Chapter-2*He Knows I Slept With His Brothers*

Zelene Sallow:

I slipped into my dress and hurriedly left the room, determined to escape this place before anyone caught sight of me. Alpha Ray had yet to arrive, adding to the whirlwind of thoughts in my mind. Once inside the Uber, I sat in the backseat, nervously chewing on my nails, as I directed the driver to my house.

‘Do you think Ray also spent the night with the beta’s daughter?’ I asked my wolf, who took a moment to awaken from its slumber. ‘Hey! Are you angry with me too? I swear, I have no recollection of it. It’s as if—- I wasn’t even myself,’ I began to sob silently, quickly turning my head to gaze out of the window, avoiding the driver’s gaze.

The once tight curls in my long, light brown hair had unraveled, now flowing loosely around my face. My grey eyes appeared darker, their usual sparkle dimmed by the countless tears I had shed.

The pack members held a strong disdain for me, as expected, since a rogue didn’t fit well with an alpha king.

‘You were drugged,’ as Zey finally spoke up. My heart twisted painfully in my chest. She knew?

‘There’s something else you need to know, Zelene,’ Zey continued, her voice barely audible.

‘Oh, Goddess! What else?’ I asked, my eyes fixed on the outside world, observing the pack members engage in their normal morning antics while I suffered, harboring a dark secret in my heart.

‘We felt the mate bond with all the others,’ she whispered those words, and a heavy gulp made its way down my throat, causing difficulty in swallowing.

‘Why didn’t you stop everything if you were in your senses?’ I blurted out, accusing her as I struggled to comprehend the news of having multiple mates at once.

‘I was just as helpless as you, Zelene. I have only just recovered my memory,’ she snapped back at me, her voice tinged with frustration. The remainder of the journey was filled with an uneasy silence, leaving me to worry sick about what I was going to do next.

I noticed Ray calling me again, but I deliberately ignored all of his calls. Overwhelmed by guilt, I couldn’t bear facing him. As soon as the car parked in front of my two-bedroom apartment, the place I shared with my adoptive parents, I rushed to my room without uttering a word.

"Zelene! How w--" my mother’s words reached my ears, but I didn’t pause to greet her. By then, she was already serving breakfast to my father, and being seen by him would lead to a barrage of questions. Once inside the small, compact bedroom, I collapsed onto the bed, burying my face in my hands as tears streamed down my cheeks.

"What have I done?" I sobbed, refusing to accept that I had ruined everything. My mother heard my cries as she entered the room, concern etched on her face.

"Zelene! Did something happen after we left the party last night?" She anxiously inquired, taking hold of my hands and gently prying them away from my tear-streaked face.

"Mom!" I sobbed, my voice trembling. "I woke up in bed with his brothers," I managed to say, my words interrupted by hiccups.

At first, she remained silent, taking a step back and fixing her gaze on my face. After a moment, reality hit her, and a gasp escaped her lips.

"Tell me it’s a lie," she pleaded, her hands cupping her face as she closed her ears, shaking her head in disbelief.

"How could you do this to yourself and Alpha Ray?" Mom’s voice turned into a yell as she swiftly slapped me across the face. I fell onto the bed, unable to muster the strength to rise.

Tears streamed down my face as I lay on the soft mattress, crying uncontrollably.

"I don’t know. Somebody must have drugged me, I swear!" I yelled through sobs, my head still lowered in shame.

The fact that my mother had resorted to hitting me made it clear how deeply I had disappointed her. Throughout my time with them, she had acted more like a real mother, while my father had been the biggest bully in my life.

And now, I had managed to hurt my only source of support.

"How can you say that? Don’t you realize this excuse won’t work in your favor?" Suddenly, she grasped my shoulders, forcing me to sit upright. "They won’t understand. Coming from a poor background, everyone will look at you with disgust. Why weren’t you more cautious?" Her cries grew louder, filled with despair.

I didn’t resent her for hitting me, as I knew she was terrified of witnessing my pain. But I was equally lost.

I had been foolish, and naïve at the party, surrounded by people who harbored hatred for me. Anyone could have been plotting my downfall.

"You can’t just look Alpha Ray in the eyes and say, ‘Oh, I slept with your brothers; we had a foursome, but don’t mind it. I was drunk.’"

Before I could respond, the door swung open, and my father barged in.

"This girl slept with his soul brothers?" My dad stormed into the room, belt in hand. He immediately began whipping me before my mother intervened.

