A Gift from the Goddess

Chapter 88

8 Chapter Eighty Seven 

“Please forgive me, Alpha,” I heard Elder Luke quietly mutter behind me before he quickly closed the meeting hall doors. 

*Click* 

And suddenly I was locked in here. With them. 

“Aleric... Cai,” I said cautiously, my hand already moving slowly towards my dagger. “Didn‘t expect to find either of you here of all places.” 

Not only had someone broken Aleric out of the cells but they‘d also succeeded in getting Cai over the border without my knowledge. And I knew, without needing to think too hard on it, that only Elder Luke was capable of something like this. 

My mind was already racing with what was going on, analysing their movements carefully to ensure ! wasn‘t taken off guard. If they were under Thea‘s influence then they might try to kill me. I couldn‘t think o f any other reason for why they would have trapped me like this. 

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Aleric said, taking a step forward. 

And, immediately, I unsheathed my dagger and held it up defensively. They were mistaken if they thought I would go down easily. 

“Who‘s blood is that?” Cai then asked, bringing Aleric‘s attention to it as well. 

“None of your business,” I bit back. 

“...What the hell have you done, Aria?” Aleric growled. “Is that Lucy‘s scent I can smell on you?” 

“Nothing you wouldn‘t do, Aleric,” I snapped, taking a few steps forward cautiously. 

I heard him then sigh quietly at that and look towards Cai. “We‘re going to have to go with Plan B.” 

And quickly, I got into a crouch and readied myself. “What is this? Did you just tell me that Lucy was a spy to throw me off your trail? Didn‘t want me to suspect you of working with Thea anymore so you could organise this? Are you all in on this? Elder Luke too? All of you working for her?” 

“Not everyone is your enemy, Aria,” Aleric said. “You‘re sick and you don‘t even realise it.” 

I laughed at that. “Oh, *I‘m sick*? How about the person who murdered my parents?” I asked before turning towards Cai. “Or the person who slept with the creature trying to kill us? Did you just forget that taking me out is just one step closer to your own death?” 

“We‘re not trying to kill you, Aria. We‘re trying to help you.” 

«But then I saw it. A flash image of him charging at me, throwing me to the ground and ripping out my 

throat. Almost as vivid as a vision… but different. 

“I knew it! You‘re lying!” I yelled, adjusting my stance. “Always lying! You think I‘m going to let my defences down this time? I won‘t be taken out so easily anymore. There‘s no silver collar to hold me back 

now,” 

“You should kill them before they kill you,‘ the voice said. “Maybe there is a way to take their abilities. If we could gatekeep all three lineages then there wouldn‘t be any need for them. No more liabilities.‘ 

I was too focused on the situation at hand but I knew that what she was saying sounded too risky. We weren‘t a God and even if I could take their abilities, I wouldn‘t even know how to go about doing that. 

Just try it, she said. ‘Before they get to you first. Before they make the choice for you.‘ 

Cai ended up being the first one to move, charging from the right, but I sensed his movement perfectly. H e was aiming to tackle me to the ground but he was mistaken if he thought something like that would 

work on me. Aleric‘s distraction of talking to me wasn‘t going to be anywhere near enough to get the drop on me. 

Instantly, his body flew past as he missed me entirely and I quickly turned to be ready for a counter. 

He was still too slow though. In the month since I‘d last seen him, it looked as though he‘d regained the majority of his strength but he wasn‘t yet back at his peak. I knew what Cai was capable of on his best day and this wasn‘t it. 

He tried several more attempts at landing a hit on me to no avail. In fact, it was useless for him to even try since I could sense his attacks seconds before he moved. 

“That‘s not going to work on her,” Aleric then shouted from the side, moving in to flank behind me. “She can foresee your movements.” 

“Evidently,” Cai replied dryly, not taking his eyes off me. 

“Scared, Cai?” I asked and faked a lunge forward. He immediately jumped backwards defensively causing me to laugh. 

But the humour was cut short as I felt Aleric attempting to take advantage of the mild distraction. 

“Nice try,” I said and moved back just as Aleric‘s hands tried to grab me. 

He‘d left himself open by doing this though and, utilising his proximity, I quickly brought my knife up to get a hit on his arm, hoping to maim him. However, he was almost as fast as me, managing to move out of the way to avoid in time, 

The whole thing was reminiscent of the day before my birthday when we‘d been sparring in the gym. Except neither of us had things holding us back now. For what I was lacking in brute strength and extensive fighting knowledge, I was able to make up for in speed and foresight. And, unlike him, I was actually armed. 

The dance began as we both attacked and countered each other, now almost perfectly balanced and in sync. It was impossible to say who had the upper hand as everything moved in a blur. Perhaps it might have even gone on forever... but then I felt it; 

Cai coming in from the side, deciding to finally interfere. 

