The Human Among Wolves (Aurora) novel Chapter 259

Chapter 259

Aurora

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She leaned back slightly, eyes unfocused as if she was looking at something far away. “When I disappeared, rumors spread. About why. About who I was with. About what I’d done.”

My stomach twisted.

“They thought I chose it,” she continued. “That I ran away. That I betrayed the coven. Some believed I was hiding something

dangerous.”

“Like me,” I said quietly.

Her eyes snapped back to mine. “No,” she said immediately. “Never you. They didn’t know about you. Not then.”

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding.

“They thought I was involved in something forbidden,” she went on. Something that could destabilize things. And in a way…” She hesitated. “They weren’t entirely wrong. But not for the reasons they believed.”

Silence fell again, thick and heavy.

“So when I heard them talking,” I said slowly, “they weren’t talking about me. They were talking about you. About what they

thought you’d done.”

“Yes,” she said. “And about what they’re still afraid of.”

Zayn shifted beside me. “Which is?”

She looked at him calmly. “The truth,” she said. “And the consequences of it.”

I leaned forward slightly. “Then why didn’t you tell anyone? When you came back?”

She shook her head. “Because I didn’t remember enough to explain anything. And because by the time I returned, the damage was already done. Theron was gone from my life. The coven didn’t trust me. And you were missing.”

Her voice cracked slightly on the last word.

“I thought if I stayed quiet, if I disappeared again… maybe things wouldn’t get worse.”

“And did they?” I asked softly.

She met my gaze. “No,” she admitted. “But they didn’t get better either.”

I sat back, processing everything. The half–truths. The silence. The fear that had shaped all of our lives without us even knowing it.

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“I wish I could give you more answers,” she said. “About that night. bout what was done to me. About why things happened the

way they did.”

“I know,” I said. “And I’m not asking you to remember what you can.”

She reached out hesitantly, then placed her hand over mine. Her touch was warm. Real.

“I spent years searching,” she continued. “Even when the spells failed. Even when logic told me you were gone. I never stopped

believing you were alive somewhere.”

I nodded, blinking fast. “I was,” I said. “I just didn’t know who I was.

She smiled sadly. “And now you’re finding out all at once.”

“Yeah,” I said quietly. “Seems like it.”

Zayn finally spoke. “What matters now is what comes next.”

Cecilia looked between us. “What comes next is dangerous,” she said honestly.

“Especially for you.” Her eyes lingered on me. “Both of you.”

“I know,” I said. “But I’d rather face it knowing the truth or qu

than keep running blind.”

She studied me for a long moment, then nodded slowly. “You r really are his daughter.”

I gave a small, tired smile. “I’m starting to see that.”

The fire crackled softly in the background, the cabin warm and still round us, but I knew this moment–this fragile peace–wouldn’t

last forever.

I took a breath and I started telling her about Seeaphina’s disappearance. And then about the time slip–about Zayn, Kael, and me being thrown into something that didn’t follow normal rules, where ime bent and folded in on itself like it didn’t care what it did

to us.

I didn’t dramatize it. I didn’t rush it either. I just said it the way it happened, piece by piece, like I was laying everything out on the

table and stepping back.

Cecilia didn’t interrupt once.

She just listened.

As I spoke, I could see it settling into her face–the exhaustion first, then the sadness underneath it. Not the kind that explodes or collapses in on itself. The quiet kind. The kind you carry for so long it becomes familiar.

When I finally stopped talking, the room felt heavier. Not tense. Just full.

She stared down at her tea for a long moment, her fingers wrapped tightly around the cup like she needed the warmth to keep

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herself grounded. Her shoulders eagged slightly, like everything I had said added wright she hadn’t been erecting but solow

wasn’t surprised by either.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly, without looking up. “That you had to go through all of that

I swallowed, “I know none of it is your fault.”

She nodded once, slowly. “Knowing that dowen’t always make it wasley”

We sat there like that for a bit, the fire crackling softly in the background. Zayn stayed still beádu na, dere voorth fed 1 condo

feel his presence without him saying a word. It helped more than I could explain.

After a few minutes, Cecilia finally looked up again. Her eyes met mine, and I could see how fired she was, Not just grysically. Sond

deep tired,

“Can I ask you a question?” I said quietly.

She hesitated for half a second, then nodded. “Of course.”

“How do you look so young?” I asked after a moment. I hesitated, then added, “I mean… you don’t look older than twenty–five.”

She let out a soft chuckle at that, shaking her head slightly. “I’m a witch, honey,” she said gently. “I found a loophole.”

She lifted her cup again, her smile faint but real. “Don’t worry,” she added. “It’ll catch up with me someday.”

I smiled, the first real smile I’d had in what felt like forever. “Can you tell me how you and my dad met?” I asked softly, then added,

“If you don’t mind.”

She looked at me for a long, moment, really looked at me, as if she was trying to memorize my face all over again. Then she gave a

small, gentle nod, “Of course,” she said quietly. “I’ll tell you everything you want to know. Whatever you ask.*

I smiled again and leaned back against the couch, trying to settle myself, even though my chest felt too tight for that. I wrapped my

fingers together in my lap, waiting for her to continue, afraid that if spoke again I might break the moment.

Zayn shifted slightly beside me, close enough that I could feel his warmth. Without saying anything, he reached over and gently

placed his hand on top of mine. The touch was simple and steady, grounding in a way nothing else had been all night. I laced my

fingers with his, drawing a slow breath, and kept my eyes on her, ready to listen.