The Vampire Prince's Beloved

Identity

The guards at the entrance of the building opened the door and bowed as Frednard got to the building. Mac was with him and two other guards who waited at the car for them.

He walked into the main area and met his mum in some sort of conversation with his new slave girl, Angela. Dave his younger brother was by her side and Angela looked nervous but that wasn't his major concern.

"Frednard, I see you came," Mrs Olivia, his mum, stated.

He proceeded to where his mother was standing and kissed the ring on her right hand which she stretched before him.

"Mum, how are you doing?" he said after a peck to left her cheek.

He had not seen his mother since he moved out of the out against her wish, six months ago. Since then, all attempts by Mrs Olivia to get him to drop by the house had been futile. He guessed that was she took a new approach of taking one of his slaves to get him to come over for dinner. He knew he was in for a long talk and that was what he had been avoiding.

"Very well. The table is set and everyone is here. Let us move to the dining," Mrs Olivia announced and proceeded to the dining table set beside the interior swallow pool.

"Hey, Dave," Frednard said as patted Dave on the shoulder.

"Hey, big bro," Dave replied and pulled his brother into a hug. "What we talked about is store house," Dave said as he released his brother from his embrace.

"Mac, go get the bags from the store house," Frednard instructed Mac who had been standing close to the main entrance, waiting to receive instructions from Frednard.

Frednard and his brother went to join their mother on the table.

"Join us here. You are our guest today," Mrs Olivia said to Angela who was still waiting in the common area.

Angela walked to the dining to take an empty seat not close any one but Mrs Olivia's voice disrupted her.

"Come seat here," Mrs Olivia said, directing Angela to a seat next to Dave.

Mrs Olivia's sat on the single seat on the shorter part of the table. Frednard sat on the seat by her right while Dave took the one by her left.

Mrs Olivia clapped her hands once and the servants who stood by for the food service began their jobs.

There were a lot of dishes on the table. A plate of seared lamb with wild mushroom risotto was dished out to Mrs Olivia. Frednard was served Salmon coulibiac with buckwheat. Dave on the other hand had a meal of roasted chicken served with a side of macaroni and cheese while Angela was given a plate of toast with canned beans on it.

"Let's eat," Mrs Olivia announced and everyone started eating.

Frednard noticed that his mother's eyes were fixed on Angela as they ate but he was unbothered. He just focused on his meal.

The dinner was going on and everyone was eating silently before Mrs Olivia opened the floor with a question to Angela.

"Who are your people, young lady? " she asked with her gaze fixed on Angela.

Angela swallowed the portion of food she had been chewing in her mouth and cleared her throat. "Uhmm. . ." Her eyes quickly glanced round everyone's face like she was expecting some sort of clue. "They – They are responsible citizens of this country," she said and quickly filled her mouth with some toast.

Frednard raised his eyes from his meal to look at Angela. Their eyes met and she quickly looked to her food. It was like she was kind of embarrassed at her answer to the question.

"Our guest doesn't seem sure of where her parents are from," Dave commented without taking his eyes of his meal and gave a short scoff.

Frednard noticed the quick frown on Angela's face which didn't last a second before it vanished. He observed her calmly for a short while before returning to his meal. Since the time she called his first name without fear in the hospital, he had not stopped wondering where she got the boldness from.

"Not the answer I wanted to hear," Mrs Olivia pointed out and Dave chuckled annoyingly.

Frednard noticed a glare pinned at Dave by Angela though she knew eyes were on her. This time, the glare lasted for a few seconds before it disappeared. The Angela that sat with them on that table was a total opposite of the one he took as a payment for her mother's debt. Maybe this was her true nature which she hid before but was now emanating because she had not fully recovered her memory as the doctor had said.

Angela placed her fingers softly on her forehead and said in a lighter voice than the one she had been talking with, "I am sorry, ma'am. I have not fully recovered my memory since I woke up but that is what I can remember for now."

Frednard's mum took a napkin from the table and dabbed her lips. She had dropped her cutlery and now had her full attention on Angela. It was difficult to guess what was going on in her mind.

"Have you heard of vampires?" Mrs Olivia asked. Her voice was firmer than before.

"Yes, in fictional stories and movies," Angela said, with a face that was unsure why Mrs Olivia changed the topic. 'They feed on blood."

"Good. You remember them," Mrs Olivia commented. "That means you know they can kill?"

Dave chuckled at his mother's words and ended with a smirk at the corner of his lips.

"Mum," Frednard called as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Please, I would like to talk to you privately." He already knew where his mum was trying to do that was why he finally decided to have the talk that he had been avoiding with her.

"No problem," Mrs Olivia said, swept her seat backwards and stood up. "Enjoy your meal. I will be back."

Though they were harmless words, it sounded more like a threat coming with the tone and face she said it.

Frednard was already on his feet and was about to lead her to a place where they could talk but Mrs Olivia went before him so he followed behind her.

She walked into a room that looked like a small sitting room but there was a huge chair whose frame was made of pure gold and had a red diamond, similar to the one Mrs Olivia had on her neck and finger, fixed at centre of the top the chair.

Mrs Olivia sat on the chair as she entered while Frednard sat on a sofa chair close to her.

"You may speak," she said after Frednard kissed her ring.

"Mum, you have always wanted us to talk so I want us to have that talk now."

A soft chuckle left Mrs Olivia's lips which didn't last long. That was the first time she had made any other expression other than the straight face Frednard met when he came. He wasn't ruffled though because he knew his mother was one who rarely smiled since after his father's death long ago.

"I have invited you over for a talk countless times since you left the house six months ago but you never came," she said. Her voice was slow but still deep. "Now you didn't only show up but you are willing to talk because I took that girl?". She chuckled again and ended with a smile that vanished almost immediately. "Don't you find it find it funny, Frednard?"

Frednard sucked in some air and sighed. "I came because you invited me over for dinner, mum."

"Is this the first dinner I have invited to? But you don't come."

"And I call to apologize and explain why I don't come."

Mrs Olivia shook her head a bit, leaned forward and asked, "Who is that lady on the dining to you?"

"A slave girl, ofcourse. Her mum owes me a lot of money so I took her as payment of her mother's debt."

"Why did you replace all the maid and man-servants that you previously had with new ones two weeks ago?"

"Have you been spying on me, mum?"

"You didn't answer my question, Frednard."

Frednard rested his back on the chair and said, "I replaced all of them because I needed free hands in my house."

"And you substituted them with mortals?

"Well, I prefer them over vampire slaves."

Mrs Olivia was silent for a short while before she said, "That mere mortal seated on my dinning is the reason you moved out six months ago?"

Frednard sat upright and looked at his mother. Her words sounded more like a concluded persuasion than a question. Her gaze was fixed on him and her face looked like she was suppressing her anger.