Aria's Second Chance

2_The Truth

Aria

“Aria!” The voice calling me is oddly familiar, but I cannot place it.

“Aria, where are you?” The voice is coming closer. There are footsteps and shuffling but still, I cannot bring myself to move. And Maya is gone. She is usually the one that urges me to get up and keep on moving. That was before I killed our mate. Now she is grieving. Which is good, I do not have the energy to deal with anything right now.

“Aria, oh dear goddess!” My sister exclaims when she enters the bathroom.

“Rick!” She calls over her shoulder to her husband. “Bring alcohol and fast.”

My older sister, Amelia, is the best. Bit of a nerd, but she has the kindest heart. She has been there for me my entire life and I always know that I can count on her for support. That is the reason why I taught Evan to always go to auntie Amelia if I am not around.

Evan! The thought strikes me like a bolt of lightning. He is supposed to be with Amelia and if she is here then … oh no, he cannot see this.

“Evan,” I whisper hoarsely and struggle to get up. “Where …”

“Don’t move,” Amelia kneels next to me. “Evan is safe at my place and eating ice cream with his cousins. It’s just me and Rick. We came as fast as we could.”

“Thank you,” I manage the words with difficulty through my soar throat. Evan is safe and Amelia is here. Now I can close my eyes and go to sleep.

“Don’t go to sleep,” Amelia says urgently and taps me on my cheek. “Where are you hurt? There is so much blood, I do not know where to start.”

“Not my blood,” I murmur and struggle my eyes open. “The blood on my face could be mine. I don’t know.”

“Let’s start over,” Amelia sighs. “Are you cut anywhere?”

“No,” I reply softly.

“So, you were only beaten?” She asks and throws a towel over me to cover my naked body.

“Only beaten?” If it were not so painful, I would have started laughing. Only beaten. Like I am exaggerating. I am being a drama queen for acting this way because I was ‘only’ beaten.

“That’s not what I’ve meant,” Amelia says strictly. “And you know it. I’m trying to figure out if I should be looking for bullet or stab wounds.”

“Bruce has a stab wound,” I say as cold shivers take over my body.

“Rick, she’s in shock,” Amelia shouts. “Where’s that alcohol?”

“I’m here,” Rick replies as he hands Amelia the drink. He sits on the floor beside me.

Like a puppet I allow him to gently pick me up and cradle me in his lap as Amelia puts the glass against my lips.

“Drink up, little sis,” Amelia murmurs and I obey. It is nice that they are thinking for me. I cannot think right now.

The bourbon is warm and burning down my throat. I gasp slightly for air, and it feels like a little life is returning to me.

“No ice?” I frown.

“Sarcasm,” Rick chuckles. “She’ll be fine.”

“We’ll have to move fast,” Amelia stands up hastily. “Rick, get her in the shower. I’ll get her clothes.”

“I can walk,” I protest when Rick stands up with me in his arms to carry me to the shower.

“I know, but I’m faster,” he smiles down at me.

There is a moment of awkward silence between us when he puts me down in the shower and the towel drops to the floor, leaving me naked in front of my brother-in-law.

“He truly did a number on you, kiddo,” he looks at me with sad, compassionate eyes and instantly, I have a lump in my throat.

“Get out,” I say hoarsely as I close the door and open the taps.

I stare at my feet and watch the red water circle down the drain. Only when the red turns to pink and then clear, do I pick up the soap and shampoo to thoroughly clean myself. I must grin on my teeth not to make a sound when the pain hits me every time, I wash a bruised area. My face feels the worst. I can barely touch it without wincing in pain.

“Are you done, Aria?” Amelia shouts from the room. “We don’t have much time.”

“Yeah,” I sigh and close the taps reluctantly. Leaving the comfort of the shower and facing the scene in the bedroom is something I want to avoid for as long as possible.

“I’ve picked this dress,” Amelia says as she enters the bathroom. “I figured it would be …”

She stops midsentence when she sees my face. Her fingers fly to her quivering lips and her eyes turn watery.

“Don’t you dare cry,” I warn her and take the dress from her. “If you cry, I cry.”

“Your face,” she whispers barely audible. “Even with the blood washed off, you look … how can you even see?”

“It will heal,” I shrug.

