Chapter 258 Gentle Bird

Chapter 258 Gentle Bird
"He thinks he can gaslight me into believing his little performance," Ryker muttered. "He thinks showing a little blood makes his story believable."

Lyra walked over to him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Ryker. I think you were a little too harsh on him just now. Have you actually seen the injury on his arm? It's deep, and the flesh is still burning. It's very fresh, honey. He didn't give himself those marks."

"I don't care," Ryker said flatly, pulling away from her touch as he paced toward the window. "He could have gotten that injury from anywhere out on the eastern ridge patrols, or maybe Sylvester did give it to him during the struggle. But I still do not believe his story. Our prison was built by the old elders; it is not able to be broken by a single human being, with or without the Blood King’s enchantment. A human’s biology is still too weak to fight a werewolf inside a silver-lined room. Yes, Sylvester is skilled, and yes, he had some dark magic from the village, but he is still just a human. Any wolf here, trained or untrained, should be completely able to overpower him in a closed space. My brother must have done something stupid, and I just need to find out exactly what it was."

Lyra let out a long sigh, crossing her arms as she watched him pace. "Don't you think you're being a little too paranoid right now, Ryker? And don't you think you're being incredibly hard on him? He took over the full command of the pack and did a good job at it under such pressure."

Ryker spun around in frustration. "A good job? Lyra, have you seen Rex? She is a complete mental mess, locked in a clinic room! And our primary prisoner, the only man we were hoping to use to gather more information about the southern vampires is completely gone! I don't think that counts as taking good care of the pack."

"But what do we even need Sylvester for anymore?" Lyra asked as she stepped closer to him. "The Blood King is dead, Ryker. Remember? The sun took him. It’s over. The war is completely over, and we can finally live in peace now. We don't have to be afraid of the vampires anymore. Now that their leader is gone, the rest of them won't last long before they scatter and disappear into the south as well."

Ryker looked at her beautiful blue eyes and finally sighed, nodding. "You're right... you're entirely right, Lyra. But still... it feels very uncomfortable, you know?"

"I know," Lyra said softly, reaching up to gently trace his jawline. "I know it feels strange, and I'm sorry, okay? But let's just go upstairs and have some rest. We’ve been running on foot and riding for hours. Let’s handle the rest of all this tomorrow."

Ryker looked down at her hands and kissed her cheeks gently. "Alright. Let's go upstairs."

When they finally got upstairs, showered and climbed into bed, Ryker pulled her closer and kissed her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked softly, touching her hair.

Lyra smiled, "I'm fine, Ryker. I should be asking you that. I know you've had such a rough day."

But he just shrugged, "I'm not the one who got sick. How's that fever?"

His hands went to her forehead and she sighed, loving the warmth of his fingers on her skin.

"It's gone, I'm fine now, I promise."

"I wish Rex was alright. She'd be able to tell us if the Blood King still has any way of reaching you."

Lyra chuckled, "from the underworld, I doubt that."

He nodded although he still looked a little worried, "I don't want anyone or anything to ever take you away from me. I know you're strong, Lyra. But I'm always here to protect you."

She nodded and kissed his lips tenderly, "you're the strongest man I know, Ryker. Being your wife gives me strength."

He smiled and wound his hands around her waist, lifting her until she was straddling him. "Do you want to...take control?"

Lyra looked at his tired face and then chuckled, "no...you're exhausted."

"I could go one round," he suggested, "I'm not too tired to have you ride my cock."

"Ryker!"

He winked at her and she could already feel his erection. But she shook her head and climbed down, laying on his chest instead, "tomorrow when you're stronger. I promise."

"Don't break your promises, woman," he said hopefully and kissed her lips again.

"I won't," Lyra replied.

Ryker pulled her into his strong arms and didn't even last up to a few minutes before he was out.

The moment his head hit the soft pillows, his body completely gave out. He was totally knocked out, letting out loud snores as his large arms instinctively wrapped around Lyra’s waist, pulling her body flush against his chest to hold her close in his sleep.

Lyra lay perfectly still in his embrace, listening to the steady breathing.

But she knew that she had other things to attend to.

Carefully, she began to move away from Ryker's grip and she slid her leg out from under the blanket, trying to slip past his large hands without waking him.

Ryker let out a mutter in his sleep, his arms instantly tightening around her waist as he tried to pull her back into his chest. "Lyra... don't go..." he mumbled, his face burying into her hair.

Lyra stopped, holding her breath.

She turned her head slightly, leaning up to press a soft kiss on his forehead.

She began to hum a little and stroke his hair and shoulders.

Within a few moments, Ryker’s tense muscles completely relaxed and he was breathing deeply as let go of her waist, dropped onto the mattress and fell back into sleep, snoring.

Lyra rolled away quickly, slipped out of bed and threw on a bathrobe as she quietly opened the door and stepped outside.

She had to speak with Dax. Alone.