CHAPTER 209: CHAPTER 209: I AM A WITCH

Selene’s POV~

I let out a shaky breath of pure relief as Aeron finally stood before me. He was here. Just seeing him made the suffocating tension I felt between his brothers ease a little.

Maybe now I wouldn’t have to be the centerpiece of their possessive glares.

I smiled, a genuine one this time, and took another step closer. "You’re finally here," I repeated softly, and I meant it.

My eyes swept over the three men still on the couch. Kael was grinning, Luca was watching me with an unreadable expression, and Lucian... Lucian still looked like a handsome statue of deadly calm.

They were all werewolves. Hungry, predatory wolves who want to devour her at any possible moment. Maybe Aeron was the only composed one here whom she could trust.

But what I don’t know is that Aeron was no different, even if he looked more reserved.

I looked back up at Aeron. He was standing stiffly, looking down at me with an intensity that made my cheeks warm all over again.

"Aeron," I said, tilting my head slightly. "Come sit down, please."

He blinked, and the tension in his shoulders seemed to snap. I watched as his eyes dropped momentarily to his clothes...the dark, dusty attire and the faint blood scent that clung to him.

Then, his gaze flicked to his brothers, and I caught a quick, almost panicked realization cross his face.

"I... I will be back in a minute," he said, his voice quiet but firm. "I need to... change my clothes."

I nodded, slightly confused but accepting. "Of course."

He turned quickly and strode toward the hall with a single, long-legged movement. His sudden self-consciousness about his appearance was a strange twist, but I don’t mind.

He should be comfortable because I knew my discussion would probably take time. And he couldn’t be in those clothes all the time.

It didn’t take long. True to his word, Aeron returned just a few minutes later.

He was freshly bathed. His black hair was still dripping slightly onto the collar of his simple, loose, dark grey shirt. The casual dark pants softened his usually severe appearance, making him look less like an intimidating Alpha and more like... well, like an incredibly handsome man.

I realized with a tiny jolt that I had rarely, if ever, seen him dressed so casually. He looked impossibly tall, even taller than I remembered.

My eyes scanned his physique, comparing him almost unconsciously to his brothers. They were all built almost the same, but each in a subtly different way.

Aeron was undeniably the tallest, with a lean power and clearly defined, tight muscles.

Luca was broader, more visibly muscular...the kind of build that screamed, "One punch will knock you out."

Kael had a more toned, athletic frame, all defined cuts and effortless grace...the classically "sexy" build.

And then there was Lucian. I looked at him now, sitting calmly on the couch. He seemed thinner than he had a year ago. Had something happened to him while he was away?

I recalled the whispers I’d heard when I was at the pack...that he had vanished, that no one knew where he had been for months.

My thoughts were interrupted as Aeron walked over and sat in the armchair opposite me and Luca, finally breaking up the possessive circle I’d been trapped in. He looked perfectly composed now, utterly clean, and devastatingly attractive.

My breath hitched slightly. He really was the best-looking of them all.

I didn’t mean in appearance; all the brothers’ features are top-notch, which made all the she-wolves squeal at the sight of them. But because currently he looks more like a gentleman.

My heart hammered against my ribs as I looked from one to the next, the four of them forming an inescapable perimeter.

They were all different, yet they all targeted the same place deep inside me...that primal, needy core that desperately responded to strength and dominance.

Damn it, why? The thought screamed in my mind. Why was I mated to all four of them? Was one dangerous, gorgeous Alpha not enough? Now I had four, each a unique flavor of lethal. I wanted to cry from the sheer absurdity and terror of it.

I felt a sudden, fierce rush in my lower belly, a sensation like warm liquid pouring through me, and my eyes flicked to the nearest empty lap...Kael’s, since he was now sitting up properly, watching me with that knowing, predatory grin.

The impulse was immediate and mortifying: I wanted to sit in his lap. I wanted one of them to pull me close, to hide me, to dominate this terrifying space.

I gripped my clothes tighter, trying to project calm. But even though I was trying to act strong, my legs were trembling faintly just at the thought of being alone with all four of them, each one looking at me as if I were the most delicious thing they’d ever encountered.

Act normal, Selene.

Luca shifted beside me, clearing his throat quietly. The small sound drew my attention.

He was giving me a strange, knowing look, and I felt my cheeks flush, realizing I had been openly scrutinizing his brother.

"Aeron, I got Selene some noodles," Luca said, smoothly cutting the tension. "You must be hungry too. Want me to get you something?"

Aeron shook his head, his eyes fixed on me. "No, thank you, Luca. I’m fine."

The silence settled, and I felt the weight of all four sets of eyes on me again. Now they weren’t just two wolves, but four, sitting in a loose circle, watching my every move.

I met Aeron’s intense gaze, forcing a steady expression. "So," I began, my voice only slightly shaky. "I wanted to ask you..."

He leaned forward fractionally, his eyes never leaving mine, waiting.

I paused, suddenly realizing the gravity of the moment. This was the first time I was initiating a real, open discussion with them since the rogue attack...since I had disappeared.

The memory of that time was a dark, jagged hole I didn’t want to revisit, and I suspected they felt the same. It was best to start with the present, with the most crucial facts.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the frantic flutter in my chest.

"You must know," I said, addressing all of them, "that I am not a werewolf. I am a witch."

I shifted uncomfortably, clutching my fist tighter to calm down. I had no idea how they would react to this blunt declaration. Would they be disgusted? Angry? Wolves and witches often had a fraught, violent history.

To my immense relief, they didn’t overreact. Kael’s usual cocky grin had flattened into a look of serious contemplation, and even Lucian looked calm and focused, his eyes unwavering. Luca’s hand, which had been resting near mine, shifted slightly.

I let out a small sigh of relief and continued. "When I fell from the cliff after that rogue attack, I was rescued by witches. That is how I found out that I was actually a witch." I deliberately left out the part about the attack being planned or any details of that escape. It wasn’t the time.

I took another deep breath, preparing for the bombshell. "You must have heard about a witch who was killing Alphas..." I closed my eyes, unable to face the inevitable disgust and hatred. "That is me. I am the pure-blooded Witch."

I was killing their kind. They must hate me. I braced myself for their disgusted reaction, for the sudden shift to predatory anger.

But instead of revulsion, I felt a gentle pressure.

My hand was carefully taken in a big, firm grip. I opened my eyes to find it was Luca. He squeezed my hand slightly, his dark eyes filled with a reassuring warmth.

"It’s okay," he whispered, his voice low and steady. "We knew it."

Then I heard another voice...a disdainful, almost bored drawl. It was Kael.

"Ah, all those Alphas..." He shook his head, looking unimpressed. "Damn, you did good. Those men are rotten to the core. It’s better you killed them because they irritate me so much, I would have killed them myself."

I blinked, stunned. He was praising me for murdering Alphas?

I looked at Aeron, the most composed and gentlemanly of them. He met my gaze and nodded slowly.

"Yes," Aeron affirmed quietly. "We knew. Those Alphas... they were truly bad seeds."

All eyes immediately turned to Lucian, who had remained silent. My eyes went to him, wanting to know his opinion.

The three brothers also looked at him with a silent, warning look...a silent demand that he must say something that should calm her...that they didn’t give a fuck about anyone but her.

Lucian simply rested his chin on his fist, his gaze meeting mine with that familiar, intense focus. His lips curved into the faintest, almost imperceptible smirk.

His words shocked everyone, including his brothers.

"And I," Lucian said, his voice quiet, calm, and utterly deadpan, "was busy helping her kill those scums."