“Even with your healing abilities, it will take days,” Amelia huffs. “Evan cannot see you like this, Aria, I’m serious.”

“I will cover it with makeup,” I grunt as I painfully put on underwear. “I have done it before.”

“No amount of makeup in the world can safe you this time,” she sighs as she helps me to fasten my bra. “You cannot see Evan for at least a day. You will traumatize the boy.”

“I’ve killed his father, Amelia,” I say irritated and pull the dress over my head. “That’s trauma enough.”

My words sting my ears as they fill the bathroom. My legs go weak, and I sit on the toilet, looking at Amelia in despair.

“I’ve killed his father,” I croak. “My own son will hate me for the rest of his days.”

“He will not hate you,” Amelia says urgently as she kneels in front of me and takes my hands into hers. “You will not tell him any of this until he is old enough to understand. Besides, he might only be three, but he saw things that no child should see. On some level, he knows things aren’t right. For crying out loud, Aria, the boy ran for safety. He knows.”

“Look up,” Rick says from the door and the second I look at him, he takes a picture with his phone.

“What are you doing?” I ask in a panic. I do not want people to know about this.

“Calm down, Aria,” he says gently. “I won’t show this to anyone. But one day, when Evan asks, I will show him that his mother survived.”

“No,” I shake my head feverishly, resulting in an instant headache. “He should never see any of this.”

“And I will not show him unless it’s necessary,” Rick says adamantly as he puts his phone in his pocket. “But if that’s what it takes to make him understand, he will see it.”

“I’d rather he hates me than see that,” I protest.

“Aria,” Amelia comes to stand in front of me and rests her hands on my shoulders. “Look at me. This conversation can be continued at a later stage. Right now, you have bigger problems.”

“She’s right,” Rick looks at me sympathetically. “The alpha’s twin has died by your hand. Bradley is not going to be pleased.”

“It was self-defence,” I look from Rick to Amelia in a panic. “He … he will understand. When he sees my face, he …”

“He will not care,” Rick finishes my sentence. “Bradley knows exactly how poorly Bruce has been treating you and he enjoys it.”

“I … I don’t understand,” I stutter. “Why would he enjoy it?”

“We didn’t want to tell you,” Amelia sighs. “But Bradley hated that his brother had a mate and son, and he didn’t. He constantly told Bruce that your behaviour was unacceptable and that he should be ashamed of how his mate acts around other men and higher ranks.”

“What?” I stare at them flabbergasted. “I never misbehaved or broke protocol.”

“We know,” Rick assures me. “Everyone knows. But the constant critique from Bradley drove Bruce up the walls.”

“You’re telling me that it’s Bradley’s fault that Bruce started to abuse me?” I look at them dumbfounded. On a certain level, it makes sense. Bruce never hit me until Evan turned one. Sure, he was not always the most pleasant person, but I was never afraid of him. In the beginning, I felt comfortable enough to raise my voice at him when we did not agree on things.

“In some way, yes,” Rick sighs. “But ultimately, Bruce is responsible for his own choices and actions. He still chose to beat you.”

“We’ve killed our mate for no reason,” Maya whimpers in my head and my heart breaks into a million pieces as guilt fills my gut.

“You should’ve told me this,” I yell as misery consumes my soul. “If I knew this, I could’ve talked to Bruce. We could’ve figured things out and it didn’t have to come to this.”

“Bruce chose to side with his brother and not his mate,” Rick says firmly. “Nothing would’ve changed if you knew.”

“We don’t know that now, do we?” I yell furiously.

“Yes, we do,” Amelia whispers and looks at me with the saddest eyes I have ever seen. “We did talk to him, sis. We spoke with him on your behalf. Why do you think Rick was demoted from Delta to a warrior?”

Shocked to my core, I look from Amelia to Rick. Up to a second ago, I was not sure that I could feel any more pain than I already did. But this dreadfulness is about to tear me apart. I am ashamed that I thought I was in this alone. I am guilt-ridden that Rick lost his status for me. I am broken that my mate did not love me enough to fight for us.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper as tears burn my eyes and bruised cheeks. “I didn’t know.”

“It doesn’t matter, Aria,” Rick says kindly as he gently hugs me. “What matters now is that we get you out of here before Bradley learns the truth.”