"Holland! What are you doing?" Mom pushed him back, causing him to collide with the wall.

"Remi! This girl has ruined our future. We could have been living in a mansion and traveling in fancy cars if she hadn’t slept with his brothers. And why the hell did she choose his brothers? If he couldn’t satisfy her, she should have come to me. I would have found her other men, and nobody would have found out," my dad shouted at the top of his lungs, trying to get closer to me and harm me.

Meanwhile, my mom tirelessly pushed him back as I crawled to the other side of the bed, desperate to escape the unfolding chaos. Fear consumed me to the point where I couldn’t even cry anymore.

"I was drunk!" The truth slipped out of my mouth, almost in a desperate hurry.

Dad paused his struggle against my mom, his gaze fixed on me as he struggled to catch his breath.

"Okay!" he nodded, his eyes still on me. "This is exactly what you’re going to tell Alpha Ray. Say that somebody drugged you and all that nonsense. Convince him with your lies," he insisted, causing me to shake my head in terror.

Why did he think I was lying?

"But I’m no--" I began, but my words trailed off when I caught a whiff of my mate’s scent.

"Ray!" I gasped, barely able to speak, before he entered the room.

His arrival sent shockwaves through everyone. Holland and Remi immediately bowed down in respect as their eyes turned to him.

"So, were you or were you not drunk, Zelene?" Ray stood tall at the entrance, his intense gaze piercing into mine from a distance.

His grey eyes bore into me, searching for answers. His black hair was disheveled, as if he had hurriedly made his way to where we stood. The messy state of his appearance made it clear that he was aware of what had transpired. His strong jaw clenched tightly, and his fists were balled up in a display of tension and frustration.

The rigidity of his posture and the absence of sympathy made me tremble.

"It’s not what you think. I’m not lying--" I hurriedly tried to approach him, my voice barely audible.

"Out!" His shout towards my parents stopped me in my tracks.

I stepped back, creating a distance between us as he sternly glared at my parents, who obediently left the room.

"Please, listen to me. I know it looks bad, but trust me, I’m not making up excuses. I feel ashamed, even though I was drugged and led into this trap," I stammered nervously as he silently walked closer to the bed, his movements shrouded in mystery.

His small, deliberate steps and the way he extended his neck sent chills down my spine, causing me to pause and steal glances at him now and then. It was a chilling sight.

"Someone from our party drugged me, Ray!" I declared, watching him finally come to a stop and turn to face me. His eyes held a void, devoid of any emotion except for tears of emptiness.

His jaw tightened as he prepared to speak. "And who do you suggest did that?" His voice, deep and rough, indicated his attempt to coax the truth out of me.

"It could have been anyone," I answered, deliberately avoiding naming anyone to prevent his wrath. "There were so many people at that party who despised me," I added.

My body shuddered, making it difficult to stand upright without constantly hugging myself for comfort. And he wasn’t looking at me the way he used to.

"So, you’re telling me that my own brothers did it?" He questioned, his tone laced with incredulity. After a brief pause, he lunged toward me, almost backing me against the wall. I gasped, raising my hands in defense, but he punched the wall beside me, creating a hole in it.

"I offered you acceptance, love, and the title of my Luna Queen. And this is what you give me in return?" He hissed, visibly trembling with anger, restraining himself from physically assaulting me.

"I didn’t betray you," I began to crack, my voice breaking as I realized there was no way he would believe me after hearing my father’s distorted version of events.

"You didn’t even have the courage to tell me the truth. My brothers, despite their shame and guilt, came to me and revealed everything while you chose to hide," he shouted, causing me to instinctively cover my mouth in shock. They had advised me not to tell him, yet they had taken it upon themselves to confess, sharing their own version of events.

"You’ve ruined everything for us. Now, I’ll make sure to ruin every second of your life, Zel. You’re not worthy of being my mate. You never were," each word that escaped his lips felt like a dagger piercing my heart.

"I, Alpha Ray Steele, reject—" Before he could finish his sentence, my eyes widened, and in the heat of the moment, I blurted out what I should have kept hidden.

"I felt a mate bond with your brothers too," the revelation momentarily halted the rejection process, but it only paved the way for an even bigger mess to unfold.

Ray stepped back from me, his eyes widening, and a loud gulp escaping his throat. I knew that this was just the beginning of a tumultuous turn of events.