Thane
“I cannot believe none of you saw anything!” I slam my fist down on the oak table, causing most to startle.
I called a meeting with some of my high-ranking warriors to find out if anyone knew anything about who shot Lyric. But it seems not one person knows a damn thing!
I’ve been away from duty for almost two weeks. Three days I spent grieving my mate, only for her to walk into our room alive and well. It took a few minutes for me to realize she was sitting in front of me, and even then, I didn’t fully believe it.
Though I tried to fight the need to claim Lyric, we mated and marked one another. But she made it clear that she was ready and wouldn’t wait a moment longer. I gave in because I needed to feel her against my body. I needed to know she was real, not my imagination playing tricks on me.
Mating with Lyric caused her to go into rapid heat. Goddess, I could barely keep up with her! Lyric’s heat lasted an entire week, and it took us an additional two days to recover. Those two days were magical; every moment was perfect.
Lyric opened up and told me everything about her past, though I suspect she kept some details of her captivity to herself. I didn’t push for answers because she’ll let me know when she’s ready and not a moment sooner.
Lyric spoke of her curse and the abilities she possesses. My mate could die but not stay dead, which shocked me. I’d never heard of such a thing in my life.
We bathed together, laughed as we watched movies she liked, and she had no problem with me holding her. Lyric dying for those three days and me grieving her brought us closer than I ever imagined we would be. It shouldn’t have taken something like Lyric being shot for that to happen, but it is what it is. Lyric is still closed off with most, but not me.
I managed to pull myself away from Lyric this morning. I had to get back to work, Theo had been standing in for me, and he looked exhausted. Being King seems easy from the outside; everyone thinks the King sits on his throne while everyone else does his dirty work. It is anything but in reality. Being King means long hours, little sleep, and plenty of stress. This is why a king needs his Queen, his second and third, to help share the load.
“My King,” Elard, a tall man with short red hair and an iron fist, speaks. “As soon as Prince Tyler ordered us to search, we did. No one has rested for the past two weeks.”
“He’s right.” Blaze sighs while sitting forward in his chair and leaning his arms on the table. “I had people searching all over Lykos and beyond for the shooter. There was no sign of anything out of the ordinary. Whoever they were, they fled the moment they shot Lyric. But...” Blaze sighs and locks eyes with Tyler.
Tyler. It’s been years since he was home this long. My brother prefers to live in his cabin on the forest’s edge. Two miles doesn’t sound like a long way, but it can be for my mother when Tyler doesn’t come home for weeks on end, let alone stay here.
Tyler should have been my third, but he never wanted the position, so he handed it over to Blaze. Tyler never told me why he suddenly changed his mind when it was all he talked about as a child. But I assumed it had something to do with the attack that left him scarred.
To scar a Lycan permanently, magic would have to be involved. With our immense healing abilities, scarring is not something that happens easily. Of course, there are ways to injure a Lycan that will leave a mark. But as I said, it would have to involve magic to be long-lasting.
Much like Tyler, Blaze also bears scars that will last a lifetime. The wounds across Blaze’s chest took some healing; they were so vast. Like Tyler, Blaze would never say what happened to him, who attacked him, or why. I never gave it much thought; both men are warriors, and battle scars occur. I assumed if they got them elsewhere, they would have told me.
As my third, Blaze is in charge of the Royal Warriors, but Tyler is his second. I allowed Tyler the position because he excels at what he does. For over one hundred years, Tyler has kept this kingdom safe. I trust my brother with my life, as I trust Theo and Blaze.
But the looks Tyler and Blaze share tell me something more is happening.
“What is it you’re not telling me? Blaze? Tyler?”
The other six high-ranking warriors around the table avert their eyes. They know what’s going on, but they won’t say anything. They will only speak out when their commanding officer has permitted them.
It’s Tyler who speaks. “I don’t believe whoever shot Lyric was aiming for her. I think they were after me.”
I narrow my eyes.
Could that be true?
That the shooter was looking to kill my brother?
But why?
