A Gift from the Goddess

Book Two – Ch.# 36

“Rae… What’s happened?” he asked.

I opened my mouth to reply but the words wouldn’t come out. My body was running on pure adrenaline for survival now and I was doing my best to push through the overwhelming urge to cave into my emotions.

“I… I’m…,” I fumbled.

My eyes were trying to water but I gritted my teeth against it.

I didn’t want to fight Kieran… I didn’t know if I could live myself if I were to see the look of hatred in his eyes. Anything but that.

“Rae?”

“I… Kieran, someth-.”

But before I could finish speaking, I was suddenly cut off.

“RAVEN!” Allison’s voice shrilly screamed.

And I cursed. She was here. Probably at the staircase looking for me.

This was game over.

Kieran frowned but turned around to investigate, walking towards my only available exit. One now manned by his insane little sister.

“Kieran! W-wait… don’t….”

However, as I futilely trailed behind him, I was further stressed by seeing that Allison had recruited help. Help in the form of Daniel, the Beta heir.

“Hand yourself over, Raven,” Daniel said, stepping cautiously forward. “Let’s not drag this out any longer than we have to.”

“What the hell is going on?” Kieran demanded.

“I’m sorry, man, but she’s been lying to you,” he said. “Allison said that she admitted to being one of them. Called herself by a name that belonged to The Council of the Silver Mist. She’s a Knight. Rheyna Knight.”

But as Daniel enlightened him to the situation, it was Kieran’s reaction that was the most unsettling.

Or, lack of, to be precise.

Because there was no shock or surprise that crossed his features at all. Just… remaining completely silent as he held Daniel’s gaze.

Almost as if…

Almost as if he knew.

“…Kieran?” I whispered. “Why aren’t you….”

And his face then confirmed it, closing his eyes in guilt for a moment.

Everything made sense now. Why he kept our training sessions private, why I was never allowed to talk about my health problems publicly, why he’d said those words to me last night. They’d struck me as odd, but I’d had more important things to worry about at the time. But his phrasing had been weird.

we’ll be fine.”*’ That was what he had said. ‘Biggest issue’ being my past. Because he knew that my birth family would cause a reaction like this, far

could you know? Let alone keep this from me? Why bring me here at all?”

during a fight whilst taking them, Rae. It meant you had to be from a powerful pack, one stronger than even Ashwood by a considerable margin. Of which, there was only one other in modern history. But… I

from me, knowing full well that this might happen one day. That it was information that could likely lead to my death.

deeper inside, the last shred of hope dying.

seemed we’d both been keeping things from each other. Secrets that had dire consequences. Perhaps our relationship really

in. “She’s a descendant

were. She was an orphan of war,

fabrications,” she said. “Now I’m starting to wonder if Sterling’s death was really as justified as you claimed. She probably had you kill him

a devil like we were always told.

killed Sterling,” I said quietly, my voice

it was me. I

“Rae!”

I’m no innocent, Kieran. Pick a title; Rogue or Devil. Because the

feeling… exhausted. Exhausted of pretending to be someone I wasn’t… and exhausted of now defending myself against something I couldn’t change. My body felt numb to everything as

I was done.

confession, tears starting

Kieran! She is literally admitting that she’s evil.

she hadn’t of killed him, I would have.

before she could reply.

finger joints were repeatedly broken prior to his death,” I added. “I tortured him before I finished the job. Because that’s what he was. What you were too. A job, Kieran. You really think I was allowed to come here of my own volition? With a man like my father? My leash has only ever been long enough to serve his interests.” 1

“What…?”

finally, Kieran looked

the very beginning when we first met. I was sent to retrieve documents once in possession of a smuggler I’d killed, believed to be handed over to Victor Lycroft. Documents that I then discovered Sterling knew the whereabouts of. After he attacked me, I turned the tables on him and tortured him into admission. This shouldn’t be a shock. I

“Rae-.”

“…Rae is a lie.

he looked at me, making me want to take it all back. But even if it hurt,

saw it in your face every day we were together. I

denial at letting me push him away was only making this harder. Too hard

of frustration and sadness surfaced all at once, a cumulation of both the revelations today and

FIX ME,

family nor change my past. This isn’t something you can mend like

person, believing the best still exists inside me,’ I added in my

not there. It never will

I finally raised my voice in anger. It must have made him uncomfortable, unsure probably if I were about to perform some other devil magic. Whatever the hell that even was.

was letting my emotions seep in again, something that was a snowball that

now

me to safely utilise a window escape. I was trapped unless I intended to fight my way out. Something that I wanted

take her to your

decide what to do with

Kieran wasn’t having that. He looked… pissed. Probably rightfully so given

swear to the Goddess, Daniel…,” Kieran warned.

what? You really want to defend her? A child of the monsters who killed your mother? Our other pack members? So many died

about Rae’s mother? Huh? Her father? Siblings?” he argued. “Because her entire family is dead because of us.

…I hadn’t.

This went

moving too quickly for me to think about it before but… but if it weren’t for Ashwood, perhaps I would have grown up normally. I might have known what it was like to have a real