The Witch and Her Four Dangerous Alphas

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: As Silent as a Mouse

And then came the blow. Luca’s fist lashed out, striking Lucian across the jaw with a brutal crack that made Kael flinch. Blood spilled from Lucian’s mouth as he staggered back a step, but he didn’t fall. He simply looked back at his brother, eyes wide but resolute.

"How could you?" Luca shouted, voice cracking with pain more than fury. "You know what this place means to him! You know what this place is to us! And you let her in?"

Lucian didn’t answer. He just stood there, jaw clenched, blood trailing from his lip.

Kael still hadn’t spoken. He stood by the wall, pale and still, looking like he might collapse from the sheer weight of what had just happened.

The room still thrummed with leftover violence—Lucian’s split lip, Selene’s curled form on the cold floor, like she wanted to disappear, and Luca’s ragged breathing echoing through the air like thunder that hadn’t fully passed. But then... Aeron stepped forward.

His voice cut through the tension—not sharp, not cold, but calm in a way that only made his presence feel heavier.

"That’s enough," he said firmly, looking between his brothers.

His gaze lingered longest on Luca, whose fists were still clenched tight, and Lucian, whose chin still dripped blood. And then, Aeron exhaled.

"I forgive you," he said quietly.

It was a simple and unexpected answer. But it was honest.

Because no matter how furious he had been, no matter how sacred this place was, Aeron loved them deeply. They were more than brothers—they were the only fragments of his world he trusted. And watching them fight each other over this... it left a sour taste in his mouth far worse than any trespass ever could.

Lucian blinked at him in disbelief, and Kael let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding.

"Then tell me," Aeron continued, turning to Kael now. "Why was she brought here in the first place?"

Selene before answering. "She was causing trouble..." His voice darkened. "She

brow twitched at

act untamed, we’d remind her what she is. I brought her

tightly against herself, her damp hair hiding most

The collar.

neck—black leather with a metal

A slave’s collar.

that’s what

name like a crown now lay at

time," Aeron said after a pause, "tell me before bringing someone into

shrug, as if brushing away the weight of the decision. "Do what you want with her. She’s yours

her body went

go, silence hanging like a curtain until he disappeared into

soon followed, his jaw tight but expression cooled now that

on his bed. The heavy silence returned—but this

anyone—especially women—got too close. He’d once thrown out a visiting noble’s daughter simply because her perfume had lingered on a cushion. His tolerance for

with Selene... he

of him. Not when her scent clung to the air. Not even now.

was a problem. Because it wasn’t just

now, it whimpered in the back of his mind, restless and

again, though quieter this time. Don’t throw her out. She belongs here. Aeron gritted

the wolf said

of tossing her back into the omega quarters, the wolf roared inside his head, clawing and growling as if Aeron had just betrayed