Fated to the Alpha–And His Triplet Brothers

Chapter 3: Devil’s in disguise

Hazel’s POV

I didn’t waste a single second.

The moment Caspian disappeared from sight, I spun around and bolted to my room. My bare feet thudded softly against the wooden floor, and my breath came in shallow gasps. My hand shook as I grabbed the doorknob, and the second I crossed the threshold, I slammed the door shut behind me.

He saw me.

Beta Caspian. The second most powerful man in the Blue Moon pack. The second of the Triplets. The same man who was supposed to mate with my sister.

Saw me—the disgrace. The shame. The bruised, pathetic girl cowering at the top of the stairs in a torn nightgown and a haunted expression.

What if he tells my father?

What if Father storms up here, drags me downstairs by the hair, and finishes what he started whipping me raw right in front of Caspian?

My stomach twisted at the thought. My hands curled tightly around my gown, fingers digging into the fabric until my knuckles turned white. It was a habit I’d formed over the years clutching my dress to ground myself, to stop my body from shaking. A way to stop myself from breaking.

A skill born from survival.

Then I heard it.

An engine. Rumbling outside.

I gasped and ran to the window, heart pounding in my ears. I pushed the curtain aside and peered through the cracked glass.

There he was.

Beta Caspian stood by the car, impossibly tall and devastatingly poised. His driver had already started the engine. Sophia was clinging to him like a leech in silk, and before he could get into the vehicle, she leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek.

My stomach churned.

Ugh. Seriously?

He didn’t flinch or push her away, but he didn’t smile either. Caspian turned to shake hands with my father, expression unreadable. But then... his gaze drifted upward—straight to my window.

And our eyes met. Again.

I froze.

softened for a heartbeat. His lips curved, not into a smirk of mockery, but

got into the

from the window

hell...

He smiled at me?

He smiled at me?!

Like every

realize it was me. Maybe he thought I was someone else. That’s

the car rolled down the long driveway and disappeared into the distance. I pressed my hand to my cheek and sighed before collapsing onto the worn-out bed in the corner of my room. The springs

grabbed the thin bedsheet and yanked it over my head, burying myself in the scratchy fabric as if it could hide the ridiculous blush on my

What’s wrong with me?

should be angry. My father literally whipped me this morning. My body was still aching, my face still throbbing from where Natasha clawed at me. But instead of thinking about how close I was to breaking... I was thinking about the

Damn it, Hazel.

The door creaked open.

the doorway, tall and silent

just tried to kill

my greeting and

man that just

nodded once. "Beta

gave a

to inform us about the coming-of-age ceremony for him and his brother. That’s where they’ll discover

felt my

continued coldly. "The final opportunity to prove you’re

needed to be earned. Like it wasn’t something a father owed his child, but a trophy he dangled over

nodded again. A mechanical reaction. Like

you don’t wolf out... if you don’t shift"

shot out and wrapped around my

if you’re human," he hissed, "you

case... I’ll kill you myself. And no one will stop me. Because

from the corners of my eyes, but I didn’t sob. I couldn’t. Crying never helped me. I kept my

to survive this

go, turned, and walked