Chapter 4

After Markus had finished documenting everything, he left the washroom so that Ellen could wash up Lyra in peace. He found Wulfric waiting for him in the bedroom.

"We should go to my office and talk."

Markus nodded and followed Wulfric. As they walked through the corridors, he kept thinking, 'Her wounds were much worse than I had expected. Probably because she had been going through it so much longer than I originally believed. Lyra is an extremely resilient woman. I hope I can help her.'

When they reached Wulfric's office, Wulfric quickly shut the door behind him. Leading Markus to the sitting area off to the right of his desk and gestured for Markus to sit. Which he did, and Wulfric followed suit.

"How bad?"

"Worse than I had thought. It had been going on much longer than I had first realized. There is scarring and bruising over most of her body."

Wulfric sighed.

"Will she heal?"

"Physically, in time. There are medications to help remove scars and bruises, though it will take longer because of how old some of her scars are. Mentally, possibly. With the right care."

"Do you consider yourself to be the right care?"

"To an extent, yes. Though I would like to call in my teacher, she has much more experience than me, and she could help me set up a plan."

"Send for her."

"Right away, your Grace."

Markus stood to leave, then paused.

"Wulfric, she is resilient. I believe that is the only reason she survived as long as she has. It will take time to heal, but I believe she will. Right now, I think the best thing for you is to be by her side. She needs someone to protect her and make her feel safe. That someone should be you."

~~~~~~~~~~

After Markus left, Wulfric sat there in silence for a while thinking. '"She needs someone to protect her and make her feel safe. That someone should be you." But how do I do that? "Be by her side." What does that mean?'

Wulfric had never had anyone he needed to protect or to make feel safe. Everything he had done and attained he had done out of necessity. Out of a need to survive in a world that viewed him as a monster. But then again, he was a monster. He sucked the energy out of Humans as a means of survival. He himself was Half-Human. His mother was Human, and his father was an Energy Vampire. His mother died when he was young, and he never knew his father. Not that he had any desire to. Most Humans were terrified when they realized what he was.

He had taken on the title of Duke as a means of survival. The Royal Family relied on him and his army for protection, and he used that as a bargaining chip to make them leave him alone. He only had to go to the Capitol for a month or two out of the year, and the rest of the time he remained at his estate. The people here were used to him and did not cringe when he was around, which was a welcome change to life in the capitol. Here he grew and maintained an army that could rival all the others in the kingdom combined. The royal family let him because they knew he had no aspirations for the throne, plus the people would not welcome a Vampire, even a half one, as their king. Therefore, he was no threat.

But now there was someone in his life that he needed to protect. 'Protect her from who?'

Wulfric took a bell from his desk and rang it. There was a knock at the door.

"Enter."

Kranston entered.

"You rang, your Grace."

"Send for the Black Ring."

"At once, your Grace."

Kranston left the room.

Barely a minute had gone by when there was a rustle from behind one of the bookcases to the right of his desk. Moments later the bookcase slid back, revealing a passage and a man in all black.

"Enter."

"What can I do for you, your Grace?"

"I have a ward staying with me, now."

"We have heard."

"I figured. There are two things I need: One, find out who she is, and two, find out the reason behind her captivity. Understood?"

"Yes, your Grace. May we have what information you have so far."

"Of course. Here is what I know…"

~~~~~~~~~~

Lyra was comfortably soaking in the tub. Ellen had left her to soak for a bit, saying, "This will help to start easing away the past."

'Easing away the past… Lyra knew she meant it to be kind, but the past was only yesterday.' She could not remember the last time she had enjoyed a bath. 'Probably when I lived on the farm, but I have never enjoyed a bath as comfortable as this one.' She could feel some of the built-up tension leaving her body.

It had hurt a lot when she had first gotten in, but the pain melted away after a short while. Now she lay there just enjoying the present.

Knock. Knock.

"Wh-who is it?"

"It is Ellen, my lady."

"Oh, come in."

Ellen entered from the door leading to the bedroom.

"It is time to scrub off that dirt. Lord Markus gave me some soaps and oils that would help with your sensitive skin."

"Th-that was n-nice of him."

"He seems like a very kind man."

"Do y-you n-not know him v-v-very well? I-I am s-s-sorry, I sh-sh-should not be asking-g-g y-you that it is r-rude."

