Chapter 38: Until you moan my name

Lilith and Apollyon exchanged a lingering gaze before she inquired if he had completed his

work. He nodded in confirmation, saying, "I came here only after finishing my work."

Noticing an eyelash on Lilith's cheek, Apollyon reached out to gently remove it, causing her to

feel an odd sensation as his fingers brushed her skin. Her mind kept returning to the kiss that

had left her feeling vulnerable.

"You ran away earlier," Apollyon asked as their eyes again locked with each other. "I apologize if

I hurt you in any way," he whispered.

Lilith curled her fingers as she decided to speak the truth to him. "You didn't hurt me. I was

startled. I didn't expect you to kiss me," she reasoned and lowered her eyes.

Apollyon found she didn't reprimand him for kissing her without her permission. Instead, she

avoided his gaze. Was she shy about it? He couldn't help but observe a faint blush creeping

across her cheeks, extending to her ears.

Under his intense stare, Lilith felt her body temperature rise, making her uncomfortable. Trying

to escape the situation, she quickly came up with an excuse to head to the washroom. However,

before she could even rise halfway, Apollyon pinned her down onto the mattress.

His hands tightly gripped her wrists, their eyes interlocked. "You didn't get angry at me for

kissing you," Apollyon said, seeking a response which would satisfy him so that his hunger for

her didn't unleash again.

Lilith's lips parted to speak, but words didn't come out of her mouth. Her mind could not process

what she should answer in such a situation. However, she didn't want to be caught. Lilith didn't

wish him to find out that her body and mind were not in synchrony with each other.

"Lilith, you took a long time to answer," Apollyon voiced, making her come out of her thoughts.

He leaned closer to her lips, their breaths mingled at this point. "Just admit it that you felt

different today," he whispered, yearning for an answer from her.

"I-I didn't," Lilith replied, her response shaky with a stutter.

"You are lying. Every lie has a punishment," Apollyon declared. Before Lilith could ask him, he

buried his face in the crook of her neck. Her breath hitched the moment his lips met her smooth

skin. Her toes curled and her eyes fluttered shut. It was a torture for her. The way he kissed her

skin was torturous, leaving her mind momentarily blank as desires surged within her.

Apollyon was right; with that one kiss, he broke down the walls around her heart.

Lilith somehow got control over her mind and pushed him away. "That wasn't allowed," she

finally spoke.

Apollyon smirked at her. "I got my answers though," he asserted, confidence evident in his eyes.

Lilith found herself torn once again, wanting to escape from Apollyon's presence, and she

listened to her mind, swiftly getting off the bed and heading to the washroom. Apollyon couldn't

help but giggle, convinced that Lilith also had feelings for him.

Inside the washroom, Lilith pondered how to handle the situation with Apollyon waiting outside.

She feared he would persistently pressure her to accept her feelings, causing a headache to

brew.

"Lilith, come out. Are you going to stay the entire day there?" Apollyon's voice fell into her ears.

Apollyon's voice echoed through the door. Reluctantly, she opened the latch and stepped out.

"I need some time alone. And please, keep your distance," Lilith said, wearing a stoic

expression.

Apollyon appeared right in front of her and pulled her chin up. "That's not going to happen. Not

anymore," he proclaimed. The desire for her was visible in his eyes, making her gulp.

"This isn't what you think," Lilith protested.

"Then explain why I shouldn't believe you have feelings for me," Apollyon pressed for a

satisfactory answer.

"Because I didn't respond. I-I wanted to stop you, but you acted before I could ask you not to,"

Lilith replied.

Amusement danced on Apollyon's face as he smiled at her explanation.

"Don't deceive yourself," Apollyon said, his hand dropping from her chin. His finger traced her

collarbone sensually, keeping his gaze locked onto hers to gauge her reaction. He leaned in and

whispered in her ear, "You want me to touch you, Lilith. You've started to like this devil."

As he leaned back, Lilith explained to him he assumed wrong when he pressed his finger on her

lips. "Say another lie, and I'll unravel you completely. I won't stop until you moan my name with

those pretty mouths of yours," he asserted, a smirk widening across his lips.

