Claimed by My Bully Alpha Chapter 407

Aurora’s P.O.V

The night was quieter than usual. The stars hung above the treetops like scattered lanterns, their soft glow casting long shadows across the damp forest floor as Caleb and I made our way to the old greenhouse at the edge of the estate. It had once been a place of life and bloom, but now it was Alice’s makeshift lab—dark, filled with the earthy smell of herbs and the sharp tang of metals and spell-bound runes. I could feel the tension buzzing in the air, thicker than the fog that was starting to crawl along the ground. My pulse quickened slightly as I opened the rusted door and saw Alice hunched over her workbench, candles flickering around her as she arranged vials and handwritten notes.

“Are you sure this is safe?” Caleb asked, his voice low, a little hesitant, even though he was trying to sound confident.

Alice didn’t look up at first. She was too focused, her gloved hands steady as she adjusted the angle of a large crystal orb to reflect moonlight directly into the bowl of dried lunar blossoms she had beside her. “If you’re asking me that now, Caleb, you’re about three weeks late.”

I smirked a little, even though part of me was nervous too. Still, I stepped forward and rolled up my sleeve without waiting to be asked. “Let’s just get it over with. The sooner we’re done, the sooner you can finish that dagger and we can stop worrying about what Ashton’s planning next.”

Alice nodded without a word, and Caleb joined me. The prick of the needle barely registered. It wasn’t the pain that unsettled me—it was watching the dark red liquid snake through the tube, separating me from a part of myself I could never take back. Alice didn’t waste a second. She immediately transferred it into a sealed glass tube, labeling it with delicate handwriting. Then came Caleb’s turn. He barely flinched, jaw tight, eyes fixed on the flickering flame behind Alice. I could tell he was thinking hard, his mind never really resting lately.

Once both samples were collected and stored safely inside a cooled metal case, Caleb crossed his arms and leaned slightly toward Alice. “How much do you have now?” he asked, his voice tinged with something that almost sounded like hope—or desperation.

Alice let out a slow breath and finally turned to face us, pushing her copper-streaked hair behind her ears. “Including mine, I have four blood types now—witch, priestess, Fae, and you, Caleb… werewolf,” she said, ticking each off with her fingers.

“Maggie’s blood was harder to get, but it’s already bonded with the quartz. That’s a huge step forward.”

“Four’s good,” I said carefully, trying to read between her words. “But not enough.”

“Exactly,” Alice replied. “We’re still missing Avery’s blood. Wiccan blood is rare enough as it is, but hers is—well, it’s not just any Wiccan line. Her blood has direct ties to the original sanctums. That makes it the catalyst.”

“And without a catalyst, the dagger’s just another pretty piece of metal,” Caleb muttered.

Alice nodded grimly. “Pretty much. Unless we manage to find another species to introduce into the formula. But even then, the chances of compatibility—”

“There’s no one else,” Caleb cut in, a frustrated edge to his tone. “I’ve been looking. Every contact I had, every file I could dig through. Nothing. No new species, no lost lines. If Avery isn’t it… then we’re out of options.”

My heart sank a little, but I kept my voice steady. “So Avery it is. And with Ashton practically chaining her to his side, and now Jade switching teams…”

Alice’s eyes darkened. “It won’t be easy.”

“No,” Caleb agreed. “It won’t. But we’ll figure something out. We always do.”

There was a moment of silence, heavy with the weight of the decision looming ahead. We weren’t just collecting ingredients. We were threading together pieces of a weapon that could change everything—kill a demon, perhaps. Or end all of us if it went wrong.

I looked at Alice, then at Caleb, my voice barely above a whisper. “If we’re going to do this… we have to be smart. And fast.”

Caleb nodded, jaw clenched. “Yeah. Because once Ashton figures out what we’re planning, it won’t just be Avery we’ll have to fight for.”

“If I could just get Avery alone,” I murmured, my voice low but firm, “just for a few minutes... I know I can get her blood. I can feel it.” I glanced at Alice, who was chewing the inside of her cheek like she always did when she was trying to think of a solution without unraveling the already fragile plan we’d crafted.

Alice looked up at me, her brows furrowed with hesitation, but not disbelief. “I’ll try to create another opportunity,” she said slowly, like she was thinking out loud.

“Something clean. Something that doesn’t risk anyone getting hurt—especially not her.” She tilted her head, eyes narrowing. “But you might only get a short window, Aurora. I need you to be fast, decisive. No hesitation, no second-guessing.”

I nodded, inhaling deeply. “I won’t waste it. I promise.” The moment those words left my lips, I felt the gravity of them settle in my bones. This wasn’t a game anymore. It hadn’t been for a while, but now, it was personal.

Caleb, who had been quiet till now, finally spoke up from where he leaned by the rail, arms crossed. “We’ll be scouting the beach tomorrow. That’s the priority,” he reminded us, his gaze steady.

“We’re going to find out where Maggie and Ashton sneak off to every night and what the hell they’ve been doing down there. No more guessing.”

I gave him a tight nod, then turned back to Alice, who stood and pulled me in for a quick hug.

“Be careful,” she whispered. “And don’t forget who you are in all this.”

“I won’t,” I whispered back. I clung to her words, even as I turned away from her and started walking back with Caleb by my side.

The forest path back to our room was quiet, the air heavy with that strange silence that only came when something big was brewing. Caleb didn’t speak until we were almost there, until the moonlight was cutting sharp lines across the path. “How are you holding up?” he asked softly, without looking at me. I appreciated that—he always gave me space to find the right words.

I swallowed hard, adjusting the strap of the satchel on my shoulder that held the half-finished mold of the dagger I’d been working on.

“When I first found out I might be a witch,” I began slowly, my voice barely above a whisper, “I was... thrilled. Stupidly excited, even. Because suddenly, I was a part of your world. I wasn’t just some outsider anymore, watching from the sidelines.” I paused, drawing in a shaky breath. “But as the days go on, I’m realizing that your world... this world... it’s not for the faint-hearted. There are shadows in every corner. Lies, betrayal, pain—” I stopped, the lump in my throat catching me off guard.

Caleb said nothing, just kept walking beside me, the warmth of his presence a small comfort.

“And I think... my empathy—my belief that there’s always some good left in people—it might be my biggest flaw,” I confessed, finally turning to look at him. “I keep trying to understand people who probably don’t deserve it. I give chances I shouldn’t. And it’s starting to feel like every time I do that, I put all of us at risk.”