AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Draven reached behind him and Flora placed her hand in his, giving him every ounce of strength she possessed. He tugged gently, leading her to stand next to him as his mate. His equal. Pride swelled in her chest, and she stood tall next to him.
“Such large demands from a man who claims to be only half mine,” Rieka taunted, her eyes narrowed on Draven.
“Such bold actions from a Goddess who would let her entire people suffer for the sins of the few.”
“You weren’t there.” Rieka took a step forward, the water around her feet sloshing and echoing through the cavern. “You didn’t see the bloodshed. The destruction.”
“No, I didn’t. But I’ve seen the desperation caused by separation from our wolves, and now I’ve experienced what it’s like to have him with me constantly. I never questioned the hole in my chest, believing it was due to the fact I was only mostly wolf. I was constantly searching for a way to be better. To be more for our pack. But it wasn’t because I was a hybrid. That was my strength. It was what allowed me to think beyond the missing part of me. Now that I have both my wolf and my bloodlust, I can see that you have denied my people the right to know themselves completely. And that Rieka, is a sin like no other. They trusted you, and you forced them to live with only a taste of what they could be.”
Rieka shook her head, and if Flora hadn’t been watching so closely, she might have missed the single tear that fell down the Goddess’s cheek. “They would have ended the supernatural world. You wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t taken their strength.”
“You don’t know that,” Draven spat, and even though she agreed with her mate, Flora couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit sorry for Rieka. She did what she thought was best. It wasn’t right, but it was the only answer.
“Draven,” Flora squeezed his hand, and he turned to meet her tentative gaze. “It was wrong what she did, but it’s possible it was the only option.”
He shirked away from her, yanking his hand from hers. “You’re siding with her?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying. I just—” The anger in Draven’s eyes gave her pause and Flora took a step toward him only for him to step back. She wanted to shake him. Wanted to make him see that there was more to this story than just the one he’d concocted in his head. She hadn’t missed the remorse that hid behind Rieka’s aloof nature. She was all Goddess, powerful in her own right, but beneath the impersonal appearance she portrayed, Flora could see the woman who wanted to make things right. It’s why they were there. She could feel it, even if she was shit at explaining it with words.
“Listen to your mate, Draven. You think you have it all figured out. That you know the way of the world and like I trained you to be, you want to right the wrong. But there is more at play here. I know what the fates have written in the stars. I dine with the gods who have manipulated the world as their nightly after-dinner game. You think you have it figured out, but you are but a small pawn. But you are my children, the both of you, and you are going to do amazing things for our world.”
Flora’s head whipped toward where Rieka stood on the edge of the water. “Both of us?”
“Oh sweet Flora, you didn’t think you weren’t a part of this from the beginning, did you? Who do you think placed you at the foot of my mountains?”
“Your mountains…?” Flora whispered, the implication of what Rieka said, weighing down her thoughts.
“One of many ranges I call my own.” The Goddess smiled.
“Fuck.” Draven cursed. “Lune. It literally translates to moon. I thought it was a coincidence, a choice made by the humans and their treasure hunt, but it’s so obvious now. You couldn’t help yourself could you?”
Rieka chuckled, and it was the first time since they’d entered the cave that she seemed genuinely amused. “The two of you have always been written, but I may have helped the situation along a bit.”
“All of it.” Flora’s eyes widened, every piece of her life falling into place leading her here. “My father. The Culling. All of it.”
“Your father was an unfortunate wretch. Not my doing. The stars threw you that one. The fates can be a royal bitch, but I must say, it made you that much stronger. The Culling was planned. Your connection to Emery. All of it.”
“An unfortunate wretch?” Flora screeched, not recognizing the hysteria in her own voice. “I went days without food. Was tortured and kept in a room no bigger than a horses stall. He killed my mother. I would say that’s a bit more than an unfortunate wretch, don’t you think?”
Fuck her. Fuck this Goddess. Flora had planned to give her the benefit of the doubt, but she didn’t deserve to be worshiped by the wolves. She was a conniving bitch who could rot in hell for all Flora cared.
“To you it would be. But remember Flora, I can see the whole picture. I know what’s coming.”
Flora took a step toward Rieka, her fists balled at her sides. There was no way she could go up against a Goddess, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to try. She could probably get one good swing in before Rieka smited her from the realm.
Draven grabbed her and pulled her against him. “Slow down there, Bubbles. Remember the promise you made me. Run away from danger, not toward it.”
She shrugged him off. “Draven, she literally allowed me to be tortured.”
It was comical how the tables had turned. Minutes before, it was her having to talk Draven off the ledge, and now it was her turn to need a reminder that they were better than this. Better than her.
“I know, and believe me if I thought I could rip her head from her shoulders and deliver it on a silver platter at your feet, I would. But if we believe in the fates, then we believe in karma, and she is a worse bitch than even Rieka. So I can only pray this twisted Goddess will get what’s coming to her.”
Flora stood with her mouth open, catching flies, torn between crashing her mouth to his for threatening Rieka on her behalf and helping him achieve said threat.
“At the end of the day, it will have been worth it,” Rieka murmured.
“So what happens now?” Flora slid her hand into Draven’s and turned to Rieka. “Free will is clearly not a thing, so what fucked up fate do you have in store for us next?”
