Free Web NovelChapter 202: Episode 202.
Aire emerged from the bath slowly.
The simple gown hung loosely around her now smaller frame. Her silver hair, finally free of mud, fell damply down her back.
For a moment she simply stood there.
The feeling of being clean seemed unreal. Then she noticed the table, and she froze. She saw fresh bread, fruit, actual food, and water.
A large glass pitcher sat in the center.
The sight hit her harder than she expected.
Her throat tightened instantly. Lysander sat nearby, with one leg thrown over the arm of a chair.
Aire’s eyes immediately went to the water.
Lysander followed her gaze. "It isn’t poisoned." He informed, seeing she was holding back from taking a sip.
Aire remained where she stood.
"It isn’t enchanted." He added.
Still she didn’t move.
Lysander sighed dramatically. "I give you my word."
That finally made her move.
Aire crossed the room quickly. The moment her fingers closed around the cup, she lifted it, and the water disappeared in one desperate swallow.
She barely stopped herself from reaching for more.
The relief hurt.
Her entire body seemed to wake up at once.
Lysander watched her silently. Then he nodded toward the bread. "Eat." Her permitted without emotions.
Aire didn’t argue.
She grabbed the bread immediately. The first bite nearly made her emotional. Eating real food after days.
Lysander pointed toward the chair. "Sit."
Aire shook her head. "I’ll stand." She said instead.
One of Lysander’s eyebrows lifted. He suddenly stood too.
Aire looked up at him. She looked up, and up. He was absurdly tall. A few inches taller than the Alphas.
She swallowed.
Lysander noticed her swallow. A grin suddenly appeared on his lips, and his grin widened.
Aire took another bite of the bread, ignoring him.
Lysander stepped closer. Not threatening, or aggressive but just enough to make her aware of how much larger he was.
Aire found herself taking a step backward.
Lysander’s grin widened further. He took another step towards her, and she stepped backwards until the back of her knees struck the edge of the bed.
Aire sat on the bed abruptly.
The bread nearly fell from her hand.
Lysander leaned one arm against the bedpost. The movement made every muscle across his shoulders shift.
Aire immediately looked away.
Then she looked back at him again. He was ridiculously attractive, and she wouldn’t lie. No reasonable person should be allowed to look like that.
"I..." Aire stopped.
Lysander looked delighted. "You what?"
She shook her head, and frowned lightly, as if coming back to her senses. "Nothing."
"Liar."
Aire rolled across the bed to put distance between them.
Lysander laughed at her. "Don’t be a mouse now, dear."
Aire narrowed her eyes. "I am not a mouse." She told him, taking a bite from the bread again. She wouldn’t waste good food.
"You absolutely are."
"No."
"You fled from a garden."
"The garden was possessed." She returned his humor back at him.
Lysander barked out a laugh again. He almost sounded like he was mocking her.
Aire drew in a soft breath. She finally moved to where he ordered her to sit, and sat down softly. Then she continued eating.
She doubts she’d see this sight so soon.
"What could you do with your powers before arriving here?" Lysander asked.
Aire hesitated, then shrugged. "Lift." She replied, remem
"Only lift?" He sounded a bit disappointed.
"No."
His eyes sharpened.
Aire sighed. "I could influence growth."
"The flowers." He noted.
Aire nodded. "And gardens with the forests."
Lysander leaned back, interested.
"And the silver hair?"
Aire stilled.
Lysander noticed immediately.
She chewed softly. "What about it?" She asked, not minding the food in her mouth.
"You know what it means."
Aire nodded. "It means I’m cursed."
A brief silence passed between them, then Lysander scoffed.
Aire frowned.
He stared at her.
For the first time all evening, genuine disbelief crossed his face.
"A curse?" He cross asked, to be sure she heard herself.
Aire blinked. "Yes."
Lysander continued staring at her. Then he laughed once. Not because it was funny, but because he couldn’t believe what he had heard.
Aire’s stomach tightened. She grew suspicious, and wary. "What?"
Lysander shook his head. He looked almost confused and concerned.
For several long seconds he said nothing.
He took his time, cleared his throath, then asked firmly. "Who told you that?"
Aire stared at him.
Lysander stared right back at her.
Aire felt the faintest crack appear beneath a belief she had carried her entire life.
