childlike smile. "Of course there are a lot of things I want to say to you!" Her eyes shimmered as if filled with joy—but it was joy that didn’t reach her soul.

Aria stared, her fingers tightening around the carriage door. Something in her wanted to believe it—to reach out and pull her mother close—but instinct screamed otherwise.

"What about Liora?" she pressed, searching her mother’s face for any genuine emotion. "Have you spoken to her?"

Her mother’s smile faltered. She looked away, sighing softly. "Lord Dangrey hasn’t allowed me to," she murmured, her tone heavy with submission. "There’s nothing I can do."

Aria felt her stomach twist. She understood then—clear as day—what Lord Dangrey was doing. He’s already hypnotized my mother. And now he’s telling me that if I don’t meet him, he’ll do worse.

She swallowed hard, forcing herself to keep her composure. "It’s late," she said evenly. "I’ll meet him tomorrow."

But Selira’s expression shifted, panic flashing across her face for the first time. She twisted her fingers together like a frightened child, her voice trembling as she pleaded, "He insisted that you meet him tonight."

Aria scoffed quietly, stunned by the man’s audacity. The arrogance of thinking he could command her simply because he held her mother under his control. Her lips curled into a faint, bitter smile.

"I’ve had a long day, Mother," she said, her voice calm but laced with iron. "Tell Dangrey that I’ll see him tomorrow at the castle if he wants to meet."

She turned her back, making her intent to leave painfully clear. Her hand gripped the door handle as she stepped into the carriage again. But before she could close it, her mother’s voice—soft, desperate—broke through the stillness.

"Aria, please! He’s my master, and he insists that—"

Aria didn’t let her finish, hardening her heart as she slammed the door aware that with everything that was going on the last thing she wanted to do was to put herself in danger with a vampire noble that could control minds and clearly had malevolent thoughts towards her.