The Crown's Obsession (WN)

"Someone forgot to babysit trouble," murmured Vladimir, barely bothered with Madeline's sister's disappearance.

"How did we not realize it?" Madeline stood up, a deep frown on her face. "She was right here. She was here before I tried to look at the second part of the memory."

"Can't you find where she is?" questioned Calhoun.

Vladimir tilted his head to the side, "Maybe? It was barely two to three minutes. She must not have gone too far away from here. But which person ever decides to explore Hell by themselves?"

"Elizabeth can," deadpanned Calhoun. They should have made her stay in the graveyard or sent her back in the carriage to the castle. But Beth had such bad luck that, even if they did that, there would have been chances where the carriage would have been attacked while going back to the castle. "Find her."

Vladimir chuckled, "I don't take orders, Calhoun. Be nicer, and I will try to see if I can find her."

"Please find Beth. I don't think it is safe for her in here," said Madeline. "Even if your blood runs in her, she still is a human, and it will only attract trouble."

The Devil stared at Calhoun and Madeline, a slow smile gracing his lips, "How about we make a deal?"

"You must be joking," Madeline stared at the older vampire.

"No, I am very serious," his smile on his lips broadened, "I do not see why I shouldn't milk an opportunity like this to my very own benefit."

Calhoun let out a tired sigh, "I knew he had more than a couple of screws loose in his head. I think it's time to tighten it." His black wings automatically spread out from his back.

"Now now, calm down and let us sit down and speak calmly," suggested Vladimir.

"If anything happens to Beth, our children will hate you," Madeline didn't know how else to threaten the Devil. "Beth is important to me, and I do not want to lose her."

"Are you sure about it?" Vladimir raised his eyebrows in question at her. "I mean I know both of you had a very rocky relationship with each other, but do you know it wasn't all about jealousy? Poor Elizabeth, every time she tried to do something good, you always stole it from her when you both were young. There's that deep dark corner in her heart that is scared and worried, you could say her mind is scarred."

Madeline knew that the Devil was not someone who could be trusted. Though he was Calhoun's grandfather, there was only upto a certain extent they could rely on him. This person didn't leave a single opportunity to get something in return, and somewhere in the back of her mind, she remembered the first few weeks she had spent with Calhoun in the castle.

She closed her eyes, trying to sense Beth around, but she wasn't here. She then opened her eyes.

"Are you trying to meditate?" asked Vladimir, and Madeline knew she would need to keep her calm. "You know what I said is true."

"Beth and I have already sorted out our differences, you don't have to remind what each of us has done to the other," stated Madeline, "Thank you for bringing me here to meet my mother, but we would not like to leave the place without Beth."

Seeing how Vladimir didn't respond to it, Calhoun's eyes only narrowed, "You had no intention of letting us leave this place, did you?" he took a threatening step towards the old bat.

"I did ask you politely if you would stay here with me, but instead you said I should come to visit you. How rude, you want an old man travelling back and forth. What unfilial grandchild I have got," said Vladimir in a sad tone before turning his head in the other direction.

"I will kill you like the butcher who minces the meat," glared Calhoun. "And when it comes to unfilial, I must have acquired it from my grandfather."

"I think you are telling about your paternal grandfather," stated Vladimir.

"No, I am speaking about the one who left my mother and went to get his beauty sleep," replied Calhoun and the smile that was on the Devil's face fell.

"You have some nerve, to keep poking me about the same matter. It isn't funny," spoke Vladimir in a low growl.

Calhoun didn't back away, and he responded, "It was not meant to be funny. Tell us what you have been hiding from us? What is it?"

Vladimir turned and walked a few steps away from them, the reflection of his body non-existent on the surface of the river that he walked next to. His shoes made a sharp clicking sound on the ground. "Well..." the man drawled.

Madeline wondered where Beth was or if Vladimir had kidnapped her sister. They didn't know where to find her, and it was best to get some answers from Vladimir than waste their time in Hell.

Vladimir turned to look at her, "You have less than two hours left before you will be registered as residents of Hell," he said, "You will turn to a full demon."

Calhoun didn't waste a second, and he went straight at Vladimir, pushing the Devil against one side of the wall while holding Vladimir's collar, "You are trying to kill her," he said the words through gritted teeth.

Vladimir didn't mind that Calhoun held his collar. If it was someone else, he would have burned them right there with a snap of his fingers, but the reason Calhoun could do it was because it was his blood that was running through Calhoun's veins.

"Let me correct my words," said the Devil with a smile, "Madeline won't feel the pain of death, and she will not be hounded to go to Heaven. I am only helping both of you. I know you would disagree with my methods-"

"And I wonder why," Calhoun's eyes blazed. He pushed the Devil further against the wall in raging anger, "Find Beth, and open the portal to us so that we can get back to the living world."