The Human Among Wolves (Aurora) novel Chapter 202

Chapter 202

I shook my head before he could even finish, stepping back just enough to make the boundary unmistakable.

“I’m not going anywhere with you,” I said, quieter this time, but firmer. “Not until you tell me the truth.”

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My breath came out uneven, hanging in the air between us. Snow settled silently on his shoulders, in his hair, on the dark lashes

framing those stormy eyes that suddenly looked… lost.

Zayn stood there, unmoving, the winter quiet pressing in around us.

And for once, he didn’t try to come closer.

He just stared at me like the truth itself was a weight he wasn’t sure he could lift.

“Fine.”

He finally said it after a long, tense beat, his jaw locking so tightly I could see the muscle twitch. “If you’re gonna be so fucking

stubborn and freeze your ass off, be my guest.”

I rolled my eyes, more out of habit than anything, but I didn’t interrupt him this time. For once, I just waited. The cold settled into my fingers, my shoulders, but I stayed still.

And eventually, he continued.

“It’s about my father.”

Of course it was. With him, it always was. The shadow behind every choice he made, every wall he built. But I kept my thoughts to

myself and stayed quiet.

Zayn’s breath fogged in front of him as he spoke, slow and rough.

“The day we… slept together, I was the happiest man alive.” His gaze flicked up to mine for half a second, raw and unguarded. “I had you, and I didn’t want to lose you. Ever.”

The words hit something in me, something I wasn’t ready for, but I didn’t look away.

“The next morning I woke up before you,” he went on, voice tightening, “and someone called me.”

A pause. Just long enough for my heart to thud, once, hard.

“Zade.”

Zade. His brother. Why would-

Zayn swallowed, shoulders stiffening.

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Chapter 202

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“I don’t know how, but he somehow knew about us. And he told me end it before he told our father. And…” His mouth twisted

slightly, like the words tasted rotten. “And to get back with Charlotte”

The snow kept falling, quiet, steady–like the world was listening.

“Your father knows about me?”

The question slipped out before I could stop it, sharper than I intended. Zayn shook his head immediately.

“No.” He dragged a hand through his hair, frustrated. “I mean–yes, he knows about Aurenya. He knows about… the version of you

you’re supposed to be. But not about Aurora.” His eyes found mine then, serious, bleak. “But that’s not all.”

A cold prickle ran down my spine.

“What else?” I asked, quieter than before.

Zayn hesitated–just for a breath–but it was enough to make my stomach twist. And then he said it, almost like he had to force the

words out before he lost the nerve.

“My father has an auction house.”

The world seemed to still around us.

I stared at him, stunned.

Auction house.

The words didn’t even make sense in my head.

“What… what do you mean?” I managed, my voice thin, unsteady.

Zayn swallowed, jaw tightening.

“The day you met Zade,” he said slowly, carefully, “my father took me somewhere. To the auction house.” He exhaled shakily. “In

that place, there were… a lot of girls. Vampires, werewolves, witches fairies–every kind of supernatural being you can imagine.”

My heart hammered painfully.

He kept going anyway.

“And they were being sold off,” he said, voice hollow, “to whoever had the highest bid.”

I felt sick.

“And I-”

“What the fuck do you mean?!” I cut him off, my voice cracking from the force of it. The cold didn’t matter anymore. The snow

didn’t matter. Only the horror rising in my chest.

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The Human Among Wolves