"Do you want me to get my answer with a kiss?" Lysander questioned without blinking when she took forever to respond.
Aire made a face immediately.
A deeply offended face as if she just discovered that something died inside her food. She couldn’t hid the disgust of being kissed by a dark fae.
Lysander looked pleased.
Aire pointed at him with her bread. "No."
He leaned towards her. "That wasn’t a no." He drawled, as if no one was allowed to refuse his charm.
"It was."
"It sounded more like disgust."
"It was disgust." Aire clarified. "I am disgusted."
Lysander nodded thoughtfully.
Aire stared at him, then she took another bite of bread. She had spent too long hungry to waste time arguing with idiots.
Lysander watched her chew. "You’re avoiding the question." He told her.
"So are you."
His eyebrow rose.
Aire swallowed. "I aksed why you laughed before you asked who told me my hair was a curse."
Aire narrowed her eyes. "That means you know something."
Lysander leaned back into his chair. "I know many things."
Aire gave him a side glare. She took a sip of water, before responding to him. "How unfortunate for everyone around you."
A grin appeared on his face immediately.
Aire rolled her eyes, and unfortunately, the grin widened.
For a moment he looked almost proud, which was deeply concerning.
Aire reached for another piece of bread. She did that slowly, making sure she looked completely uninterested.
"What does it mean then?" She trued to ask, even if she doesn’t understand his motives yet.
Lysander immediately shook his head. He smack his lips, and his hand. "No."
Aire frowned. "No?"
"No." He pressed.
Aire raised a vrow at him, wondering what kind of person he was. "That’s your answer?"
"Yes."
Aire stared at him.
Lysander stared right back. He folded his arms, and nodded toward her.
"Answer my question first."
Aire immediately shook her head. "No."
His grin vanished. He blinked once, then twice as though the possibility had genuinely surprised him.
"You expect information without giving any?"
Aire pointed toward him. "That’s exactly what you’ve been doing." She accused. "I still can’t understand why I get a meal but I’ll think of it later."
Lysander opened his mouth, paused, and then reluctantly closed it again.
Aire felt a tiny spark of satisfaction.
Lysander noticed. "You look smug."
Aire ignored him.
Lysander let out a sigh. "I was beginning to like you."
Aire snorted.
The sound escaped her before she could stop it.
Lysander immediately looked delighted. His eyes settled on her silver hair that was still damp from the bath, and shining beneath the strange gray light.
Something unreadable crossed his face.
Aire noticed immediately. Her fingers tightened around the bread. "What does it mean?"
This time her voice came quieter, and more serious.
Lysander didn’t answer immediately.
For several seconds he simply looked at her, then he shrugged. "You aren’t getting an answer."
Aire’s jaw tightened. "Why?"
"Because I’m not getting one." His voice remained casual, and almost lazy but his eyes stayed fixed on hers.
Aire looked away first. This conversation would lead to a lot of things she had spent years refusing to discuss.
And she wasn’t foolish enough to hand those things to a fae. Especially not this one.
Lysander watched her for another moment.
Suddenly, he stood. The chair scraped softly across the floor.
Aire looked up, immediately disappointed. Not because she wanted his company, but because she wanted the food.
Lysander noticed. His grin returned. "Relax." He pointed toward the remaining bread. "You can finish it."
Aire immediately reached for another piece.
Lysander scoffed. "You really were starving."
Aire said nothing.
Lysander combed his fingers through his golden hair, fhen he nodded toward the door.
"When you’re done, it’s time."
Aire’s hand paused. She already knew what that meant. Returning to the cell, the mud, and the darkness.
The tiny bit of warmth she’d found inside this room disappeared instantly.
Lysander saw it happen. For the first time all evening, he didn’t smile. "Come on, dear."
Aire hated that he called her that. She hated that she no longer had the energy to argue about it.
Slowly she lowered the bread.
Her appetite vanished.
Lysander looked toward the doorway. "I need to return you before Morrigan remembers you exist."
Aire swallowed.
Lysander waited.
Aire stared at the half-finished meal, then at the water.
Her stomach tightened.
Lysander’s voice softened unexpectedly. "Finish eating."
Aire looked at him.
He looked away first. "As much as I enjoy watching you suffer," he muttered, "Vaelor enjoys it more. You’ll need the strength."
