Married To The Mad Vampire Lord

"You can lecture her about that later. For now, I want answers to more important matters. Isabelle," he said, his sharp gaze cutting into her, "you have not forgotten why you were sent to that land, have you?"

"No, Papa," Belle muttered, her voice low, her heart aching with the urge to go back to her real family, Rohan and Angel. But she dared not show her hurt and disappointment. She had to keep playing the role of the obedient fool, the daughter they could so easily manipulate, who couldn't see through them.

That was how she had always been in the past, a naïve girl, eager to please her family in any way, letting them do as they pleased with her because she was desperate for their love and attention. Now, she had enough love from the man she married, but to keep her husband and their son safe, she had to play the role of that fool. Only now, she knew the truth.

"Good," the Duke said with satisfaction. "Tonight I will send you a parchment, and you will write down every piece of information you have gathered. In two days' time, when His Majesty summons you to the palace, we will present it to him. I heard he plans to have a banquet at the castle, you will attend it and present it to him."

Then his voice dropped, dripping with disdain. "We have endured sleepless nights in this house since we heard that mad vampire was coming with you. Only the Lord knows how we are to feed that savage, and how we can sleep with both eyes closed while he resides under our roof. We asked for you alone but they insisted the madman to come as well."

Belle bit hard on the inside of her cheek to stop herself from jumping to her husband's defense. Rohan was no savage and certainly not a madman.

"You can rest assured, Papa, that he won't harm anyone whom he doesn't see fit to deserve it," Belle said with a tight voice. But realizing that even that tone of voice had made them look at her with furrowed brows, she meekly added, "I mean, the king has warned him to behave before our journey. He respects their king and won't do anything to harm you."

She watched her father nod his head. "It's good that the king has some sense to warn him. And who are those two with a baby?" he asked. They had not been told that other vampires, other than the mad one, would be coming. The Duke did not want to house creatures who could suck his family dry.

"They are his relatives. The man is his third cousin, Raven, and the lady is his wife, and the baby... their son. Lady Evenly wanted to see Aragonia and requested to—"

"Never mind. We will have no choice but to give them the best rooms possible and be hospitable to them, especially seeing how they have gone out of their way to fatten you up and buy you all these fancy things," said Lady Louisiana with a grimace as she eyed her elder daughter. "My Lord, we should give them the best rooms and also the best of everything before they call us names in that dead land of theirs. I will go see to it that they have everything."

"Mama," Eve called, and when Lady Louisiana turned to look at her, she said, "I've read somewhere that vampire babies are the worst of their kind, as they have not yet grown to control themselves. I don't think we should give the couple rooms that are close to ours with their little monster. Give them the faraway chamber, and make sure they don't let loose their monster. I won't be able to sleep knowing that creepy creature could crawl into my room and suck—"

Belle, who was listening to them quietly, could not hold it in when she heard how her son was being addressed, the baby she had carried, suffered to give birth to, and loved with all her heart.

"Angel is not a monster! Don't you dare call him that again," she gritted before she could stop herself, glaring at her sister and causing her parents to turn startled eyes on her.

Belle realized too late her mistake when she noticed the displeased, surprised look in her parents' eyes. The old her would never have raised her voice at her sister; she would never have spoken back no matter what was said. But now, she had acted out of character.

"Dear Lord," Lady Louisiana remarked in surprise, her eyes widening, "they did not just fatten you up, but you also seem to have lost your manners, Isabelle. Eve was speaking about this creepy little vampire, and you jump on her like a mama bear. Is that how we raised you? Since when have you started defending these monsters?" Her mother arched a disapproving brow at her elder daughter, clearly not liking the changes she saw in her.

Lady Louisiana disliked the physical changes, and she certainly was not going to tolerate a disrespectful daughter who, in the past, had already brought them more shame than respect in their high social circles. Because of this daughter of hers, she had endured a lot of scorn in society in the past. She was a shame to their household and had no right to raise her voice.

Belle, noticing all eyes on her and hearing her mother's words, quickly toned down her anger and mentally chided herself for losing control just now. She did not regret standing up for her son, but she forced herself to compose her features. Meekly, she fumbled with the lace design in front of her dress as she said, softly, "I... I didn't mean to raise my voice. It's just that the baby's mama is a kind person, and her son and I are somewhat close. I adore him. He's not at all—"

"I don't care how much you adore the thing. I will not have you defending any bloodsucker under my roof, Isabelle," her father cut in sharply, his gray eyes hardened in stern disapproval. "Now apologize to your sister for raising your voice like that."

Belle felt a sharp twinge in her heart. She should have been used to this by now. It had happened countless times in the past, being forced to apologize to her younger sister, whether she was at fault or not.

Only this time, she realized that it was unfair, because she knew she had no reason to apologize. Angel was her son, and no mother would be pleased to hear someone call their child a monster. So much for hoping Angel would meet his grandparents and aunt. These people would never welcome him, and perhaps they don't deserve to know him either…

She turned her eyes toward her younger sister, who stood with lips pouted and a pitiful expression on her face. Yet Belle could see right through it, behind those glossy green eyes lay an air of hidden smugness.

Biting back the urge to tell them all that she had no reason to apologize, Belle finally forced the words out, halfheartedly: "I... I am sorry."

Lady Louisiana looked pleased as she noticed the meekness returning in her elder daughter. Yes, that was how it ought to be. They had suffered much scorn because of Isabelle, not only from outsiders but also from close family. She had been a disappointment in many ways, and it was only right that she had no voice when she was told to do something. It was only right that she worked hard to please them, considering all they had done for her.

Though Lady Louisiana had never thought of her first daughter as particularly pretty, or even anywhere near as beautiful as her younger girl, she did not like how, now that the two stood close together, Belle seemed to outshine her younger sister in a way she could not put her finger on. The girl had changed in many ways that displeased Lady Louisiana.

She did not like how the vampire land had changed the elder girl this much. But seeing that Isabelle still knew her place in the family, she calmed enough to reach forward and pat her on the shoulder.

"That's more like our Isabelle. Our family does not defend vampires, remember that. And we certainly do not lash out at family members for the sake of outsiders. You are the eldest, and you should always look out for your little sister. She was only worried about that little creature, you should assure her of her safety next time," Lady Louisiana said softly.

Then, smoothing down her gown, she added, "I will go and see to it that our guests are given their rooms. You already know the way to your old chamber. You may go on ahead, prepare yourself for supper, and come down when it is time. And make sure not to wear these flashy dresses to dinner. They do not complement your body. I will see you later."

She leaned in, gave Belle the briefest of hugs, and then swept out of the study alongside her husband, already discussing how to feed the bloodsuckers with pig's blood since they did not have human blood to offer them.

Belle was left standing in the study with her sister, who lingered at the side, watching her with sharp eyes. It was all Belle could do not to walk straight out on Eve, but she knew the girl had stayed back because she had something in mind.