Chapter 164 The Things Unsaid
The morning sun finally bled through the cracks in the cabin walls, slightly warming the room.
Lyra woke slowly, the tiredness she felt for the last few months feeling a little lighter. For the first time in forever, there wasn't a cold gap in the bed.
Ryker was there. His arm was draped over her waist, his thumb tracing slow, absent-minded circles against her hip even in his sleep.
Ryker stirred, his muscles tensing as he started to pull away, his internal clock already screaming at him to get up and scout the perimeter.
"No," Lyra whispered, her voice thick with sleep. She grabbed his forearm, pulling him back toward her. "Don't go yet."
Ryker looked at her, his eyes soft and hazy. "Lyra, the sun is up. I need to check on Darcy and see if the town officers followed our scent."
"The valley is a dead zone, remember?" She shifted, tucking her head into the crook of his neck and breathing in the scent of cedar and old leather. "We haven't been able to just be like this since the plague started. No ash, no fire, no death. Just five more minutes, Ryker. Please."
Ryker let out a long sigh, the tension leaving his shoulders.
He rolled onto his side, pulling her flush against his chest. His skin was warm, and the steady beat of his heart against her ribs felt like a miracle.
“I missed this more than anything," he admitted, his voice a low rumble. "In the pack house, watching you across a room and knowing I couldn't reach out, it felt like I was starving."
"We’re going to be okay, aren't we?" Lyra asked, looking up at him. "After tonight, when the moon turns red. Everything goes back to normal?"
Ryker reached out, brushing a stray hair from her forehead. His expression was solemn. "I promise you, Lyra. I will protect you with everything I have. We’re going to go back to the IronFangs, we’re going to heal our people, and we’re going to be a family again. No more vampires, no more Blood kings. Just us."
They stayed there for a long time, talking about the small things they missed, the way the tavern smelled on Friday nights, the sound of the bikes revving in the courtyard, and the quiet mornings they used to take for granted.
It was a bubble of peace, a stolen moment of romance before the world demanded they be warriors again.
The peace was broken by a sharp, rhythmic knocking on the cabin door.
"If you two are done making heart-eyes at each other, the sun is high and I'm hungry!" Darcy’s voice shouted from outside.
Ryker groaned, sitting up and rubbing his face. "Duty calls."
He pulled on his boots and opened the door. Darcy was standing there, her rifle leaning against the porch railing.
She looked at Ryker’s messy hair and then at Lyra, who was still wrapped in the furs. She raised an eyebrow, a wicked smirk playing on her scarred lips.
"So?" Darcy asked, leaning against the doorframe. "I spent the night in a tent in the freezing grass to give you two 'private time.' I assume you put it to good use? Or did I freeze my tail off for nothing?"
Lyra felt her cheeks heat up. "Nothing happened, Darcy. We were just talking."
"Talking?" Darcy let out a loud, disbelieving laugh. "You guys didn't have sex? After weeks of not touching? Are you kidding me?"
Ryker cleared his throat, looking slightly embarrassed. "We’re saving our strength for the ritual tonight. You know how much the Blood Moon takes out of an Alpha and a hybrid."
Darcy rolled her eyes, though her expression softened. "Oh my god. That is like, super honorable or whatever. I mean, seriously. If I got reunited with my husband after not being able to touch him for a month, I would definitely jump his balls. Ritual or no ritual."
"Good thing I'm the Alpha and not you, then," Ryker muttered, though he was smiling. "I'm going out to see if I can find some fresh meat. We need a real meal before sundown."
"Take the North ridge," Darcy advised. "I saw some rabbit tracks near the spring."
As Ryker headed out with his bow, the two women moved to the fire pit outside the cabin.
The silver grass shimmered around them, peaceful and silent. Lyra sat on a stump, peeling a few wild potatoes they had found in the cabin’s cellar, while Darcy stoked the flames.
"You really love him, don't you?" Darcy asked suddenly. The teasing was gone from her voice.
Lyra nodded, looking at the potatoes. "Sometimes it feels like too much. Especially with everything I am. Being a hybrid... it's like I'm a constant threat to the people I love. I spent so long feeling like a monster."
Darcy sat down across from her. "I get it. I spent four years in that town thinking I was nothing but a piece of meat. I forgot what it was like to be a wolf. I forgot what it was like to be part of a pack. But seeing the two of you... it reminds me that the struggle is worth it. You’re not a monster, Lyra. You’re the bridge. And yeah, it’s heavy. But you’ve got the strongest man I know holding up the other side."
They talked for hours about the heartbreak Darcy had endured, the friends they had lost, and the terrifying responsibility of leading the IronFangs.
It was the first time Lyra felt like she had a true friend who understood the weight of the crown aside Rex.
By the time the sun began to set, Ryker returned with three fat rabbits.
He spent the afternoon skinning them and roasting them over the open flame with the potatoes. The smell of searing meat filled the valley, a domestic, comforting scent that felt out of place in such a magical land.
As the sky began to get dim, everyone knew it would soon bring the moon.
"It's time," Darcy said, her voice low.
She stood up and disappeared toward the creek. A few minutes later, she called out to them. "Come see!"
Lyra and Ryker walked down the slope. Near the edge of the water, Darcy had set up a sanctuary.
She had found dozens of thick, white candles, heaven knows where she had been hiding them, and arranged them in a wide circle around a bed of heavy, soft blankets.
A small bottle of dark wine and two wooden cups sat on a flat stone nearby.
The candles flickered in the still air, their light reflecting off the silver grass and the bubbling water of the creek.
Darcy stood at the edge of the circle, her rifle held across her chest. "I’ll be at the ridgeline. No one gets across that creek tonight. Not the town officers, not the vampires, not even the devil himself. This is your night."
"Thank you, Darcy. You're a true and loyal friend,” Ryker nodded at her and she winked, walking off and leaving them alone.
Ryker turned to Lyra and reached out, his hand steady as he took hers. The ritual was more than just a cure; it was a total surrender.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
Lyra looked at the blankets, then up at the darkening sky. She felt the power of the valley humming beneath her feet, and for the first time, she wasn't afraid.
"Yes," she whispered. "Let's do it."