"My dear lady, you can ask me anything and I will not consider it rude. Part of my job is to help guide you through everything. To help you adjust to your new surroundings. I am one of the few people you can ask anything of, and I will not find it rude. To answer your question, I do not know Lord Markus very well, we met when you arrived. However, I understand Duke Bertram has known him since he was a child. If you sit up, my lady, I can start scrubbing."

Lyra sat up. Ellen gently started scrubbing the years of dirt and grime off her, using the soaps and oils that Markus had provided. It took quite a while to get it all off. When she was done, Ellen helped Lyra out of the tub, guiding her back to the wooden bench where a fluffy towel was folded. Ellen had Lyra wrap herself in the towel, and then walked over to the woodstove. She put on a kettle of water, went to a cabinet near the woodstove and pulled out a mug, a strainer, and tea leaves. While waiting for the kettle to boil, Ellen helped Lyra dry herself off and then helped her into a new bathrobe. She led Lyra to the chair in front of the dressing table, then went and got the tea ready.

For the first time in who knows how long, Lyra saw herself in the mirror. Her face was gaunt and pale. She looked exhausted. Yet she also looked much older than she remembered. She was a vastly different person from the last time she had seen herself in a mirror.

Lyra felt a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Here, drink this, my lady," said Ellen. "It will keep you warm. While you drink, I am going to brush out your hair and cut off the dead ends."

"Okay. Oh, Ellen, thank you for being so kind to me."

Ellen smiled at Lyra through the mirror. Though it took a while when Ellen was done Lyra's hair looked beautiful. With all the dirt and oil gone, it was clear that Lyra's hair was a sliver-blonde.

"You have such lovely hair, my lady. It will take time, but I know it will become much healthier. Though I was surprised that I needed to cut off eight inches," said Ellen. "Anyways, I should put some more salve on your bruises and scrapes, and rebandage your feet. Then I will find you something to wear."

"Okay."

~~~~~~~~~~

Markus had finished writing his letter to his teacher and had handed it off to a servant to be delivered immediately. He knew they could not wait too long when it came to starting a plan to help Lyra. He also knew that the best thing for her right now was to give her time. Allow her to spend a few days without being forced to think about her past. He figured she would probably be more open to talking about it if she were not constantly pushed.

'I made a mistake trying to push her to tell me more. I could have done more damage if Wulfric had not stepped in. Wulfric… Am I going to have to worry about him too? This is a big moment for him as well. He Imprinted. Yet he will not be able to talk to Lyra about it. It could scare her off, which could be deadly to both of them. I will need to do more research on that as well. Anyways, I should go check on Lyra and Ellen.'

Markus returned to Lyra's bedroom door and knocked. Ellen answered.

"Ah, Lord Markus, do come in."

Markus entered, and his eyes were immediately drawn to the open balcony doors. Where he saw a woman with flowing silver-blonde hair standing at the railing. Watching the sunrise on the garden.

'Lyra. Who are you?'

He continued to stare at her. She was in a floor length, charcoal grey dress. Markus made his way to her. He stopped next to her. Joining her as she stared out at the garden, watching the sunrise. Neither of them said anything, and Markus did not want to look at her. The woman he saw from behind was a vision, but he knew the pain that he would see on her face.

They both stood there in silence for some time. When the sun finally fully crested the horizon, Markus watched Lyra from the corner of his eyes turn towards him. He heard her quietly say, "Thank you for helping me." Before returning to watch the light of a new day fill the garden.

~~~~~~~~~~

The sun had finally risen when Wulfric reached Lyra's bedroom door. Knock. Knock.

"Enter." Came Ellen's voice from inside.

Wulfric opened the door and noticed Markus on the balcony. He and a woman with lovely flowing silver-blonde hair were looking out at the garden. Lyra?

"Ah, Your Grace. Do come in. Lady Lyra and Lord Markus are out on the balcony."

'Lyra, who are you?'

"Thank you, Ellen. Please leave us."

"Yes, Your Grace."

Wulfric walked out to the balcony and stood on the other side of Lyra. Joining them in their viewing of the garden. After some time, he said, "If you are feeling up to it, would you like to take a walk in the garden?"

"I would like that very much, Your Grace."

"Wonderful, and Lyra, there is no need for you to call my 'Your Grace', Wulfric is just fine."

"Yes, Y… Wulfric."

"Before you go for your walk in the garden," Interrupted Markus. "I wanted to check in on you, Lyra. I know things must be difficult, and I want you to know that Wulfric and I are both here for you. We will help you get through this. If there is anything you need, please just let us know."

"Thank you, Markus. I will keep that in mind."