Scarlett’s POV
"Mate!"
My wolf’s howl was a jagged shard of sound, identical to the way she had responded to Liam and Leo. My eyes widened, but I didn’t even get the chance to process the impossible truth before my wolf took control, forcing my feet forward. I moved instinctively, drawn by the scent of vanilla and mint that sent a thousand questions buzzing in my mind.
What was happening? A third mate? Is this so kind of twisted joke? Is the Moon Goddess playing with ?
The thoughts were cut short as I stopped in front of the library door. The scent was a physical weight here. Whoever my mate was... he was inside. Swallowing hard, I reached for the doorknob. My fingers trembled as I pushed the door open.
The mont my eyes landed on him, it felt like my soul left my body. Seated on the leather couch, a book resting casually in his hand, was Leon.
The last of the triplets.
My breath hitched. My heart pounded against my ribs like a trapped bird. I was mated to the triplets. All three of them.
"Mate," my wolf purred at the sight of him, but I was frozen in a whirlwind of shock and fear. Leon, however, didn’t even look surprised. He calmly closed his book, set it on the table, and leaned back, his dark eyes locking onto mine with a terrifying intensity.
"I bet you’ve figured it out now," he muttered, his voice a low echo of what his brothers had said.
I went numb. It was happening again. The sa scene, the sa rejection, the sa wall of hatred.
"I’ve been waiting for this day," Leon said, his words eerily familiar. And I already knew the ending. I had heard the script twice tonight. "So I can finally reject you."
I sucked in a sharp breath. My wolf whimpered; she had clung to the hope that Leon—the one who had looked at with sothing other than pure malice earlier—would be different.
"I can’t be mated to you," Leon said coldly. "I can’t accept this bond. I can’t be mated—"
"To a traitor’s daughter," I finished for him, my voice flat and hollow. "To the daughter of the people responsible for your mother’s death."
I know the speech. I’ve heard it twice in the last hour.
His eyes narrowed. He hadn’t expected to be so composed, so... exhausted.
"Does anyone else know?" I asked. "Your brothers?"
His frown deepened into a snarl. "You will not tell anyone, especially my brothers," he commanded. I caught the flicker of panic in his eyes. Just like the others, he was ashad. They were all hiding the sa "curse" from one another.
I lifted my chin. "I won’t tell anyone—on one condition."
Leon tensed, his grip tightening on the arm of the couch. "What condition?"
"Give three months," I said, standing my ground.
"Three months for what?"
"My wolf is weak. I just shifted tonight," I explained. "If you reject now, she won’t survive the shock. I won’t survive it. So, give three months. And in return, I’ll keep your secret."
Leon clenched his jaw, his eyes burning into mine. "And why should I care if you survive?"
I raised a brow, my voice turning to ice. "Because if you don’t agree, I’ll walk into the dining hall tomorrow and announce to the entire pack—and your brothers—exactly what we are. Imagine the look on their faces, Leon. Imagine the sha."
His entire body went rigid. In a flash, he was on his feet. Before I could blink, he was in front of , his hand wrapping around my throat. It wasn’t a squeeze of passion; it was a threat.
"Are you threatening ?" he growled.
I held his burning gaze, unable to speak with his hand around my windpipe.
"You bitch!" he spat, tightening his grip for a heartbeat. I didn’t fight him. I didn’t have the strength left. I just let him see the defiance in my eyes.
Suddenly, his grip shifted. He didn’t let go, but he leaned in, his nose brushing against my hair as he inhaled deeply. He closed his eyes for a brief second, a low, pained rumble vibrating in his chest, as if he were physically struggling against the pheromones and the bond. Then, as abruptly as he’d grabbed , he let go and stepped back.
Silence stretched between us. I could see the war behind his eyes.
Finally, he exhaled sharply. "Fine. Three months. Not a day more."
A small, bitter smile curled on my lips. Joke’s on him... I would be gone by tomorrow.
I didn’t wait for him to change his mind. I turned and walked out of the library, my legs feeling like lead. I made my way back to my room, and the mont the door shut, I collapsed. My legs gave out, and I slumped to the floor, pulling my knees to my chest as the dam finally broke.
The tears I had held back in front of Liam and Leo ca crashing down. It was suffocating.
Today was my twentieth birthday. It was supposed to be the day my life began. Instead, I was shattered. Alone. Mated to my three worst nightmares.
I could hear my wolf’s anguished whimpering; she couldn’t even find the strength to comfort . I stayed on the floor for hours, drowning in the pain.
"I’m sorry," my wolf finally whispered, her voice tiny and broken.
I didn’t answer. I didn’t know why fate was this cruel. To be tied to three n who saw as a stain on their lives.
Feeling drained, I pushed myself up and walked to the small, cracked mirror. The girl staring back was a ghost. Puffy eyes. Lifeless stare.
I wiped my face and whispered, "You don’t need them, Scarlett. Screw the bond. Screw the Moon Goddess. You will survive this."
My reflection stared back at , broken but determined.
All I had to do was leave.
Tomorrow.
Just one more night in this cursed packhouse, and then I would be gone. Far away from Liam’s hatred. Far away from Leon’s threats. Far away from Leo and the painful bond tying to all three of them.
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