Thanks to all of you for your reviews. I was a little nervous about having Jaime kill Cersei himself, but I've been trying to take the story in that direction for a while, since I thought it would take their relationship full circle. Now, for Sansa's reaction.

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Chapter 52

Sansa was running out of patience. She was tired of being cooped up in a tiny little room. And far too much time had passed since she'd seen Jaime. It had been nearly two days since she had seen or heard from her husband. He had stayed with her and Julianna the first night they were in the hidden room, and then left her the next morning. Sansa knew that Cersei had arrived at Casterly Rock that evening, but since then she'd not heard anything.

Arya had stayed in the hidden room with her since Jaime had left. Sansa knew that Arya was with her mainly because Jaime did not want Cersei to see her, for fear of what the queen regent might do to Arya. They both expected that Cersei would try to take Arya as her prisoner, if not worse.

The night before, Sansa had waited for Jaime to slip into bed with her during the night. She had deliberately slept close to Arya, with the baby curled against her, leaving room for Jaime to join them in the bed, but he had not come to her all night. Instead of waking up with Jaime beside her, Sansa had awoken to Arya kicking her in the back in her sleep. Fear began to grip Sansa as morning turned into afternoon and now afternoon was turning into evening again. And still, Sansa had not seen or heard from him. I can't spend another night in here without Jaime.

Sansa opened the door, startling Gendry in the process, judging by how quickly he jumped to his feet and all but ran towards her. "Do you need something, Lady Lannister?"

"Where is Jaime?" she asked in a shaky voice. Jaime had assured her that Cersei would not hurt him, but she no longer knew what the Queen was capable of. He should not have been gone for so long. What will happen to us if she hurts Jaime?

Gendry looked at her kindly. "I don't know where he is, my lady. Lord Lannister has not yet returned. He was quite clear that you were to stay here until it was safe for you, Arya and the babe to come out."

"When will that be?"

"I don't know, my lady. He said he would send for you once it was safe. Until then, you need to stay inside."

"We're bored," Arya whined, which only annoyed Sansa, since she thought Arya was undermining her attempt to convince Gendry to let her out. She wasn't so silly that she wanted out of her hiding place because she was bored. She was worried about Jaime and she wanted to make sure he had not been hurt.

Gendry motioned for Sansa to reenter her chamber and she stubbornly walked back inside, picking up her baby and settling in a chair as Gendry joined them in the small room. He clearly expected her to be as ill-behaved as Arya, based on the way he stationed himself in front of the door. "I know you want to know what's going on out there, but Lord Lannister would be very upset if anything happened to you. I swore to him that I would keep the two of you, and the babe, safe."

"Maybe you could go out there and see where Jaime is," Arya suggested.

"We're all going to do what he said. We're going to stay in here until he sends for you."

Arya huffed, throwing herself on the bed. Gendry did stay in the room with them for several hours, trying to keep them company and distracting Arya from her boredom. Sansa largely ignored them and instead focused her attention on her baby and silently praying for Jaime's safety.

There was a soft knock on the door and Pia appeared with a tray of food, though Sansa was not interested in it, and ordered Pia to bring back Jaime, to assure her that all was well. Pia seemed fearful, but nodded and promised to bring Ser Addam to her, stumbling over her words. Sansa was overcome with fear. Why won't she bring Jaime here? After a few minutes, the door to the chamber opened, and Ser Addam appeared.

"Where's Jaime?" she asked quietly, fear beginning to take hold of her.

"He asked me to bring you and the babe back to your chamber," he said, not really answering her question. "Lady Arya, I believe your mother is waiting for you to dine with her. You don't need to stay in here anymore. The Queen Regent was murdered last night. Strangled as you were, my lady. Stannis Baratheon's assassin has been found and his head has been mounted outside the gates as a warning to anyone who would dare betray you or Lord Lannister."

She could see that Arya was almost gleeful that the Queen was dead, but Sansa carefully considered his words. "When was she killed?"

Ser Addam shifted uncomfortably. "Her body was found last night by a chambermaid." Sansa realized that Jaime should have come to get her long ago. He should have come for her the night before.

Sansa met Ser Addam's eyes, and they both knew who had killed Cersei, though he was loyal enough to Jaime not to say so. As much as she knew Jaime loved her and Julianna, she did not think that he would actually kill Cersei to protect them. She thought he would probably just scare her or threaten her.

"Where is my lord husband?"

"In his solar. He has been quite distressed about the death of his sister. He's not left his solar since last night. The staff has been told that you and the child are alive. They know that any deception about that was to protect you."

Sansa nodded, gently placing Julianna in her little basket, and grasping the handles, carrying it in front of her as she and Arya followed Ser Addam out of the hidden rooms, which led them into Jaime's bedchamber. Sansa tried the door to Jaime's solar, and found it had been bolted shut. She immediately went to the door leading to the hallway, intending to go to Jaime as soon as she could. Her personal guards were waiting for her in the hallway, and they all fell to their knees when they saw her.

