Karizma: Reborn

Chapter 15: Ryleigh

Ryleigh sat behind the desk in Kristopher's office. The closed door gave her some semblance of solitude, but she knew that was the furthest from the truth. She could hear Kristopher and Lukas and Bailey down the hall in the VIP section of the club. She forced her wolf to pull her hearing back so that she could not hear the extent of their conversations. She gripped the neck of the tequila bottle tightly as she took another drink. I need a drink, she thought, numbly. The pain that consistently radiated from Kristopher caused Ryleigh's stomach to roll and force bile up her throat. I did that, she thought, and she took another drink from the bottle.

The bottle was about half empty, and Ryleigh did not feel a thing. Damn lycan metabolism, she thought. Maybe it was for the best; had she been human, she would have already passed out and everything would fester until tomorrow. I need to deal with this tonight, she thought. She sighed and placed the bottle on Kristopher's desk. She rubbed her hands over her face. She suspected that a part of her had known that this would come, the end of her and Kristopher's relationship. Ever since she came back, she had grown detached from him physically, and had grown more attached to Lukas physically. I suppose you were trying to tell me, she thought to her wolf. I just did not understand it until now.

Ryleigh would lose Kristopher, but would gain Lukas and become his queen, to rule the lycan pack by his side. She grabbed the bottle and took another drink. It was a lot to process within two weeks of resurrection. Two weeks ago, she was just a witch with a bounty on her head and an expiration date; now, she was meant to be the queen of the lycans and wage a war against the vampires that were hunting her. She took another drink.

The door to the office creaked open slowly and Bailey poked her head in. "Hey," Bailey said softly.

"Hey yourself," Ryleigh responded as she nodded, approving Bailey's entrance. She wanted to be alone, but more from the two men outside than from her sister. She never wanted to be away from her sister, not for long.

"How are you holding up?" Bailey asked gently as she closed the door.

"Fantastic," Ryleigh said as she held up the tequila bottle. She took another drink and continued. "I was killed two weeks ago by the vampire that I fell in love with. That same vampire brought my corpse back to you and the Alpha lycan, who brought me back to life. I began feeling things toward the Alpha and less from the vampire, only to find out that I am actually supposed to be the Alpha's wife and can never be with the vampire again. Fucking fantastic," she finished as she took another drink.

Bailey sighed and approached the desk. She grabbed the bottle from Ryleigh and placed it on the desk. Ryleigh opened her mouth to speak but Bailey shook her head. "No," Bailey spoke. "Riles, I love you, but I need to say this because no one else will."

"Okay," Ryleigh said slowly.

Bailey came around the desk and placed her hand on Ryleigh's shoulder. "We understand that you have been through a lot."

"No one does—"

"I'm talking, Riles," Bailey snapped. "Please, let me say this before I change my mind."

When Bailey realized that Ryleigh was not going to protest, she continued. "No, we do not understand exactly what you have been through. No one does. Really, no one does. But it has been two weeks, Riles. I know we all heal at different speeds, but this self-pity act needs to take a back burner for a while." Bailey squeezed Ryleigh's shoulder gently. "We have a war that we need to prepare for, something that a great mentor of mine spent our lives training us for. That training cannot go out the window because of emotions. I understand that you died, to come back to lose the love of your life and be promised away to another like a trinket; but, Riles, I was comatose for a week. A week of my life that I lost to bring you back. And I'm not blaming you," she added quickly as Ryleigh went to speak. "I would never blame you for that. It was my choice, and I would do it all over again without hesitation. But we need to grieve these moments after this war, after we know what Naomi and Nathan are planning and when they plan to put it in motion." Bailey smiled softly and cupped Ryleigh's face. "You are the strongest person that I know, and seeing you like this before the war terrifies me more than the war ever could."