Blood (Book Three of the Dark Lycans Series)

Chapter Seventeen: Numb

I wince as my stitches rip yet again as I try to take my shirt off. The blood on it is making it stick to my body and I am struggling to get it off.

"Raven? What are you doing? Are you okay?" I hear my brother ask from the door.

"Nothing, I'm fine Derek," I tell him quickly and let out a small gasp when another one of the stitches rips through my skin.

"God damn it Raven, no you're not!" He growls and comes over to where I am sitting on my bed.

He helps me take off my shirt, leaving me in a sports bra, and makes me sit, leaning against some pillows. He grabs a bowl of warm water, a towel and bandages.

"It's okay to ask for help you know, I'm your brother. You don't have to be strong around me," he says cleaning the blood from my stomach.

"I know, its just, I didn't have Ira for an entire week Derek. It felt like hell, I was as weak as a human, I couldn't stop screaming and crying out from stupid things like a slap on my cheek," I sigh shaking my head in disbelief.

"Hey, look at me," he says, pulling my chin to face him.

"You are literally the strongest Lycan I have ever seen, hell the strongest Alpha, I have ever seen. Most wolves would die from the pain of losing their wolf or Lycan, but you lasted an entire week of abuse and torture without Ira. You may feel weak, but I know you are not," he says looking at me with a small smile.

I smile back and throw my arms around his neck.

"Thank you Derek," I whisper. His smile grows wider as I pull away and my eyebrow shoots up.

"Now, who is getting these stitches out, you or me?" He asks and I let out an irritated breath.

"Ira isn't fully back yet so you get to," I smirk and let him deal with the puss covered scratches. He uses his claws to gently cut the stitches and tosses them into the trash can.

He cleans them once more before helping me wrap the bandages around my stomach. My knee was almost fully healed, just stiff and very sore.

"Hey I am going to go check the Silver Bloods border, are you going to be okay?" He asks.

"Derek, I'm the Alpha, I can handle myself," I roll my eyes and he chuckles.

"Okay," he shrugs and leaves my room.

I feel the events over the past week suddenly catch up to me, and my eyelids grow heavy. I lay down and fall asleep on top of my bed.

***************

My eyes snap open and I sit up with a jerk. I look around and realize that it is dark outside.

There is a light cast around my room from the full moon outside. Wait, full moon? Ira how long was I asleep? I ask my Lycan in confusion.

Two, maybe three days, she replies.

Derek! How could you let me sleep that long? I growl through a mind link to my brother.

Believe me, we tried to wake you, Maya got scratched pretty bad so we gave up trying, he explains and my eyes widen in shock.

Oh no, please tell me she is okay, I sigh.

Yeah, she is fine, she is in the Hospital still though, Hailey has been taking care of her, he tells me and I close my eyes with a shake of my head.

Tell her to find me when she gets out. I will be training for most of the day if anyone needs me, I decide and end the link. I take off my clothes and get into my shower. I take off my bandages and let the warm water wash away the blood dried onto my skin for the past few days.