Chapter 90 Unsunk Truth
Dax paced the riverbank like a caged animal, boots sinking into wet sand, his fists clenching and unclenching as he turned on Ryker for the third time in a few minutes.
“How the fuck did she end up in the river?” Dax snapped. “And don’t tell me you tried—tell me why you didn’t drag her ass out!”
Ryker stood a few feet away, shoulders slumped, clothes plastered to his body, water dripping steadily from his hair and jacket.
He looked wrecked. Not just soaked, but completely distraught, like he'd just walked through the water for hours.
“I did try,” Ryker said hoarsely. “I jumped in right after her.”
“Then where is she?” Dax shot back. “Where’s Lyra?”
“She was already swimming,” Ryker said, voice tight. “Not just floating. She was moving straight toward the current. Like she couldn’t stop herself.”
Dax stared at him. “You’re telling me you watched her swim away?”
“I’m telling you I chased her,” Ryker barked, anger finally cracking through all the frustration and guilt he already felt. “I followed her for hours. Hours. I didn’t come back for help because I thought I could reach her alone.”
“You took hours before driving back to the IronFangs to get help?”
Ryker snapped, “I’m not a coward! Of course I tried my best alone!”
But Dax scoffed and stood right in his face and asked, “When will you stop making everything about you? When will you start thinking of her well-being?!”
Ryker had his hands fisted by his sides so tightly that just one more word and he was about to shut Dax up in the most bloody manner.
But before the argument could get out of hand, Rex came up from below the surface of the water.
She hauled herself up nearby, gasping as she dragged her soaked body onto the bank. She shook her head, breathing still a little shallow from being under for so long. “Nothing. No sign of her downstream.”
Dax ran a hand through his hair, jaw tight. “The river isn’t that wide. Even if the current took her, she would’ve washed up on some bank by now.”
“She has to be somewhere,” Rex said, trying to sound hopeful. “Lyra’s strong, and she must have fought against the current.”
Ryker swallowed hard. “She screamed before she fell. I think she was in some kind of pain.”
Both Dax and Rex turned to look at him quizzically.
“We were on the bridge,” Ryker continued, staring blankly ahead. “She suddenly doubled over, screaming like she was being torn apart from the inside. Then she dropped into the river.”
“And you jumped in too,” Dax said flatly.
“Yes, at once,” Ryker replied. “And she was gone.”
“That’s very convenient,” Dax scoffed.
“What the fuck do you mean by that?”
Dax stepped closer, eyes blazing. “Do I really have to spell it out for you? Every single time she’s near you, something happens. She bleeds, she breaks, she almost dies.”
Ryker clenched his fists. “You think I don’t know how to keep my own wife safe?!”
Rex moved between them quickly. “Enough. This isn’t the time.”
Dax scoffed but backed off a step.
Rex gestured toward the dark river. “We have to split up and search both banks. If we find something—anything—before night fully sets in, then we have a better chance at help. If Lyra’s out there and she's in pain like you said, we need to get to her before hypothermia does.”
They nodded reluctantly.
They were just about to move in different directions when Ryker looked at the river once more and froze.
“I see her.”
“What?” Dax spun.
“There,” Ryker said sharply, pointing. “By the reeds.”
A pale shape bobbed weakly near the far bank, tangled in debris.
When he squinted, he could see her long blonde hair floating against the current.
Ryker didn’t wait.
He plunged back into the river, muscles burning as he fought the water.
He reached her in seconds, grabbing her limp body and hauling her toward shore with desperate strength.
“Lyra,” he breathed, lifting her head above water. “Stay with me.”
Dax and Rex rushed forward as Ryker dragged her onto the bank.
She was unconscious, pale, and shaking violently.
“We need to get the water out,” Dax said urgently, dropping to his knees. “Move. I’ll do CPR.”
“No,” Ryker snapped, pulling her closer. “You’re not touching her.”
Dax stared at him. “Are you serious right now?”
“She’s my wife.”
“Oh, please,” Dax shot back. “I’ve kissed her before.”
Rex groaned. “Dax! Could you stop?!”
Ignoring both of them, Rex knelt beside Lyra, checking her pulse. “She’s alive. Barely.”
She repositioned Lyra carefully and began resuscitating her with what little medical practice she had.
“Come on,” Rex murmured. “Breathe.”
Lyra coughed suddenly, water spilling from her mouth as her body jerked.
“Lyra!” Ryker grabbed her face. “Hey, you’re okay.”
She gasped again, choking, shivering violently.
Rex leaned back, relieved. “She’s back.”
Lyra blinked, her teeth chattering uncontrollably.
“Are you okay?” Rex asked, and she nodded mutely.
“What happened?” Ryker asked softly. “What was that pain?”
She tried to speak but couldn’t at first. Her hands trembled as she weakly reached for him, fingers brushing his chest.
“There’s something,” she rasped. “I have to tell you.”
Ryker shook his head. “Later. We need to get you home, damn it. You’re freezing.”
“No,” she whispered urgently, gripping his sleeve. “It can’t wait. I must say it now.”
Dax and Rex exchanged looks.
Ryker swallowed. “Okay. What is it?”
Lyra took a shaky breath. “I’ve been meeting with him.”
“With who?” Rex asked, confused.
“It’s a summon. I don’t know how to explain it, but he calls out to my soul, and I can’t reject the summon,” she said, desperately trying to form the right words.
“You're not making sense, Lyra,” Ryker said, searching her face. “Maybe you need help at the infirmary.”
But she shook her head. “I swear it’s real. He speaks to me.”
Ryker could see the tears and desperation in her eyes and finally listened.
“Who have you been speaking to?” he asked tentatively.
“The Blood King,” Lyra said softly. Almost a whisper.
Both brothers froze.
Rex blinked. “The blood what? What king?”
Dax’s face drained of color. “The Immortal Vampire demon.”