Married To Darkness
Chapter 316: The Trapped Seventh Princess

Chapter 316: The Trapped Seventh Princess

"She’s still here. She’s close. And yet, I can’t find her?"

His breathing grew shallow.

Dark thoughts swirled.

"What if she’s hurt? What if she’s suffering? What if—"

He shoved the thoughts aside with force. No. He couldn’t afford to think like that. He needed to act.

He turned abruptly, his cape billowing as he stalked back toward the castle’s interior. "We change our strategy," he ordered. "Searching blindly isn’t enough. We need to narrow it down."

Lucius followed. "What do you have in mind?"

Alaric’s jaw tightened. "Interrogation."

The moment the word left his mouth, the tension in the air grew heavier.

Jean swallowed. "You think someone in the castle knows something?"

Alaric didn’t just think—he was certain. The castle was vast, but not endless. Salviana was somewhere within these walls, and someone had seen something.

And he would make them talk.

His voice was ice. "No one rests until she is found. Gather everyone—servants, knights, nobles. If they know something, they will confess."

Lucius exchanged a glance with Jean before nodding. "Understood."

As he left to carry out the order, Alaric stood still for a moment, trying to keep his mind from descending into madness.

"She’s in here."

"I’ll find her."

"And whoever took her... will regret it."

~~{────────

~~~~~~~~~~~~}~~~

Meanwhile,

Salviana woke with a low groan, her entire body aching.

The first thing she registered was pain—a dull, throbbing pressure at the back of her head.

She winced, bringing her hand up to touch it, and her fingers came away damp. Wet?

Her breath hitched. Blood.

Her eyes flew open, but darkness greeted her. Thick, suffocating, endless darkness.

"Where am I?"

Her pulse quickened as she tried to move, forcing herself to sit up despite the sharp pain that flared through her skull.

The cold, hard ground beneath her sent shivers up her spine.

The air was damp, stale, carrying the scent of something old—stone, dust, and faint traces of iron.

Her breathing came faster now, panic creeping in. She squinted, scanning her surroundings, but there was nothing but shadows.

She turned her head—left, right—until she caught it.

A sliver of light.

A window? A crack in the wall?

Hope flared as she pushed herself to her feet, her legs trembling beneath her.

She stumbled toward the faint glow, her fingers reaching for it like a lifeline.

The small opening was barely at eye level, but she clutched at it, pressing her face against the cool surface.

Nothing.

No view of the outside, no sense of where she was. Just a dim glow seeping through thick glass. She tried to push it open. Locked.

She rattled it weakly, desperation making her movements clumsy.

She exhaled, her breath shaking.

"Think. Stay calm."

She squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to remember. The last thing I recall...

She had been outside, walking back to her chambers. Samion had left her to inform Alaric. She had sighed, turned back—

Then what?

She tried to dig deeper, but her memories were hazy, disjointed. Had someone grabbed her? Attacked her? She must have hit her head.

"Who would do this?"

And worse—why?

Her exhaustion was pressing down on her, but she fought against it. Her fingers curled into fists.

The more she let fear settle, the harder it would be to think clearly.

Alaric will come for me.

That thought alone made her exhale, but it didn’t erase the reality of her situation.

She was trapped. Weak. Alone.

And whoever had put her here hadn’t done so without a reason.

’I wonder if I’m still in the castle,’

Salviana pressed her forehead against the cold glass, her breath fogging up the tiny window. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, her heart hammering against her ribs.

"No... no, no, no..."

She was trapped.

The realization hit her like a crashing wave, threatening to pull her under. The walls around her felt smaller, closing in, suffocating her.

Her fingers trembled as she clawed at the locked window, pressing, pushing, banging—anything to make it budge.

Nothing.

"Alaric."

His name burst from her lips in a whisper, a plea, a prayer. Her voice cracked, but she tried again, louder this time.

"Alaric!"

Only silence answered.

No footsteps. No hurried response. No warm embrace pulling her out of the dark.

"Where is he? Why isn’t he here yet?"

A choked sob ripped from her throat. She slumped to the ground, pressing her hands against her temples.

This couldn’t be happening. Not now. Not after everything they had been through.

She squeezed her eyes shut, tears slipping down her cheeks.

"I need you, Alaric."

She had never felt this helpless before. Even at her lowest moments, she had always fought.

But now, in this suffocating darkness, she could feel something inside her breaking.

"You promised to protect me, you arrogant, stubborn fool."

She let out a bitter, shaky laugh, wiping her tears away angrily.

"You better be tearing the castle apart for me right now, Alaric. You better be losing your damn mind!"

But what if he wasn’t?

What if he thought she had left him?

Doubt slithered in like poison. Hadn’t she been distant lately? Hadn’t she avoided certain places, certain people?

What if they told him she had run away?

The thought sent ice through her veins. No. He wouldn’t believe that.

Would he?

She shook her head violently. No. This was Alaric. Her husband. Her vampire.

He would know. He had to know.

Her hands curled into fists as she swallowed another sob.

"Please, Alaric. Find me."

Her voice was barely above a whisper now, broken and raw.

She tilted her head back, staring up at the ceiling.

"If you don’t come soon... I don’t know if I can hold on."

But then it was her fault.

Regret and Despair

Salviana’s breathing was uneven, her chest rising and falling with every shuddered sob. She clutched her arms around herself, trying to stop the shaking, but it was no use.

"I was so stupid."

She pressed her forehead against her knees, squeezing her eyes shut as fresh tears slipped down her cheeks.

"Why did I think I could just walk back alone?"

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