He looked for an opening and I sensed his next move, but I was only just able to miss it by a second. Taking on just one at a time might have given me the slightest chance of victory… but two? 

And it ended up being just as difficult as I thought. The only thing giving me a real edge now was the knife, both of them having to give a clear radius to avoid that. If they managed to disarm me I knew it would be over. 

... The strange thing though was that neither of them had shifted. Taking them on in human form was only giving me the better advantage. I knew that if they were both to take their wolf forms I would be in trouble; my own wolf now lacking in strength since her absence. 

“Kill them both,‘ the voice instructed frantically inside my head. 

‘Do it. Before it‘s too late.‘ 

‘Do it.’ 

back aloud in frustration.

was never–ending. Never enough. Never stopping. I couldn‘t take much more. I just wanted my head to

to?” Cai asked,

perty Seven 

didn‘t reply

and, using my elbow to strike his jaw, I sent him straight to the ground with a thud. The impact

top of him, using my weight to pin his arms down. I needed to be fast because I knew he was probably

golden eyes locking with mine. “Stop.

of electricity in the air, trying to persuade me to stop. That same energy he’d manipulated me with

tightened my grip

can defeat Thea once we have

my

‘FINISH IT. ...And 

nei tianty toht 

Chapter Eighty–Eight 

voice yelled from behind

sending us both flying along the ground and sliding several feet away.

but he was putting

had something he didn‘t, something to give

could, I brought it

knife from me, throwing

It was over. 

it then,” | spat, still wriggling in a futile attempt to escape. “Get it over with. Kill me. Just like my parents, Aleric. Is that the kind of ‘help‘ you had in mind?

back down again to try and stop

he said furiously. “That is exactly

murder as some sort of messed up reversed logic where you‘re actually the hero? I bet that was Thea‘s doing. I bet she made you think that

shouted, cutting me off. “That‘s what I mean

shocked at

just lying so

I need to do that? I could just finish you off now if I

Aleric,” I argued. “I saw their blood on you.

you?” 

you actually saw their blood then tell me... where were their wounds?”

mother‘s office but I couldn‘t recall ever seeing where the blood would have come

to a spy, Aria. Someone posing as one of the warriors,” he continued when I didn‘t answer. “He came down to the office with me when Tytus ordered

were they dead on

family then we all agreed it was safer for them to be thought dead rather than

Chapter Eighty–Eight 

waiting for me

On the one hand, I was struggling with how

why wouldn‘t you tell me sooner?” I

once in over

have told me then. You could have told me in the cells after

have been this entire time,” he answered, his voice calming down a little. “...Only now I‘ve had to protect them from you. I knew it the second you walked into the cells, Aria…

again under him, trying to move

me a story about my parents being alive, now he was trying to say that

in his grasp. “You‘re

out of it

looking up at him wide–eyed. He had that serious expression about him, the same one that made me want to

sure that you‘re fine, right?” he asked and pulled himself back upright, allowing for me to sit up.

between us, his grip tight as

W–what are you doing,” I said, trying to pull it

hand down the inside of my arm along

to be looking at. Your hand? My

if that was going to make

“And...?” 

just sighed, obviously unimpressed by my answer. “And

frowned in thought, looking at where he was still holding my arm. What was he talking about? Shifting maybe? Was he referring to how my wolf was absent? What would that have to do with my arm though?

finally realised what

of dread quickly spread

I whispered in shock and grabbed back at his arm frantically, touching his skin over

set in stone the moment of our conception. So where was it? I knew what this was supposed to feel like, I‘d lived a life of knowing the exact sensations that should be

was

was my mate... and I couldn‘t feel the mate

Chapter Eighty–Eight 

is it?!” I asked, panic filling my voice. “Why can‘t

quickly looked up into his eyes, full of sadness as he quietly watched me, and everything came crashing down. Just his look alone was enough to tell me that, whatever this was, it really was just my side who

of

Just... nothing. 

my cheek as I held his

with me?”

me so it just felt like any other day. Somehow between everything

then why wasn‘t it there? Why couldn‘t

I actually sick?

I really was the problem, if something really was wrong with me, didn‘t that mean Aleric was maybe telling the

started to feel as though I couldn‘t breathe and I began questioning everything that had

though the world just completely stopped. and there was only you,” he said quietly. “It was like nothing else I‘d ever experienced and words couldn‘t come close to properly describing it.

he was talking about even though I hadn‘t felt it in this life. I could still vividly recall the first time I‘d seen him in the past, how it was meant to feel and how world–changing it

to gravitate to one another. Instead, you just looked at me coldly, speaking words that I would have never expected you to say. Behaving in a way I didn‘t even recognise to be you anymore. And I knew something was wrong.”

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