Sneaking in and out of places was what she was good at—well, one of the many things she was good at. Valerie managed to successfully make her way out of the Salvadore residence without any suspicion. She wondered how long it would take before they noticed the disappearance of the Lord.
Somehow, It all felt too easy. The Viscount she had heard about was a strong soldier and she had killed him far too easily.
Something wasn't right, Valerie could feel it.
"My lady, it's time to leave."
Valerie turned around to see her coachman standing behind her. "Very well." She smiled and followed him back to the carriage. She stepped in and shortly after it rolled into movement.
Resting her head against the cushion, Valerie closed her eyes, hoping to get a few hours of sleep.
"I couldn't have guessed that you would be an assassin. I must admit, I'm slightly impressed."
Her eyes flew open, hand moving quickly to pull out her dagger as she swiftly moved to attack but stopped midway, her eyes widening in shock and awe. "W...what!?"
"Don't be so surprised. I'm not quite an easy man to kill." Vincent leaned back in the couch, smiling.
Valerie frowned, before laughing, "Dear gods, I must be dreaming. This is not possible." She massaged her temples, shutting and opening her eyes to wake herself from this horrid dream.
"I'm afraid you are not dreaming."
She slumped back, "I killed you. You died, how...how is this possible?"
"You thought I died," He corrected, "And you ruined my coat, bed sheets and mattress. You owe me 100 gold coins for them."
She turned to him, "What!?"
"I'm not a cheap man. If you had done your research properly you should have known that, amongst the other things you failed at tonight."
Valerie couldn't neither believe what she was seeing nor hearing, dear goodness. If the Lord truly survived she had to escape as soon as possible if not she was utterly dommed. She reached out to the door, pushed it open, ready to jump out but was stopped by Vincent who grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back in.
"You can't leave yet. You still have to pay for the things you ruined." He stated still smiling. Valerie was already irritated by his smug smile. With the dagger still in her hand, she swung at him ready to drive the blade into his skin but he dodged it smoothly, twisting her arm backwards and pressing her face against the wall.
"Let me go, you fool. I'm going to kill you." Valerie spat struggling to get away from his hold but he didn't budge. His grip was so firm that she feared he might break her bone if she kept moving.
"You are the fool to think you can try to assassinate me and flee." He leaned in closer, his breath touching her neck, "Truly a foolish girl."
Valerie gritted her teeth, "You..."
The carriage suddenly halted and the coachman climbed down, "Tell him to turn the carriage around and return to the mansion." Vincent whispered.
"No! why would I listen to you?"
"Say otherwise and I'll rip his eyes out and force it down his throat." His mouth moved closer to her ear, "I assure you that's a painful way to die."
Valerie swallowed, debating what to do next.
"My lady, is everything alright back there?" The coach man's voice rang.
She shut her eyes to take in a deep breath before opening them, "Yes, everything is fine. Turn the carriage around. Make a return to the Salvadore household."
"Why? Did you forget something there?" He questioned.
"No..yes," She quickly corrected herself. "I'll just need to sort out a pending issue and we shall return back to Ravenville."
There was a short pause before he replied, "Very well, my lady."
She needed to figure out how to get out of this mess as soon as possible. She tilted her head, "Can you let go of my arm? It's beginning to hurt."
Surprisingly, Vincent let go of her arm before settling back in the couch with his hands resting on his thighs.
She rolled her shoulder to ease the pain and sat opposite him in a full minute of silence, watching the Lord who leaned his head back with his eyes closed.
"What's going to happen now? Are you going to kill me?"
"Certainly not." He chuckled lightly, "I'm going to torture you and then kill you. It will be more fun to watch you bleed out... Daphne." His tone still light and calm as if he was discussing about the weather.
Her fist clenched tightly, "I'm not going to beg you to spare my life if that's what you're expecting."
"I'm not expecting anything," He opened his eyes then leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "And trust me, if I want you to beg, you WILL beg."
From the intensity in his eyes and the chill in his voice, Valerie could tell he was telling the truth and she hated to admit that it scared her. He scared her. She had always been in control of situations around her but at this moment, she felt helpless around him.
She was about to reply when the coachman announced their arrival at the mansion.
Vincent grabbed her wrist, ignoring her struggles, and climbed out of the carriage, dragging her toward the door. The coachman watched in silence, fear tightening his grip on the reins.
As they stepped inside, the door slammed shut behind them. Valerie gasped as rough hands seized her from behind.
"Take her to the dungeon," Vincent said evenly, turning to walk away.
"No! Let go of me!" she cried, struggling against their hold, but their grips only tightened. Desperation flared within her, and she kicked one of the guards hard in the groin. He groaned in pain, hissed a curse, and retaliated with a hard slap across her face.
Her vision blurred. If not for the other guard holding her up, she would have fallen to the ground. The coppery taste of blood filled her mouth.
Vincent stopped mid-stride and exhaled slowly before turning back to them. "Why don't you listen?" His voice was deceptively calm. "You know how much I hate people who fail to follow the simplest of instructions."
Valerie lifted her head just enough to see him now standing before the trembling guard who had struck her. The man's head was bowed, his entire frame shaking.
"I… Forgive me, my lord, she..."
"Excuses," Vincent cut him off sharply. "Excuses. Always fucking excuses with you."
Before the guard could say another word, Vincent seized him by the face and slammed his head against the wall with a sickening crack. The plaster behind him splintered as Vincent's nails dug into his skin, drawing blood.
The guard whimpered, blood streaming down his cheeks. "Please… please, my lord, forgive me…"
Vincent slammed his head into the wall one more time. The man went limp, crumpling to the ground in a heap.
Valerie stood frozen, pale as snow, her wide eyes fixed on the unconscious man bleeding at her feet.
With bloodied fingers, Vincent reached for her jaw and tilted her face up to his. "Have a wonderful night… Daphne," he said softly, "for It might be your last."
He released her and stepped back. "Take her to the dungeon," he ordered coldly, before turning away.