It makes as much sense as why anybody would want to kill Lyric – none! Then again, it makes more sense that Tyler was the target.
For one: no one in Lykos knew what Lyric looked like, apart from household staff. None of them would have hurt Lyric. I vetted each member myself, and I trusted them. Though I will question them all to ensure I don’t have a traitor in the mix.
Secondly: Tyler is a warrior. Over the years, he’s dealt with many criminals. Their friends or family could want retribution, and any of them could have wanted revenge. If that’s the case, we will have to check everyone in the damn city.
“A few weeks ago,” Blaze shifts in his seat. “Tyler executed a man for treason.”
“Okay?”
Execution is not unusual, though I would prefer someone else to be the executioner. Tyler took it upon himself to take that role. Killing is second nature to Lycans, but Tyler is utterly numb to it now.
“The Lycan he executed was Darren Morris. Remember, I told you?”
I snarl at the mention of that asshole’s name. Son of a bitch stalked Starr, then cornered her one day, intending to force himself upon her. Of course, Starr could take care of herself, and she threw the idiot ten feet away from her and right into Tyler’s hands.
The information was immediately brought to me, and I barely stopped Tyler from killing Darren then and there. I had the man locked up, but he was released when Starr claimed he was harmless. He was infatuated with her, but that didn’t mean he needed to die. He was released after two months on the understanding he would stay away from my sister.
He did stay away from her – for three days before he was up to his old tricks. Darren Morris never learned, and Tyler lost his s.hit and killed him unlawfully. No one will be killed without my permission unless there is no other choice. Darren should have been brought to me if he wasn’t trying to kill Starr, which he wasn’t. Tyler can’t stand men who force themselves on women, and as Starr is our sister, Tyler’s Lycan lost control.
I couldn’t even be angry with Tyler about what he’d done. I couldn’t because I would have done the same in Tyler’s situation. I probably would have done worse, actually.
“What about it?”
“His brother,” Tyler scrubs his hands over his face. “He vowed to kill me. I thought nothing of it; it’s nothing I’ve never heard before. Being an executioner means I get death threats at least five times a day.” He shrugs.
He’s not wrong; people throw all sorts of threats around when their loved ones are put to death for their crimes. Grief makes people stupid and loose-lipped. Of course, I don’t personally hear those words being thrown around. No one would dare; even grieving people don’t want to be killed by the King.
However, that doesn’t stop those who work for me from telling me everything. I have those families watched for a few days to ensure they don’t do anything stupid. But it seems I wasn’t vigilant enough. Slacking caused some f.ucker to try and kill my brother, but he missed and killed my mate! If Lyric hadn’t woken up by the time this information reached me, no one would have been safe!
I take a deep breath and look at Blaze. “Have the whole family brought in for questioning.” Blaze tips his head, letting me know he’ll see to it personally. “The rest of you, keep a close watch on anyone close to the Morris’. You know how stupid friends can be.”
“Yes, my King,” Callen answers.
“Anyone acting strangely, bring them in immediately. You’re all dismissed. Tyler, Blaze, not you.”
Once the door closes behind my warriors, I take a deep breath.
“Everything okay?”
I nod at Tyler. “More than. I just want to make sure you both keep an extra eye out. I can’t have eyes on Lyric all the time, but I can’t bear the thought of anything happening to her again.”
“We will, brother; you have my word.”
“I can’t believe you’re mated.” Blaze chuckles.
His smile fades, and he runs his fingers through his unruly hair. Theo and I being mated must be driving him nuts. Many years ago, Blaze found his mate. He doesn’t know I’m aware of this, but Theo knew and told me. Theo witnessed the elation when Blaze found his other half and the grief when they walked away from my cousin.
Losing his mate should have weakened Blaze. Instead, Balze pushed himself to be stronger, making him the Lycan I see before me. Theo didn’t tell me who Blaze’s mate was because my brother didn’t know. Theo surmised that Blaze’s mate was not from Lykos.
