2. Final betrayal

Liberty pov

“Heartless bitch,” I screech as anger and hurt consume me, “Honourless, heartless and cruel don’t even begin to describe you,” I growl out.

“Maybe,”Candy shrugs, “But I worked for what I have and I won’t be losing it because I'm taking it for granted” she sneers as she turns and leaves. 

Disbelief, anger and sadness battle each other. Days pass in which I do nothing but think back to see if I missed signs. 

Numbness finally settles over me. I stop eating and drinking only to be forced to drink. The guards start getting rougher with me. Calloused rough hands wrench open my mouth pouring in liquids to keep me alive and weak. Whatever they’re forcing down my throat is cutting me off from Naveah but is nourishing enough to keep me alive. 

Days pass by and the rough treatment slowly progresses to sexual harassment and general torture. Neither Hartley or Candy come to visit me again but countless others do. Confessing things, making fun of me taunting me. I don’t care for them.

That I’ll likely never see Blake again hurts. He is just a toddler. At 4 years old his life barely began. He’ll grow up hearing the worst about me. All I can do is hope that somewhere he has a memory of me to cherish. And maybe one day he’ll uncover the truth.  

“Oh my, you look terribly neglected,” Candy’s nasal voice sounds. I didn’t hear her enter nor did I smell her. 

“The smell down here is… potent?” she continues, “But I guess you get used to it if you spend a lot of time down here.” 

Knowing she is trying to get a rise out of me I decide to ignore her, it’s the only power I have. To not give in.

“I just came down here to inform you that Blake unfortunately died in a freak accident. The funeral pyre will be tonight but it seems you aren’t in the right headspace to attend.” 

A cold settles in my heart. I have no one left. Everyone I cared for and that cared for me is now murdered by Candy and Hartley. I don’t know why they are keeping me alive. 

“Please Candy, let me go. I have suffered enough. I’ve lost everything and everyone, ” I rasp my voice barely audible. 

A harsh crackle is all she gives in return and she leaves me alone. 

I didn’t feel Blake’s death because I was cut off from Naveah. I have nothing and no one to live for any more. I sit up and tear the remnants of my clothing into strips that I tie together into a noose. I can only hope that it holds me and they don’t find me before death holds me in her arms. 

I tie the noose to the silver bars, burning my hands in the process. Cursing Hartley and Candy I drop myself to my knees, the noose tightens but due to the lack of height I do not break my neck. Slowly I am strangled, begging Naveah for forgiveness and cursing Hartley and Candy until everything is black.

I open my eyes, immediately being blinded by the whitest brightest light I have ever experienced. 

“Rise Liberty,” an ethereal voice sounds. 

Panicked, I sit up and stare in the face  of the Moon Goddess. I fall to one knee to show her respect. 

“Moon Goddess…” I stammer unsure how to address her.

“Liberty,” she curtly answers. Her voice is somewhat cold, causing a shiver to run up my spine. 

“I gave you everything and you took it all for granted. You were complacent and ungrateful. You never worked for what you had. You never realised that things could change. You let it all happen. And then you didn’t fight it. You never tried to escape. You wallowed in self pity. Feeling sorry for yourself, never reflecting, never looking back. Placing the blame on everyone else.” 

I swallow hard. Her words cut. 

“Instead of cursing Hartley and Candy as you wanted me to do, I will send you back. If you really feel that injustice has been done to you you can put things right. Prove that you are not a spoiled little alpha's daughter. Show me that you deserve to be queen or luna.”

Panic settles in me. I can not do it all again. How do I prevent the events from playing out again? 

“Please don’t send me back! I don’t want to go back,” I hear my panicked voice feebly cry out. 

“You get a second chance. A chance to make things right. To change your path. To make your life your own. To take revenge. The choice is yours, choose wisely!” Selene’s voice rings in my ears. Everything goes black and it feels as if I’m falling indefinitely.

I’m being thrown back by the Moon Goddess. I have no choice but to live again.

“Lib! Libby!!” the all too familiar voice of my brother Cooper sounds. With a groan my eyes snap open as my heart races.

“Libby! Wake up you lazy pussy!” Cooper has climbed the stairs and is now in my room. He grabs the blanket and pulls it off of me. 

Ignoring him I put my head under the pillow. “Coop, just give me a few more minutes please.” I plead with him. 

“No can do, breakfast is in 10!” he cheerfully announces. 

“Okay, okay I’m coming….” I grumble feeling more confused and lost than anything else. 

A sigh escapes and I decide to stay in bed a bit longer. I enjoy snoozing and I don’t feel like going for a spar. But something seems different. I close my eyes and try to pull up the dream I was having before Cooper yelled me awake.

Disoriented, I get out of bed. As I look in the mirror I see a faint scar on my neck. When I touch it I feel silver burning and in my head I hear the words Selene spoke before throwing me back, ‘You get a second chance. A chance to make things right. To change your path. To make your life your own. To take revenge. The choice is yours, choose wisely!’

/Naveah?/ 

/Liberty?/ 

It wasn’t a dream. It was real. I lived my seemingly picture perfect life, mated to Hartley. He never loved me. He betrayed me, aided by the daughters of my fathers beta and Candy. The Moon Goddess refused to let me enter her realm for the after life, instead of cursing those who wronged me she sent me back. Forcing me to live life again, but also giving me a second chance. A chance to do things differently, to get revenge. But do I want revenge? I want to be loved and happy with my mate. 

I quickly put on my workout clothes and rush downstairs. Digging through my memories trying to figure out where in my life I am. I’m not yet in the Royal Academy but how long before that am I? Do I have time to change the way the events will occur?

“Morning Dad! morning Mom! Morning Coopy!” I cheerfully greet everyone, choking back tears. Never ever had I expected to see them again. 

“What got into you,” my father asks, surprise written all over his face. He hugs me and I fight back the tears. I can not cry now. I can not explain what happened and what will happen again if I don’t change. 

“I had a good night's sleep,” I reply. “What are today's plans?” I ask, my voice breaking from the tears I’m fighting. Meanwhile I’m still trying to figure out what day it is. Hoping that their answers will help me. 

“Cooper and I will be making a pre-selection from the candidates for the Academy trials in three months' time,” my father pointedly says. I hear his irritation. We fought over this. He was willing to put me on the list if I stepped up. I said ‘yes’ and did ‘no’.  

In my previous life I wanted to go to the Academy but I didn’t put in the work. I felt entitled to a spot because I was the Alpha’s daughter. To me it wasn’t about learning anything there. It was about finding my mate. I didn’t get selected due to my lack of talent and effort.