Claimed by My Bully Alpha Chapter 392

Caleb’s P.O.V

I watched Damien’s expression closely, my arms crossed tightly over my chest, heart pounding even though the room had gone utterly silent. The air felt heavy — like the weight of everything we’d just thrown at him was threatening to crush the walls in. He didn’t speak at first. His brows were drawn, jaw tight, eyes locked on the floor as though searching for answers in the pattern of the wood grain. I knew that look. He wasn’t ignoring us. He was processing. Sorting through every detail we’d just dumped on him like a landslide of truths that no one ever really wants to hear.

When he finally lifted his gaze to meet mine, his voice was calm — too calm. That kind of stillness always unnerved me. “It’s a bit difficult to process, I won’t lie,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. His lips pressed into a thin line, then parted again. “But… from what I understand, it almost seems like Maggie has Jade under some kind of spell. I mean, I’ve known Jade a long time, and he’s usually the most practical wolf I’ve ever met. The way he’s acting? It’s just… not him.”

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. “You think so too?” I asked, stepping forward just a bit. My voice cracked with a mix of relief and frustration.

“Damien, I’ve been telling myself that over and over for days now, but it felt like no one else was willing to say it out loud. He can’t be thinking clearly. Jade always analyzes everything, every damn angle before making a move. But with her…” I trailed off, shaking my head. “It’s like he just handed her the keys to his soul and told her to drive it off a cliff.”

Damien didn’t answer right away, but Aurora — of course, Aurora — folded her arms and gave us both that look, the one that could peel skin off if she tried hard enough. Her voice sliced through the air like a cold wind. “Why would Maggie even need to put a spell on Jade?” she asked, eyes darting between me and Damien.

“What could she possibly want from him that she couldn’t get with how clearly obsessed she already is with Jade? From what I saw… she’s head over heels in love with him. I don’t see the point in spells when someone’s already that far gone.”

I turned to her, my jaw clenching. “That’s exactly why it doesn’t make sense,” I replied, maybe a little too sharply. Before I took a deep breath and spoke more calmly. “If it was love — real love — she wouldn’t need to mess with his head. But she’s got him chasing her like a lost puppy, cutting us out, ignoring every red flag like it’s not there. It’s not just him falling hard, Aurora. It’s something darker. Something twisted.”

Aurora’s brow furrowed, the fire in her eyes flickering into something more uncertain. “Maybe she’s scared of losing him,” she said, softer this time. “Maybe she thinks the only way to keep him is by… ensuring he doesn’t leave.”

“That’s not love,” Damien muttered beside me, his voice low and bitter. “That’s control. And Jade is a wolf bound to find his mate sooner rather than later.”

Silence fell again. My throat was dry, but I pushed past it. “She’s changed him, Damien. He doesn’t see us anymore. He doesn’t hear us. The other day I tried to warn him, and he just looked at me like I was some jealous lunatic. Like I wasn’t his brother. Like we didn’t fight side by side through everything.”

“I don’t know what we’re dealing with,” Damien finally said, pacing a little now. “But if Maggie’s using magic — even subtle, emotional influence — we need to find out how she’s doing it. And why.”

Aurora bit her lip, clearly not wanting to believe what she was starting to see for herself. “I still want to believe she’s just a girl in love…”

“Then pray that’s all she is,” I said quietly, turning back toward the window. “Because if it’s more than that… we’re already too late.”

Nobody spoke, not after everything we had just learned—everything that had just been revealed like some nightmarish puzzle slowly snapping into place. Everyone was too busy digesting the horror. Shane hadn’t said much until then, not since we laid out all the facts for Damien to digest. But then… Shane’s voice cut through the silence like a blade.

“Aurora,” he said, his voice steady but cold. “You mentioned something earlier—about the wraiths. You said they were looking for a permanent body, right?”

I turned to look at him. Everyone did. Aurora froze. She didn’t speak, didn’t even blink.

“What if that person… is Jade?”

The words hit the ground like thunder. I swear, the wind itself seemed to stop. My heart dropped into my stomach and twisted like it was being wrung out. Jade? No. No, that couldn’t be. But the second Shane said it, I saw it—saw the horror in Aurora’s eyes. She staggered back a step, like the words themselves had slapped her.

“What?” she whispered, shaking her head violently. “No, no—don’t say that. Don’t even suggest that! Jade—she’s—she wouldn’t…Maggie—God, no. I can’t believe that Maggie is part of this. She wouldn’t be.”

“But you think it could be a possibility, don’t you?” I said quietly. “You said it yourself. The wraiths are desperate to find a permanent form. They're not just floating around anymore, they’re making moves. Big ones. And Jade—he’s been slipping away from us. You’ve all seen it.”

I turned to face Aurora fully now. My voice started to shake, but I didn’t care. “At first, I thought maybe he truly was in love with Maggie and couldn’t bear the idea of parting from her. But no. No, now it makes sense. He's been pulling away—like someone... being taken. Like he doesn’t have control over himself anymore.”

Aurora’s lip trembled. “That doesn’t mean Maggie’s involved.”

“Doesn’t it?” Shane said, stepping forward. “Think about it. If the wraiths are capable of possession, then they wouldn’t just take anyone. They’d choose carefully. They’d need proximity. Emotional vulnerability. And who better than Maggie? Someone who Jade trusts. Someone who could be used as bait or—”

“—Or someone already possessed,” I finished grimly. “Maybe she fell for Jade because it wasn’t really her anymore. Or maybe it was a plan from the start. Maybe they were meant to be sacrifices. The next bodies for Lucas and Harmona. One for each of them.”

Aurora’s knees buckled, and she sank into the nearest chair like her entire body had given up. “No,” she said again, softer this time. “No, please. Maggie is my little sister. She can’t be…”

“She’s not gone,” I said, kneeling beside her, trying to keep my voice steady for both our sakes. “But she might be slipping, Aurora. And if we keep pretending like we’re not seeing it, if we keep hoping this will just pass… we’re going to lose her for good. And Jade too, if we’re not already too late.”

She looked at me with tears clinging to her lashes. “Why would they choose them? Why those two?”

Shane didn’t hesitate. “Because they’re loved. They’re wanted. And that’s exactly what the wraiths don’t have. They’re empty, hungry things. They want warmth. They want connection. And what better way to take it than to steal it? To live with someone who is loved so deeply, they can hide behind it.”

I swallowed hard, my throat burning. “We need to find a way to help them. Before they’re gone for good.”

Aurora nodded, but her face crumpled with guilt. “What if I waited too long to believe this?”

“Then you’ll make it right,” I said. “We all will. Because we’re not going to let them take Jade. Or Maggie.”

And with that, the fire popped again, like it had been holding its breath. We weren’t just dealing with lost souls anymore. We were dealing with thieves—thieves of the body, the heart, and the soul. And they had already found their targets.