Chapter 62 The Doll Collection
Damian's POV
"I just want to see your doll collection," James said, his voice steady.
I watched Aurora's expression carefully, noting the way her shoulders stiffened for just a fraction of a second before she arranged her features into something that looked like hurt disappointment.
Something flickered across Aurora's face too quickly for me to identify before she smiled and reached for her door handle. "Of course. Please, come in."
She pushed the door open and stepped inside, flicking on the overhead lights with a casual gesture that flooded the room with brightness. I followed James and Kaelen into the space, taking in the pristine white furniture and soft pastel decorations.
Aurora moved to open the walk-in closet door, and I heard James suck in a sharp breath beside me as the interior lights revealed floor-to-ceiling glass display cases lining every wall. Each case held multiple dolls arranged with obvious care.
"I've been collecting them since I was a child," Aurora said, her voice taking on a wistful quality as she gestured to the nearest case. "Some of them are quite rare, actually."
Kaelen already moved deeper into the closet to examine the displays more closely. His expression remained neutral, giving nothing away.
I stepped further into the closet myself, letting my gaze travel over the collection. Something about the display felt off, though I couldn't quite put my finger on why. The last time I'd been in Aurora's room had been months ago, and hadn't there been more dolls then? The cases seemed less crowded now, with more empty space between the figures than I remembered.
I filed the observation away and continued my circuit of the room, aware of Kaelen doing the same on the opposite side, his movements methodical and deliberate as he examined each case.
Aurora moved closer to Kaelen, her bare feet silent on the plush carpet as she approached where he stood examining a case of Victorian-style dolls. "Alpha Thorne, I'm so sorry you had to come here this late. It must be terribly inconvenient. Would you like some water? Or I could make tea if—"
Kaelen didn't respond, his attention fixed on the dolls in front of him as if she hadn't spoken at all. I watched Aurora's jaw tighten fractionally before she forced her expression back into something softer.
"This one is actually my favorite," she tried again, her voice taking on that wounded quality she used when she wanted sympathy. "Though with this headache I've been having, I can barely remember when I bought it. The concussion has been affecting my memory so much, and—"
She lifted one hand to touch the bandage on her forehead in what was clearly meant to be a delicate, pained gesture designed to draw Kaelen's attention to her injury. Instead, he simply moved to examine another display case without acknowledging her at all, his movements deliberate and thorough.
Aurora froze mid-gesture, her hand still raised to her forehead. When she turned to look at me her eyes were bright with unshed tears.
I kept my expression carefully neutral, refusing to give her the reaction she wanted.
"We're here to look at the dolls," James said from where he stood near the doorway, his tone flat and unforgiving. "Not to listen to you complain about your headache."
The bluntness of his statement hung in the air like a physical thing, and I saw Aurora's face go pale. She opened her mouth as if to protest, then seemed to think better of it and simply wrapped her arms around herself in a protective gesture.
Kaelen had stopped moving. I realized he'd been standing completely still for the past several seconds, his focus locked on a single doll in the case directly in front of him. The doll had long black hair that fell in waves down its back, and its painted eyes seemed to stare directly at whoever looked at it.
"These black hairs are real human hair," Kaelen said, his voice cutting through the tense silence with the precision of a blade.
My heart rate kicked up immediately, and I saw James stiffen beside me. Aurora's eyes widened, and she took a half-step backward as if she'd been physically struck.
"Oh, well, that's normal for custom dolls," Aurora said quickly, her laugh coming out high and nervous. "High-end collectibles often use real hair for authenticity. It's actually quite common in the industry, and—"
"Dead human hair," Kaelen interrupted, his golden eyes finally lifting to meet Aurora's gaze. "Is that also normal?"
The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees. James made a sound somewhere between a gasp and a curse, and I found myself moving closer to where Kaelen stood without consciously deciding to do so.
Aurora's face had gone from pale to absolutely bloodless, her lips parting in what looked like genuine shock. "What? That's impossible! There's no way—"
"Aurora," James said, his voice sharp with accusation. "What the hell kind of dolls are you collecting?"
"I don't know!" Her voice rose, tears finally spilling over to track down her cheeks. "I swear I had no idea! The workshop I bought them from is completely legitimate, they would never use... they couldn't have..."
She was shaking now, her whole body trembling as she wrapped her arms tighter around herself. I watched her performance, noting how perfectly she'd calibrated her distress to seem authentic without being over-the-top.
"The difference between the living and the dead is not something an Alpha King can mistake," Kaelen said, his tone leaving no room for argument or doubt.
I stepped forward. "I'll need the name of the workshop where you purchased these dolls. We'll have them examined and verified."
Aurora's hands clenched into fists at her sides, her eyes filling with tears that threatened to spill over. "Damian, you don't trust me? After everything we've been through, you really think I would knowingly bring something like this into the house?"
The hurt in her voice was expertly done, pitched to make me feel like I was being unreasonable and cruel for even suggesting she might be at fault. I smiled at her, the expression not reaching my eyes. "When something unclean enters my home," I said softly, "I have every right to investigate it thoroughly."
Aurora's composure cracked, her carefully maintained mask slipping enough that I could see the genuine panic underneath. Her breathing had gone shallow and rapid, and the hand she lifted to her face was shaking badly enough that I could see it from where I stood.
The sound of footsteps in the hallway made us all turn, and Sebastian appeared in the doorway with Ryan close behind him. Both of them looked rumpled and half-asleep, their expressions confused as they took in the scene.
"What's going on?" Sebastian asked, his gaze moving from Aurora's tear-stained face to where Kaelen stood examining the dolls.
Aurora saw Sebastian and immediately wiped at her tears, trying to compose herself even as her whole body continued to shake.
James said sharply. "We discovered that these dolls are made with dead human hair, which Aurora claims she knew nothing about."
Ryan's eyes widened, and he looked at Aurora with something between shock and concern. "Is that true?"
"I swear I didn't know," Aurora said, her voice breaking on the words. "I would never deliberately bring something like that into the house, you have to believe me—"
"Aurora, your bandage," Ryan interrupted, his voice sharp with alarm.
I looked and saw that fresh blood had soaked through the white gauze on her forehead, a bright red stain spreading across the fabric. Aurora's hand flew up to touch it, and when she pulled her fingers away they came back wet with blood.
Her eyes rolled back in her head.
I moved on instinct, catching her before she could hit the floor, with Ryan grabbing her other side to help support her weight. Her head lolled against my shoulder, her breathing shallow and rapid, and I could feel how cold her skin had become.
"Get the doctor," Sebastian said immediately, his voice tight with concern as he moved closer to check Aurora's pulse. "And let's deal with the rest of this tomorrow when everyone's had some sleep and Aurora's been properly treated."
He gestured to the display cases full of dolls, his expression grim. "Have someone box up all the black-haired ones tonight. We'll have them examined in the morning."
I nodded my agreement, carefully shifting Aurora's weight so I could lift her more easily. "Kaelen, would you mind handling the collection?"
"Of course," Kaelen said, already moving toward the nearest case with purposeful strides.