The Lycan King’s Mark (Nevara) by Tiffanie L. Campbell novel Chapter 89

Chapter 89 – Let Me Breathe

Nevara

I stretched my fingers first. Just a small movement, but it felt… miraculous.

Then my legs shifted beneath the covers, sore but strong, like something inside me had been stitched back together tighter than before. And for once, I didn’t feel like I was being held together with whispers and willpower. I felt real. Present. Alive.

Maybe it was the bond humming steady between us.

Maybe it was the ring still warm on my finger.

Maybe it was the fact that no one was lying-not right now. Not yet.

Either way, I wasn’t wasting it.

I sat up.

Thoren, who’d been pacing near the window like a protective shadow, turned the second he heard the sheets move.

“Whoa-wait. You should be resting,” he said, already moving toward me.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. “I’ve done enough resting to last a lifetime.”

He raised a brow. “You were just in a coma. And then-just a reminder-you died.”

“Yeah,” I said flatly, “and then you brought me back.”

“Exactly.”

“So I’m back. And I feel good. Better than good.” I pushed to my feet, a little wobbly, but I didn’t care. “And if you tell me to get back in bed, I swear I will scream.”

His hands went up like I’d pointed a weapon at him. “Okay, okay. No bed threats. Got it.”

I took a step forward. Then another. My knees held. My spine didn’t tremble.

For the first time in weeks, I felt like I belonged in my own body.

“You were going to tell me to take it easy, weren’t you?” I said without turning around.

Thoren exhaled. “I was. But not because I don’t think you’re capable.”

“Doesn’t matter.” I turned to face him. “That’s what Tobias did. He kept me calm. Caged.

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< Chapter 89 Let Me Breathe

+25 Points

Convinced me I needed time and space and ‘gentle healing.” I practically spat the phrase. “He used my exhaustion as an excuse to control every movement I made. And now here I am, finally awake, finally free-and the first thing you tell me is to lie back down.”

Thoren flinched like I’d slapped him. “That’s not what I meant.”

“I know.” I stepped closer, voice softening. “But that’s how it felt. And I can’t go back there. Not even a little.”

He nodded slowly, eyes locked on mine. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even realize that’s how it would come off. You’re right.”

I blinked, a little surprised by how quickly he gave in.

“I trust you to know your limits,” he added. “If you say you feel good, I believe you. We’ll do whatever you want.”

I smiled faintly. “Good. Because I’m done letting other people decide when I get to feel alive.”

Thoren stepped closer, voice soft. “Then let’s start with something small.”

I raised a brow.

“A shower,” he said. “Get you feeling like you again.”

I hesitated, then nodded once.

He turned toward the bathroom, but before stepping in, he paused. “May I turn the water on for you?”

I blinked at him. “Seriously?”

His expression was careful. “I just… I don’t want to cross a line. I need to know what your boundaries are after everything. I don’t want to think I’m being helpful when it might feel like I’m controlling the situation. Like I’m deciding everything again.”

That stopped me.

I exhaled slowly, “No. That’s okay. You being nurturing, being helpful-I want that. I can receive that. The only thing I need from you is that if I speak up, if I say something doesn’t feel right… you listen. You back off. No questions. No pushback.”

He nodded, shoulders lowering a fraction. “I can do that.”

“Good.”

He took a deep breath. “I was honestly worried you wouldn’t let me do anything. Like I’d be

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stuck just… watching.”

I stepped past him, brushing his arm. “You’re not Tobias, Thoren. You don’t have to prove that every time you care about me.”

His jaw flexed. “I just never want to make you feel powerless again.”

“Then don’t,” I said simply. “Help me feel powerful instead.”

He turned the handle, adjusting the temperature until steam slowly began to rise. Then he stepped back, giving me space.

The water hit my skin like permission. Like exorcism.

I stood there for a long time, letting it strip away the things I didn’t want to carry anymore. Not grief. Not shame. Not his name.

When I stepped out, clean clothes waited on the counter. Soft. Neutral. Comfortable.

Mine.

I dressed in silence, ran fingers through my damp hair, and opened the door.

Thoren was still there.

Not hovering. Not commanding.

Just waiting-the same way he always had.

I smiled faintly. “Now?”

“Now,” he said, holding out his hand again, “walk with me?”

We made it out of the room, through the hall, and onto the back terrace before either of us said anything else.

The air was cool but not biting. Fresh. The kind of air that didn’t feel filtered through guilt or secrets or bloodshed.

Thoren walked beside me, letting me set the pace. Letting me lead.

I liked that.

“You’re quiet,” he said eventually,

I glanced up at him. “I’m thinking.”

“Dangerous,”

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“Always.”

A beat passed before I sighed. “I’m not ready to fully trust Michelle. Not yet.”

His eyes slid sideways. “Because of what happened before?”

“Because of how it happened,” I corrected. “Logically, everything she said makes sense. It all adds up. It fits. But the way she carried herself… the way she looked at me, talked around things, kept smiling like nothing was wrong-it didn’t feel right.”

Thoren nodded slowly, letting me get it all out.

“I know it could just be paranoia. I know Tobias messed with my memories. I know I was seeing shadows where there might not have been any. And hell, if it weren’t for this bond,” I gestured between us, “I probably wouldn’t even trust you right now.”

He didn’t take it personally. Not even a flicker of hurt crossed his face.

Instead, he said, “That makes sense. And it’s valid.”

I blinked. “It is?”

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