I always wondered why Blaze never confided in me. We’ve always been close, but he kept everything to himself. I also wondered why Blaze never went looking for his mate. Any man who hadn’t been rejected, and Blaze wasn’t verbally, would have.
Whatever, it’s Blaze’s choice and none of my business.
“I’m glad Lyric came around and that she’s okay.” Tyler smiles. “I can’t believe she can’t stay dead. What’s that all about?”
“Some curse.” I shrug. “I have people looking into that and her heritage. I’m not sure if someone put the curse on Lyric or if she was born with it. Either way, I’m sure it comes from her fairy side.”
“Makes sense.” Tyler nods, then rolls his neck. “I’ve never known a wolf to reawaken every time they die.”
“And she’s died a total of seven times.” Tyler and Blaze’s eyes widen. “Yeah. Lyric was five when it first happened. She fell out of a tree, broke her neck, and then woke up after her neck snapped back in place. She’s been burned to death, had her throat slit, been strangled, repeatedly stabbed, frozen, and shot with an arrow.”
“Maybe somebody should lock her in a padded room for her own protection.”
I narrow my eyes at Blaze, who laughs. I know he’s joking, but he’s not funny!
“Burned to death? Frozen?” Tyler looks horrified, but I was, too, when I heard.
“Yeah.” I rub the back of my neck. “When Lyric was eight, she and some of the other kids from her pack were playing near a lake. It was winter, and the lake had frozen over. They’d been warned not to go near it, but you know what kids are like?”
Both nod and Blaze chuckles.
“The other kids dared Lyric to walk across that ice. It cracked, and she was pulled under. By the time the adults pulled her out, she was dead.
“While the kids were screaming in fear, Lyric’s mother patiently waited for Lyric to wake. A moment later, heat filled Lyric’s body, and she woke up.
“The fire thing?” Neither man takes his eyes off me as I explain what Lyric told me.
At age eleven, Lyric was attacked by a rogue wolf. Lyric hadn’t come into her powers yet, and couldn’t stop the monster from hurting her. He didn’t sexually assault Lyric but toyed with and scared her.
Once he’d had his fun, he tied Lyric to a nearby tree, covered her in gasoline, and set her alight. Lyric vividly remembers her pain as that fire tore her skin from her body. She remembers the maniacal laughter that left the rogue, her father’s roar of rage as he tore the rogue apart. Then there was nothing until she woke up two minutes after the fire was put out.
Her parents had believed there was no coming back from burning to death. But as soon as the fire was out, Lyric’s charred body regenerated before their eyes. They once again had their daughter back.
I believe everything Lyric told me about the curse. But it’s all so surreal. I’m looking into the curse, but it’s a blessing to me. It is because it means my baby is immortal, and we’ll have forever to love one another.
“Goddess,” Blaze hisses. “Thank Fenrir, Lyric has this curse.”
“It’s more like a superpower.” Tyler rolls his eyes playfully. “At least Astro won’t be able to kill Lyric when he turns up.”
“He doesn’t want her dead, Ty.”
I take a sip of my water to clear my dry throat before I answer. “Blaze is right. Astro wants Lyric as his bride, and for all we know, he put the curse on her in the first place. What better way to make sure his prize can never leave him?”
“I hadn’t thought of that, Thane.” Tyler sighs and runs his hand through his long hair. “But that means he could kill you to get to Lyric.”
“We won’t let that happen, Ty.” Blaze shakes his head. “We’ll do whatever it takes to protect you, Thane.”
“I’m not worried about me; I can take care of myself. I need your assurance that, along with Theo, if anything happens to me, you’ll take care of the family, including Lyric.”
“Of course, you know you don’t have to ask.”
“You’re our King,” Tyler holds my gaze. “Not only that, you’re my brother. I would do anything you asked of me, Thane, you, and Lyric.”
I smile at my brother. I can trust Tyler and Blaze as much as I can trust Theo. I trust they’ll protect Lyric when I can’t.
I open my mouth to speak when my throat starts to close. My eyes widen as I clutch my neck, gagging like my throat has been cut. Everything is turning black...
“Thane!”