A Gift from the Goddess

Chapter 68

Chapter Sixty-Eight 

The rest of the meeting went without further incident and soon everyone disbanded from the meeting hall to congregate outside. It was sunset by this point and I could feel everyone‘s exhaustion around me as they waited for their sleeping arrangements to be made available for the night. 

Aleric and I stood to the side, avoiding further interaction after the events that had occurred. Not that I imagined anyone would be upset by that. If anything, they would be grateful for our distance, not wanting t o find themselves as the next subject of our focus for too long. 

V 

But there was one individual I had a feeling wouldn‘t pick up on that obvious social cue. An individual who had just left the building, their eyes beginning to scan the area around them. 

Without hesitating, I quickly pushed Aleric around the corner of the meeting hall building to hide ourselves from none other than Alpha Fredrick. 

Only he would be brazen enough to not let sleeping dogs lie. Or in this case, wolves. 

| peeked around, watching as he frantically searched the crowds of people conversing outside. Searching for something or *someone* in particular. 

“Why are we hiding?” Aleric asked quietly behind me. 

He was close, his body right next to mine so he could whisper and not draw further attention to our location. I was grateful given the keener senses of our peers around us. 

“Because Alpha Fredrick is going to try to speak to me privately,” I explained. “And he‘s going to demandt o know where I heard those rumours about him from; something he couldn‘t ask me in that meeting without looking further guilty in front of the other pack representatives.” 

“...And are they true? The rumours?” 

| spun my head around and smiled wickedly up at him. “Who knows? They‘re just rumours after all.” 

“Aria, what the hell,” he laughed. “It‘s a pretty serious thing to infer about someone.” 

| shrugged, turning back to see if Alpha Fredrick was still looking for me. “He deserves it even if they are false. And besides, I‘m pretty sure that fighting a rumour with another rumour is far better than attacking him, like what you wanted to do.” 

“I‘m sure that he is wishing right now that I actually had hurt him in order to save him from that social execution you just served him–.” 

Alpha Fredrick‘s eyes then started searching towards the general area we were hiding, perhaps catching our scent in the wind change. 

“Crap, time to go,” I said, grabbing onto Aleric‘s hand, and I ran towards the back of the building, all the while dragging him behind me. 

“Aria, wait,” he called out, intending to sound disapproving over my immature reaction but his laughter betrayed him. 

Behind the large hall was a grassy slope that led all the way down to a small pond at the bottom. Perfect for resting while I caught my breath for a minute; the lack of my own strength and endurance painfully obvious, courtesy of the collar. 

I doubled over, both hands on my knees as I breathed in deeply. All the while, Aleric simply watched over me. I could see the amusement in his eyes at my state, something that was probably bad for even human 

standards. 

Chapter Sixty Eight 

“Give me a break,” I whined. “I haven‘t trained, nor done anything even close to that in months.” 

“I‘m aware,” he said, walking past me to seat himself by the water‘s edge. 

I followed only a moment later once my breathing was back under control, plopping myself down on the grass beside him. 

was so peaceful here. The sunset, the fresh air... how the water glistened orange in the dying light. I felt I could stay here for hours, relaxing as I continued to neglect all

think I know why you brought me here,” I said after a few minutes of

“Is that so?” 

make me feel better,” I said, pulling my legs up to my chest and hugging them. “But which was your train of reasoning... fresh air and a change of scenery? ... Or taking met o a meeting so I could pretend I‘m still a Beta

from thinking of things in meetings that no one else had. I thought

It seemed he

pack matters yesterday, including even those petty issues that

actual discussions today, I still got to see you in there. It was like you came alive again,

his eyes finally and found them full of only genuine concern. The orange-toned light around us had made the green in them appear as if they were more saturated.

not, it was becoming impossible to pretend that this Aleric didn‘t care about me. In fact, it would be naive of me

perhaps I didn‘t

his kindness had never been directed towards myself. He had loved Thea, loved the pack, loved his work… it was just me that he hadn‘t loved. As if he

was the line between fear and friendship now? It had become so blurred that I felt my uncertainty shift on any given day. Did I enjoy his company now? Yes... but at the same

for worrying you,” I said, pulling my attention back to the pond. “It‘s just a hard adjustment, everything considered… and I

lives,‘ I elaborated in my head. The absence of having anything to do or focus on, mixed in with those quarters... it was like living inside my nightmares. Slowly, day by day, losing a piece of myself and

frowned in confusion but laughed a little. “Given how much time you‘ve spent in there, I would

said with a small reciprocating smile, my chin

forward, trying to catch my attention once more, and I flicked my eyes back to meet his now completely serious

something negotiable. I can talk to Tytus about switching your room to another one and I doubt

my head. At least that was one thing I

thing in the hundreds

through, sending a small shiver through me. It looked as though the scarf came in

standing back up Td say we were at the top of the

me. They were almost asleep from hugging

and I happily took it grateful for

going to need to start training squats again at this

we started our ascent back up the

slowly. I‘ve been meaning to talk to

we were almost at the top of the hill,

it‘s about when”

out as something then suddenly caught my eye behind his shoulder, immediately taking

i recognised

him. “Surprisingly,

was referring to.

your thing later?” I asked but i was already

“Aria, wait...” 

already ran

suddenly but my focus was elsewhere. Or, more accurately, it was on the person who i never expected to

it in a

arms, her dark curls falling onto my

here? This meeting was for small packs within the Winter Mist alliance. The Hidden Moon pack is by far one of the largest

laughed, pulling away, “I know that

“For me?” 

to the registry of guests staying

arms over my chest. “You could have just sent a letter. Seems like

been worried sick, Aria. We‘ve* been worried sick. The one living Saintess goes missing one day and the only public updates provided were coming from the same sketchy Alpha some weird rumours were involved with. Do you realise how worried we

Alpha Sullivan, was the girl I‘d helped save three years ago, back when I‘d used her whereabouts during a kidnapping for my own financial benefit. Back when I thought running away was

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