Apollyon withdrew his finger from her collarbone. "Now, I will kiss you only when you beg me

either with your mouth or your eyes. However, until you accept that you've developed feelings

for me, I will keep giving your body a sweet torture," he pronounced and slowly walked

backward.

"I give you the alone time. I will see you before dinner," Apollyon said. "Ahh, I forgot to tell you.

Your heart is beating like a drum," he muttered and disappeared from her sight.

Lilith finally heaved a sigh of relief. She completely let her guard down and now, things would

not be the same anymore.

~~~~~~

Apollyon met Jareth in the evening, who lay on the chaise, his right knee in the air while his left

leg lay flatly.

"What did you find out?" Apollyon asked.

"Not much. But there used to be a clan of sorcerers. I'll answer you after two days because I

don't have the right answers," Jareth replied.

"You said that not every human could decipher what was written in the books of sorcery. Aren't

the words the same for them?" Apollyon queried.

"They aren't the same for them," Jareth answered, tilting his head to meet his brother's gaze.

"What did Lilith find out?" He curiously inquired.

"The five names, which she believes belong to the sorcerers," Apollyon asserted. "We aren't

confirmed yet," he added.

"Tell me the names," Jareth demanded.

"Cedric, Alistair, Nathan, Draven and Aria," Apollyon answered. "Except the names nothing was

mentioned about them," he asserted.

"Father must know about them. However, I do not wish to ask him. What do you think?" Jareth

asked for Apollyon's suggestion.

"Won't that be easier to reach them?" Apollyon queried.

"Father will question your decision to marry a human. Perhaps he will force you to marry

someone from our kind," Jareth proclaimed.

"Don't be ridiculous," Apollyon said.

"I am serious, Brother," Jareth affirmed.

"My father married my mother, who was a human," Apollyon reminded him.

"Father isn't the same anymore. How couldn't you notice that? I know you've not met him for a

long time, but you shouldn't forget how he reacted when Elena attempted to ask him if she could

marry a human. He killed that human without thinking twice. You have already married Lilith, so

you can imagine what can happen," Jareth pronounced.

Apollyon had indeed forgotten about that.

"You forgot that incident!?" Jareth arched his eyebrow in curiosity.

"So many years have passed, so I eventually forgot. Also, Elena moved on easily from him,"

Apollyon replied.

"I moved on because I had no other way," Elena proclaimed as she entered the chamber.

"See, Apollyon. Father will not even let you explain. So, you better not let him find out," Jareth

advised him and sat upright.

"I wonder if the sorcerers are immortals like us," Elena opined.

"We cannot comment on this," Jareth replied and gazed at Apollyon. "Do you try to remember

how you were sealed?" he asked him.

"I tried, but I got no results. My memory is blank of that time," Apollyon replied.

"You can imagine the power those sorcerers hold," Jareth remarked. "They took out your

memory as if they knew someday you would wake up," he stated.

"That's why they used a human's blood to wake him up," Elena said and looked at Apollyon. "If

Lilith succeeds in ending the blood bond between you two, will you love her the same way as

you do now?" She wanted to know Apollyon's opinion.

"You filled the void in Lilith's mind. I love her not because of the blood bond but because she

dared to wake me up. Kids get scared easily, but she didn't," Apollyon reasoned.

"Well, you did get her blood," Jareth stated and told him not to ignore it completely.

"Lilith thinks her father died because of a bigger reason that day. Did you try to find out?

Perhaps his father's death is also connected with all this," Elena concluded.

"It happened ten years ago, so reaching the truth is difficult. The place where Lilith spent her

childhood is deserted. I have ordered them to locate those humans first because they knew

Lilith's father," Apollyon explained to her.

"What about her mother?" Jareth suddenly asked.

"I don't know. I never asked her," Apollyon replied.

"Her father stopped her from plucking the black flower. I entered her memories entirely unlike

you," Jareth stated before Apollyon could ask him how he knew about that. "You should find out

how her father knew about the black flower. Was he a mere royal doctor or something more?"

He raised an eyebrow with a doubtful gaze.