Chapter 25: She Witnessed His Demon Side

"I know it's hard to do, and I'm not forcing you, but it's my top priority," Inara murmured, and he simply nodded, "Aren't you curious to know why I'm back?"

"Interfering in your private isn't something you'd like me to do, so I stopped. I'm still surprised to see you here; that's all I want to know. That day, I saw you dead; may I ask what happened to you?" she asked quietly, "Tougher problems are handled tougher, so don't worry about how I'm still alive; what counts is that I'm not leaving anymore. I would never leave your side; you may have been mistreated during my absence, but that doesn't mean they can do anything they want and get away with it," Alexander said earnestly, and Inara furrowed her brow in perplexity, "What do you mean with that?"

"Nothing serious, you should sleep early so you could wake up early," he replied, rising to his feet, but she clutched his waist tightly, "Please, don't leave just yet," she pleaded, "Who said I was leaving? I wouldn't leave my wife in this situation, and it's unacceptable that we sleep in separate rooms," he said calmly. Inara smiled genuinely– This was the first time he called her 'my wife.'

"Stop staring at me as if I will die on you at any moment, wifey," Inara was brought back to reality by his sweet voice, "Staring at my face too often may cause your eyes to burn," he mocked, and Inara jerked back in dread before letting go of his hand.

"You sustained more injuries than usual; these are more than just bruises as you claimed," Alexander observed, after seeing her deep wounds. Inara said nothing because she was in deep pain, but it vanished when she saw him.

Her face was abruptly covered with a blindfold; she tried to remove it severely, but he was adamant about allowing her to, "There's no better solution than this; just put yourself together," Alexander begged, and plunged in a deep knife, extracting the toxic insect from her leg.

Inara shouted in anguish and grabbed the duvet tightly, her hands bled even more as she gripped them hard. Alexander washed her blood-stained calf with a clean cloth before softly and carefully massaging it, "How's this? Is the pain you're experiencing suppressing? Please let me know if this is…, "No, it is not. Stop….,"

"I guess I'm not during it as expected, should I summon the head maid?"

"No, "What should I do then?"

"Cuddle me, it'd be better, "But what about your wounds….., "I don't want to go through that pain again, Alex; it's really hard for me to bear," she whispered sleepily, and he realized she had fallen asleep before he noticed. He lay next to her, peered at her closely, and unexpectedly kissed her on the forehead, mumbling, "Maybe I'm wrong about you, wifey,"

—

Yivanne remarked happily, "My lady, you finally opened your eyes," her eyes were bright with joy. Inara took a hard look at the figure sitting beside her, examining her deeply, and knew there couldn't be any uncertainties, "Yivanne?" she called in a lowpitch, but still detectable voice.

"Yes, my lady; how are you feeling?" Inara burst into tears, prompting Yivanne to inquire as to why she was crying, "Where does it still hurt? Should I....," Inara clutched her hand tightly, and they exchanged a sisterly glance while holding their breath.

"I don't want to lose you too," she wailed softly. Yivanne exhaled a sigh of relief, and massaged her gorgeous thumb, "Never would I leave your side, nor would you lose me, my lady. But could you please explain what's wrong?"

"Do you promise me that?" she questioned with a pleased tone, and Yivanne gently nodded in agreement, tears streaming down her cheeks, "Thank you, Yivanne. How is your relationship? Are you both happy?"

"Yes, we are, but he told me he would come here any moment if you didn't get back on your feet soon. Your illness has deteriorated; why did you have to suppress your pain? Why…, "You promise, right?"

"Yes, my lady, I'll never leave your side," Yivanne nodded slowly, and they hugged warmly.

—

Zephyr appeared beside Alexander who was seated inside the library, even if his attention wasn't totally concentrated on the book he was reading, "You seem to be absence minded, Demon, I mean Alex, is this about your wife?"

"She probably is hiding something from me," Alexander stated in hushed tones, "What do you expect? She is not the type of wife who wants to worry her husband with her troubles; instead, she wants to be involved in his. How's she doing? Has she gotten better?" Zephyr inquired, but Alexander shook his head negatively.

"She was only mute before I left, so I kind of think Yivanne could help with her getting better," he said. Zephyr turned to face him, "This is the first time you're this concerned about someone, the person turns out to be someone I'd like you to care about. Regarding Inara's illness, her incapacity to write should be the cause. The reason for this is that she had this experience when she was five years old; her Mother was on the edge of dying. When she tried to overcome her fears, she attempted the unattainable, and after many efforts, she became ill. This time, it was undoubtedly due to your prolonged absence and the dread of your death in her heart, "Is there no remedy for her illness?"

"Yes, if it is possible. She should keep trying harder, even if she can't, and she will get well soon if the sad memories in her heart were fully obliterated," Zephyr stated firmly.

—

"You have been indoors all day, why did you want to visit the library?" Alexander inquired, "My husband, do you think I could ever be able to write?" after they had taken their seats. Inara asked in a tearful tone, which astonished Alexander even more.

"Do you want to learn how? Perhaps you could try," he said softly, and Inara smiled warmly. She took a clean sheet and a pen, "What do you want to write?"

"It is in my mind, I won't tell you, "Okay, rest assured; don't fret too much," Inara nodded enthusiastically; minutes had passed, but Inara couldn't write anything down. She continued demanding more sheets, but she was still she was always making mistakes.

Alexander approached her and picked up the sheets recording her many attempts, "It had gotten to the point where I couldn't even remember how you taught me; was I cursed? Why can't I write, yet I can read? It's a curse, according to..., "It's not a curse; don't blame yourself for your inability to read. Besides, you don't need to force yourself to know how, when I could write whatever you want. With time, you'll outgrow it, wifey," Alexander reassured, wiping away her soiled tears with his thumb.

"Will you abandon me again? Are you going to…, "No, wifey; I'll never make you go through such pain again, "But she said the same to me, and she left me alone," she said, "I don't know her, but I'm deeply supportive of what brings you happiness. I still stand by my promise, and it will never go unfulfilled," he assured, pulling her into a wonderful hug.

—

A man wailed shrilly, his suffering not clearly detectable because he was forbidden from yelling so as not to arouse Alexander's wrath, "Why did you consent to acquire my wife and sell her off into the Black Market? Who asked you to do this?"

"She's the one…," Alexander mocked harshly, sending hard spines down the man's body. He refused to express what he meant, "Who sent you for the final time?" Zephyr inquired, his voice chilly and icy; atlas responded in his customary cool tone.

Unable to contain his rage, Alexander flung another knife at his knees and crouched down to his level. The man caught an unintentional peek at him and nearly fainted, but knowing how he had been cruelly tormented just minutes before, he kept his horror hidden.

"Are you still not ready to admit the query?" Alexander questioned coldly, daringly peering into the man's eyeballs; his eyes were glowing with red, and his fangs emerged, "King Theodore was the one that sent me to pretend to be her savior, and sell her out; I never purchased her, but I sold her," the man spluttered and breathed heavily, "What happened next?"

"He also ordered me to tell some men to rape her so she could become pregnant…," the man murmured in anguish as his body was pulled up. Alexander strangled him deeper, his fangs penetrating his neck, producing a series of bruises at every angles.

"Alexander, don't do it!" Zephyr cautioned, but it was too late; Alexander had extracted the man's heart and was immediately swallowing it, "How can you swallow a heart without feeling remorseful?" they heard a voice, and when Alexander turned his attention to the direction, he saw Inara. The most important part was that she saw his burning eyes– Alexander was completely taken aback, understanding she had seen everything!