A Gift from the Goddess

Chapter 73

Chapter Seventy–Three 

“... What the fuck are you doing back here?” Aleric asked. 

He stood in my doorway, arms crossed, staring at me like I was insane. 

But I didn‘t care. My mind was made up. There was no way I was going to have this conversation tonight. 

“No,” I answered flatly. 

“No‘?” 

“No, I‘m not doing this now,” I clarified. “I‘m too tired. We can talk later.” 

I rolled onto my side, facing away from him, and pulled the blanket up over my shoulder. Maybe if I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep, he would just leave on his own accord. 

“Aria, you need to tell me what‘s going on,” he pressed. “Joseph told me you came back over the border and I thought he was joking until I caught your scent by the stairs. Did something happen? Were you caught?” 

“No,” I mumbled, repeating myself once more. 

“Stop that. Regardless of how tired you are, this is more important. I need to know if something went wrong.” 

I groaned out in frustration but reluctantly sat up, my head immediately pulsing with a migraine.* 

“Nothing went wrong, Aleric. Just let it go.” 

“Obviously something went wrong or you wouldn‘t be here.” 

He was getting angry at me and it was only making me more irritated that we were actually having this conversation. 

“Fine then,” I snapped back, turning to look at him. “You want to know what went wrong? The entire thing. The whole plan. How stupid do you think Tytus is that he wouldn‘t find out that you were planning to hide me in the Silver Lake?” 

His eyes widened a little in surprise. “You’re joking, right? Cai didn‘t organise to move you somewhere else?” 

‘More like didn‘t want to move me somewhere else,‘ I thought, recalling our earlier exchange. And that was only after finding out about Caitlyn. 

“Evidently not,” I answered, not wanting to elaborate further on the other reasons I‘d returned. 

“So... what? You‘re just going to come back here and pretend everything is normal? That you didn‘t almost get killed here? After risking everything to get you out?” 

“I don‘t know, Aleric!” I yelled back. “I don‘t know, okay? I don‘t know what to do about me, or Tytus, or Cai ... and I *especially don‘t know what to do about you.” 

He paused, frowning. “...About me?” 

Ah, fuck. I’d said too much. 

“Wait, are you angry at me because of what I told you in the car?” he asked, piecing together my silence. 

I rubbed my eyes, hoping that this was just a bad dream.“...No.” 

But I didn‘t sound very convincing. 

Chapler Seventy–Three 

“Seriously? How is that fair on me? You were the one who was angry at me for originally not telling you.” 

That did it.

my exhaustion. Crumbling that final piece inside me that still cared about what he would think once

talk about ‘fair‘, Aleric? What you said in that car was not fair– not fair to me. In fact, it was the cruellest thing anyone has ever said to me throughout my lives. I

say ‘lives‘?”

whatever this is,” I said, waving a hand towards him. “This version of you who is so goddamn unpredictable that I feel as though everything I learnt the first time around is completely useless. That it was meaningless. That I

s that fair?” 

what the fuck are you talking

my eyes you were, Aleric. You

“Aria–.” 

that was within m y power to give, I gave it to you. You wanted the world to kneel before you? I gave you the path to do it. You wanted my heart, my soul and

room with nothing but an attendant who in the end threw me to the dogs. And

I did it so that maybe you would love me... so that maybe you would just look

JOU 

the same future from happening, to stop myself from becoming your Luna, to stop you from trapping and hurting me again... and to stop myself from ever having to love you again... because I couldn‘t bear the thought of living through your rejection twice. That alone had been more painful than anything else.”

apparently rejected you? Hurt

escaped my lips,

a smile slowly creeping onto my face. “You see, to be reborn, you don‘t just get plucked out of thin air by Selene and sent back. No, no… you have to die

see where I was going with this, his face quickly starting to pale, and my smile

through my neck at the trial grounds. You killed me, Aleric. You killed me once

Chapter Seventy Theo 

you put me

looked at me, his eyes full of

were now balled into fists, tightened around the blanket beneath me, and watched as my tears hit the

get to dictate what‘s unfair this time...,” I choked out slowly. “And you don‘t

me but, even once he kneeled down to eye

me,” he

head, wiping at my face.

at me,” he repeated.

but I just shook my head once

“Aria, look.” 

grabbed my chin and raised my head up to finally meet his gaze, to meet his green eyes that

if you want, to say that I‘m sorry but, at the end of the day, even if I did, it wouldn‘t mean anything. Yes, I‘m sorry that those things happened to you, but I can‘t look you in the eye and genuinely apologise for something I never did, and I guarantee you that

did.” 

young,” I whispered. “You have time to

pulled my chin out of his grasp and looked back down at my hands, making him sigh.

ever given you

knew he

get my sincere apology. And the things that I went through were never going to be okay. Because the person I needed to hear the apology from was dead in another timeline that was now destroyed. *My* Aleric was gone. And, knowing him, it was likely that he didn‘t regret what

not trust him. In fact, he had proven to me time and time again that I could. And yet I still refused to let myself give

but... regardless of who you are this time, I can‘t be the person you want me to be,” || said, moving away from him. “I can‘t become a Luna again, always living in your shadow and hoping that what i do ensures my survival for one more day.

nupied scrantyce 

sit back passively i in the shadows as a Luna anyway. I just want you to help me make this pack the best

different. It still sounded basically the same as what I

how messed up things have been? Hate me for the rest of your life if you want, but I would rather we work together than end up divided in a civil war for power, something that benefits neither us nor the pack. I‘m not so naive as to assume you haven‘t at least considered taking over once you‘re of age. Especially after what Tytus has done to you.” 2

exact conversation with this but had turned her down knowing the impact it would have on Aleric. At the time, I couldn‘t risk tarnishing our current relationship for fear it would lead to the very doom I was trying to

was

he was offering was true then this

that was the last thing I ever expected to hear from his mouth This would

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