The Night Belongs to the Moon | Taeyong

29 | Guilty Until Proven Innocent

In the violet light of dawn, Dal-ae knelt next to Sunghyun's body, blood oozing out of the gash in his chest. In her hand was a bloodied silver stake, its sheen gleaming in her eyes.

'Dal-ae...' Doyoung said quietly, catching her attention.

Slowly, she turned her head to look up at him, expression unchanged. But it was when her eyes landed on Taeil, who was gaping at her with a terrible frown on his face, she realized what the scene must look like to them.

'Traitor!' Taeil yelled, without waiting for another thought. 'I knew it! You mortal. How dare you kill a vampire?!'

Dal-ae pressed her eyes closed and with a sigh, she rose from the marble floor, her skirt drenched in the same blood, the stake still in her hand.

'I didn't do it,' she said, her tone even and calm. 'I didn't,' she added, this time specifically looking at Doyoung and that was enough for him to believe her.

'Nonsense!' Taeil shouted. 'You were caught at the scene of the crime.'

'So?' she said, crossing her arms over her chest. 'You are the scene too.'

'The audacity of this mortal. How dare you argue back?' Taeil shrieked and looked at Doyoung for help.

'Senior Taeil... calm down, please,' Doyoung said.

'Calm down? Look at this brazen brat. Her hands are covered in blood but there is no guilt in her eyes. I told you, I warned everyone that she is a murderer and now you can see for yourself.'

'Oh yeah?' Dal-ae said, taking a step forward. She twirled the stake between her fingers, grimacing as she did. 'Am I a murderer, then?'

At the sight of the silver, Taeil gulped and involuntarily took a step back.

'Dal-ae...' Doyoung warned, sighing.

Blood was dripping from her hand onto to the floor, one drop at a time as she kept walking towards Taeil. 'If I have already killed one vampire then I should get rid of the witnesses too, don't you think so?'

'Dal-ae... enough.' Doyoung cast himself between her and Taeil. 'At least from you, I expect rationality.'

Dal-ae raised her hands and threw the stake away. It clanked against the marble floor before stopping next to Sunghyun's body.

'You just wait and see!' Taeil hissed from behind Doyoung. 'I will have you tortured and hanged by your hair in the dungeon for the rest of your rotten life, mortal.'

'Senior Taeil!' Doyoung cried out.

'Well, you can't very well do either of those things, can you?' Dal-ae reminded him. 'That power lies only with the Lord.'

Realizing that she was right, Taeil scowled but backed off nonetheless.

'Fine, let's call the Lord then so that he can see your crime with his own eyes,' Taeil said, his fangs baring themselves as he spoke.

'Sure,' she agreed. 'Let me call him for you.'

'No!' Taeil blurted. 'Don't you dare move. We can't have you leave the crime scene. Who knows what tricks you have up your sleeves.'

Dal-ae scoffed. 'I am not going anywhere,' she said, looking at Taeil with a smile too broad. 'Watch.'

Silently, she whispered Taeyong's name into the T on her neck and waited.

Despite the fact that Taeyong had just gone to sleep after a whole night of working, he answered the moment he heard Dal-ae's call.

'He's coming,' she told Taeil and saw the displeasure rise within his eyes.