"Lady Lannister. You really are alive."

The men bowed their heads and seemed truly relieved to see her. Sansa was stunned by the outpouring of deference and respect from the red cloaks – the same men she had feared for so long while in King's Landing.

"They were quite upset to hear you had been harmed on their watch," Ser Addam whispered to her.

"Please forgive us, Lady Lannister, for failing in our duty to you."

Sansa smiled faintly. "There is nothing to forgive," she murmured. "You were preyed upon by an assassin – a traitor - who used your trust – your friendship – to harm myself and Ser Jaime. You could not have foreseen it. Please, stand," she said, uncomfortable with these men at her feet. She urged Arya to go to their mother and thanked Gendry for his protection.

"Would you like me to go with you?" Ser Addam asked gently. "You may find…Lord Lannister is not quite himself."

Sansa shook her head. "We'll be fine," she said quietly, asking her guards to remain outside their chambers. "I expect he hasn't eaten since the queen's body was discovered?"

Pia nodded. "I've brought him food but…he's not touched it."

"Will you bring a tray into our chamber?"

"Of course, my lady," Pia said, turning on her heel.

Sansa walked down the hallway to Jaime's solar, opening the door without knocking. The room was dark, except for the fire crackling. She saw that Jaime was seated in a chair in front of the fire. She also noticed quite a bit of broken glass and several items that appeared to have been swept off his desk and onto the floor.

She placed Julianna on top of Jaime's desk as she approached him. She wasn't sure what she would find, and was a bit fearful to touch him. She slowly walked towards Jaime, and saw that he was staring into the fire and that the decanter of wine beside him was nearly empty. She noticed an empty flagon on the floor beside him and blood on his arm, no doubt from the broken glass. "Jaime," she whispered. Sansa took a breath and gently ran her hand over his hair and he leaned into her touch, closing his eyes and letting out a ragged sigh.

"I'm sorry I didn't send for you sooner," he said quietly. "I didn't…I didn't want you to see me in this state."

Sansa carefully took the glass from his hand, placing it on the small table beside him and looked at his cut hand and arm. "I won't ask if you're all right. I can see that you're not."

"She'll never harm you again, Sansa. You're safe now," he whispered. She could hear the pain in his voice and felt her heart lurch.

"What have you been doing all day?"

"Drinking…trying to erase the image of Cersei…dead." Sansa sat in the chair beside him and let him talk. "Part of me always believed her when she said that we came into this world together, and we'd leave it together. Part of me thought when…she died…that I might die right there as well. But I had to risk it. For you. And our baby. I couldn't let her hurt you again."

She hated the despair in his voice. She hated Cersei for putting him in this position. How could she not care that she would cause him such pain? How could she not care about breaking him so thoroughly?

"She actually thought that I would just fall back into bed with her as your body lay in my chamber. I've been thinking about our past together and…I have to wonder if she ever loved me. I honestly believed…we loved each other. I believed we were meant to be together." He shook his head, leaning forward, his head in his hand. "I'm sorry I shouldn't…you shouldn't hear such things."

"It's all right. Say whatever you need to say." It did hurt her to hear Jaime speak of loving Cersei, but she could bear it. For him.

"I realize now that I was just a pawn. I wasted so much of my life doing her bidding. Having no life of my own."

Sansa knelt before him, running her hands over his thighs. "Jaime," she whispered, reaching up and caressing his neck. "You're going to be all right." The smell of sour wine assailed her senses as she got close to him. "We're going to get through this. Together. I'm going to take care of you. As you've always taken care of me." She felt tears forming in her eyes at his despair. "I know that…I know that you've always believed that Cersei was your other half but…I love you very much and…I'm here for you, Jaime. I'll always be here for you."

"You don't care that I'm a killer?" he asked quietly, his eyes focused on her hand resting on his thigh. "You don't fear me?"

Sansa shook her head gently, rising to sit on Jaime's lap. "I could never fear you, Jaime. I'm sorry that you had to…I know you must mourn your sister, no matter what led up to her death. It's all right to feel sad. You don't have to hide it from me."

"I'm the last one left," he whispered. "My parents are dead. Who knows where Tyrion is or what became of him. And now Cersei…."

"You're not the last one, Jaime," Sansa said gently. "Julianna is part of you. And she is a Lannister. And you have me. We will always be your family." Jaime rested his head against her chest and Sansa wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sorry, Jaime. I'm so sorry that you're hurting."

"I had to write to Tommen…to tell him that his mother's dead. I suppose I should write Myrcella in Dorne as well." Sansa held him tightly as his voice broke. "Did I do the wrong thing?" he asked, looking up at her, desperate for reassurance.

