Four Hours

Lyra's POV

Kael sits down across from me.

Only the wind outside and my own steady breathing fill the space between us. Water drips somewhere deeper in the cave, each drop making the stillness feel heavier.

"Four hours," Kael says, his voice calm as usual. "Then I have to take you in."

I give a small nod. I don't trust myself to speak. If I open my mouth now, I'm not sure what will come out.

He rests his elbows on his knees, his gaze never leaving me. "So we're going to talk."

"I don't have anything to say."

A faint smile tugs at one corner of his mouth. "You have everything to say." His eyes lift to meet mine. They're gold again. Sharp. Alpha eyes. "Start with your name. Your real one."

"Lyra."

"Last name."

I hesitate, just for a second. "Cole."

He tilts his head. "Lie."

My jaw tightens. "What?"

"You smelled like a lie when you said it." His voice never rises. He simply leans forward, forearms on his knees. "Try again."

I look away. The cave wall suddenly becomes much more interesting than his face.

"Does it matter?"

"It matters if I'm going to tell my pack I caught a stray," his voice softens, "and not someone's daughter."

The words strike harder than I expect. I flinch before I can stop myself.

He catches it immediately. His expression doesn't change. "Who are you running from, Lyra?"

"No one."

"Bullshit." The word isn't angry. It sounds like a simple fact. "You ran into my territory during the Full Moon. You knew what that meant. You knew I'd be hunting." His voice stays calm, but every word lands with quiet certainty. "So either you're reckless, or you were desperate."

I wrap my arms around my knees, my fingers tightening in the fabric of my trousers. "Can we not do this?"

"No." The answer comes without hesitation.

Silence settles over the cave again. Then he sighs quietly. Without asking, he reaches for my injured ankle.

I instinctively try to pull away. He catches it with surprising ease. Not roughly. Just enough to stop me. His hands loosen the cloth before wrapping it again, checking that it isn't too tight.

"You don't have to tell me everything," he says as he works. "But tell me something real." He glances up. "Otherwise, I can't help you when sunrise comes."

His touch is warm. Far gentler than I want it to be.

"Why are you helping me?" I ask softly.

He keeps his attention on my ankle. "Because my wolf decided you were important before my brain did." A faint, tired smile crosses his face. "And I'm tired of pretending it didn't."

"That's not an answer."

He finishes tying the cloth and lets go. "It's the only one I have."

"My turn." He leans back against the cave wall, his eyes never leaving mine. "One truth."

I watch him carefully. I still don't know what to make of him. The hunter who chased me through the forest. The Alpha feared by every pack around North Ridge. The man who hid me from his own wolves. None of it fits together.

"I don't want to hand you over," he says, his voice quiet and honest. "Not because you're pretty." A faint smile touches his lips before fading. "Or because you ran fast." He shakes his head. "Because if I do, they'll hurt you." His gaze holds mine. "And I don't like that idea."

The words knock the air from my lungs. There's no arrogance in his voice. No attempt to impress me. Just the truth.

"Your turn," he says again.

I swallow hard. I've spent months protecting my secrets. Giving one away feels like stepping off a cliff.

"I'm not a stray," I admit, my voice barely rising. "I left my pack three months ago."

He goes completely still. "Why?"

I stare at the cave floor. The memories come rushing back before I can stop them. Faces. Arguments. The feeling of being trapped.

"Because my father promised me to Roman Ashford. Alpha of the Thornfield Pack. In exchange for land along our border." I force the words out. "I wasn't a daughter to him anymore. I was a piece of a deal."

Silence fills the cave. When I finally look up, his expression has changed. His jaw tightens. His eyes darken with something that looks dangerously close to anger.

"Ashford," he repeats, like the name leaves a bad taste. "I know that pack. I know what he does to the women he calls his."

"It doesn't matter now. They're not coming."

"They will," his voice is firm, "if he still wants that land."

He rises to his feet and walks toward the cave entrance, carefully shifting the branch aside just enough to look outside. The forest stays still. Only the wind moves through the trees. After listening a moment, he lowers the branch again.

"We have maybe an hour left." He turns back toward me, his expression settling into calm once more. "One last question." His eyes search mine. "And I need you not to lie to me."

I nod, fear tightening in my chest.

"If I tell them you're under my protection, will you run again?"

The question lingers between us. Hard to answer.

I open my mouth and close it again. I want to promise I won't. I want to believe it myself.

"I don't know," I admit at last. The honesty surprises even me.

He nods once. He isn't disappointed, or relieved. He simply accepts the answer for what it is.

He walks back and lowers himself onto the ground, closer than before. Our knees are only inches apart now.

"Okay," he says quietly. "Then we'll figure it out. Starting now."

A twig snaps outside. We both go still. His eyes lock on the entrance. Someone is coming.

"Time's up," he whispers.