After The Fall - END

16. Lilith

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**

Xander

"What do you think you are doing?"

Aira was silent in her place. Her eyes focused on the intertwined fingers and sometimes her index finger pressed the back of her hand until it formed a crescent moon pattern. I didn't need to see the signs of her nervousness to know because Aira already reeked of it. My movement would trigger her body to jump. Did she think I would strike her?

It annoyed me more than it should be.

Aira moved uncomfortably in her seat. Her body moved back and forth with her teeth biting her lip. "There is a lot of food and you don't finish it all, so instead of wasting it, it's better to give it to the hungry children. I can pay for the food I have given so far if that's the problem."

I sighed deeply. Money was not the problem here, nor was the food that Aira gave, but I didn't want to tell her my worries. It annoyed me even more that she didn't think about her safety. "With what? You don't have any money."

"You have to give me money every month, right? You can cut it from there."

"Cookie monster, I don't plan to give you money if I don't know where you will run off to when I'm not at home." Aira's eyes widened when she heard that nickname. I heard it from one of the soldiers who followed her in the first week when she visited her mother.

Aira demanded an explanation from me through her suspicious gaze, but I just shrugged once. My index finger was on the table, tapping constantly and making Aira's eyes shift there.

"I will be careful if what you are afraid of is that your chance to have a child will be lost if something happens to me."

I blink. I didn't even think that way, but what Aira said made it clear why I was upset about her safety that she didn't think about. This is the most logical reason why I had trouble sleeping all night and barked orders to my warrior to get those people who hit her. Anger boils inside me while she sleeps peacefully.

"No," I snapped at her. "You can't go anywhere until your wound heals." Or until I eliminate all the threats.

Aira's mouth opened and closed without uttering a word for ten seconds until she finally said "You can't imprison me here."

"It's not me who imprisons you, but your own actions that make you unable to go anywhere."

I didn't want to linger and hear her complain about the consequences of her own actions, so I left without hearing a word from her.

**

Aira stopped protesting on the second day she became a house prisoner according to her words. On the fifth day her shoulder dropped and according to the servant she only left the room for breakfast and dinner.

"What did you do with the leftover food?" Aira asked every time we finished eating and my answer was always the same: "It's none of your business." Then she would give me a cynical look and leave. She is getting bold everyday. We are dancing around this tune everyday but none of this gets on my nerves, in fact, I kind of enjoy the challenge she throws at me.

My wife hadn't left the dining room when the door opened and two people came in. One looked unhappy to be here even though he smiled faintly and the little human next to him looked overjoyed when his eyes fell on Aira who was still stunned.

"Aira." The girl shouted and immediately left her husband to hug Aira.

Aira turned to me and then to the little human who was hugging her, she didn't have time to say anything because Zaran's wife had already dragged her out with a string of words that never stopped coming out of her mouth.

The noise followed the two women until the door of Aira's room closed and her voice was barely audible. My eardrums were grateful to be able to rest from the shrill voice of Zaran's wife.

Zaran himself had walked to the other end of the dining table after bringing a roast chicken that was originally in front of me. He eats with gusto. I didn't want to bother and continued my chewing.

"You owe me big time for bringing my wife here," Zaran said with a tone in every word. It's annoying at its best. I don't know how he could be a general with his laid-back attitude. "But you kinda help me though, she talks my ear off most of the time."

I would think he didn't like his bride if I didn't see Zaran's face that was the opposite of what he said. Smile lingers a little longer at the end of the sentence and he actually chuckled.

"How's marriage life treating you? Any spy?"

I shrugged off that question, I didn't want to share stories about personal things with others, even though this news was nothing new after failing five times. People who like gossip will start talking behind your back.

When I didn't answer his question, Zaran threw another question. "So, did this one work? Because you never cared about anyone else, but you asked me to bring Lilith to meet your sulking wife."

This is the result of my rash action when I heard she was bored on the second day because she couldn't go anywhere. I contacted Zaran, but he could only come three days later. I don't like the spontaneous actions that I have been doing lately even though I always calm and think long before doing something. Thinking about the good and bad effects on me and planning carefully.

But Aira destroyed that and I can't get myself mad at her. I am mad at myself for allowing this to affect me.

I didn't answer Zaran's question anymore and let our conversation die like that.