Sansa rose from his lap, walking to his desk and lifting their daughter from her carrier. She smiled and gently rocked her as she walked, to soothe her. Sansa settled herself back on Jaime's lap and held the babe against his chest. "You did what you had to do to protect her," Sansa whispered. "Look how small and helpless she is. Julianna needs us – she needs her father to protect her." She watched as Jaime gazed down at their baby, bringing her close to him and kissing the top of her head, tears forming in his eyes.

"Let's go to our chamber, Jaime. I've asked Pia to bring dinner up for us. She tells me you haven't eaten since before yesterday. We can spend the night alone together, with our little girl."

Jaime nodded, as Sansa took his arm and led him into their chamber, carrying the babe in her other arm. She took one of the blankets she had made Julianna and laid it in the middle of their bed before placing Julianna at it, smiling at her as she looked up at Sansa . She bent over the baby, gently kissing her forehead. "I'm going to take care of your father for a bit," she whispered, gently stroking the babe's head as she stared up at the ceiling, content to lie on the bed.

Jaime sat on the bed, beside the baby, running his hand over her little foot while Sansa drew a bath. She called to Jaime and he slowly walked into the bathing room to join her, stumbling a bit in his drunkenness. Sansa wrapped her arms around his waist, holding him tightly and resting her head against his chest. He just stood there for a while, but after a few moments, he wrapped his arms around her, rubbing his hand over her back. "You're going to be all right, Jaime. I promise you." She kissed him softly before she began to remove his clothes.

The fire in the bedchamber and the warmth of the hot water filled the room as Sansa stripped Jaime bare – even removing the golden hand - and led him to the bath, watching as he sighed deeply and closed his eyes once the water covered his skin. Sansa left him for a moment and peeked in at the baby. Her little eyes were closed and she slept peacefully. Sansa smiled to herself and re-entered the bathing room, removing her own clothes before joining Jaime in the bath.

He opened his eyes as she rested her hand on the side of his face. She wished she could magically make the pain in his eyes disappear. Sansa picked up a washcloth and gently took his hand in her own, cleaning the cuts he'd given himself.

"How did you do this?" she whispered, as she examined his injury.

"I dropped a glass." Sansa looked at him skeptically. "I may have smashed it against the wall. Is it bad?"

Sansa shook her head. "It's just a few cuts. They aren't too deep," she said with a soft smile. She moved on to washing his chest, trying to get the smell of wine off of him. She felt Jaime's arm slide around her waist as she ran the warm cloth over his skin.

"I've been thinking…when I was a little girl, I always dreamed that a brave, handsome knight would love me, and be my lord husband," she said, speaking to him quietly as she continued to bathe him. "Jaime, you are everything I could have ever wanted. Both for myself, and as a father to my daughter. There's no one I would rather have as my husband. And no one I would rather have as father to my children." Sansa hugged him tightly, resting her head on his shoulder and felt him wrap his arms around her. Her heart broke when she felt his tears against her neck. She didn't say anything, knowing there was little she could say to comfort him. So she simply held him. "I'm sorry you're hurting," she whispered, gently kissing him.

"You shouldn't have to comfort me over Cersei."

"I like taking care of you," she whispered, nuzzling against his neck. "I love you, so much, Jaime. I always will."

"I love you, too, Sansa. You know that well enough by now," he said quietly, holding her.

"I do know that," she said with a smile, resting her forehead against his after wiping away his tears. "Shall we go get in bed?" He nodded, stepping out in the tub with her and Sansa wrapped a fluffy robe around herself and then around Jaime, reaching up to dry his hair. He followed her into their bedchamber and Sansa saw that Pia had left them a tray of food while they were in the bath. Sansa moved the tray onto the bed before carefully picking up Julianna and settling into bed, under the covers, holding them open for Jaime to join her. They cuddled together under the blankets, Julianna asleep in Sansa's arms as they picked at the food Pia left for them. Sansa wasn't very hungry, but she wanted Jaime to eat.

After they ate, Sansa moved to put Julianna down, but Jaime reached to take the babe from her arms. Sansa watched as he held the baby against his chest, gently rubbing her back. "I'd do anything for the two of you," he whispered, staring down at the baby.

Sansa leaned over and kissed him. "I know that. And I'd do anything for you, Jaime." She settled back against the headboard and pillows, motioning for Jaime to lie down. He smiled and indulged her, curling up with his head resting in her lap, and the baby curled up on his chest. Sansa stroked his hair, rubbing her fingers over his scalp as he closed his eyes in pleasure. She smiled down at her family, watching her daughter sleep in Jaime's arms. She could see that Julianna felt safe with Jaime. And she saw that Jaime took comfort from the infant sleeping on his chest.

She rested her hands on him as he slept and silently prayed that this wouldn't destroy him. She wanted her smirking, playful husband back. He'll be all right. He'll come back to me in time.

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Let me know what you thought…comments are much appreciated.

Next Chapter: Jaime tells Catelyn the truth…