Fated to the Alpha–And His Triplet Brothers

Chapter 73: Jab...

**~ Caspian’s POV ~**

What in the name of the Crescent is happening...?

I stood in the aftermath, heart pounding, eyes stuck on Hazel’s collapsed body like it had personally betrayed me. Lilith lay nearby unmoving. Not a sound. Not a single breath from her chest. I didn’t even know if she was dead or just passed out, but something inside me twisted at the thought that maybe she was gone.

But that wasn’t even the worst of it.

Hazel...,My mate. My everything. Cold. Unfeeling. Gone.

She wasn’t Hazel anymore. She was something else.

I turned toward Aurora, who was still steadying herself after stopping Hazel’s attack. She nodded. We didn’t need to speak. We knew what we had to do.

Cayden moved first, dropping to his knees beside Hazel, pressing his fingers to her neck. "Still breathing," he muttered. "She’s alive."

Alive—but barely holding on.

I reached down and scooped her up in my arms, her body limp like she’d been drained of everything. Her head lolled against my shoulder. For a moment, just one damn second, I thought I saw a flicker of recognition in her closed eyes...but no. Just more emptiness.

"She’s not gone," Cayden said.

"I know," I replied, tightening my grip. "Lily almost brought her back. That’s the only reason Hazel would’ve fought her. She was close. Too close. That means we’re getting somewhere."

Cayden didn’t argue. He just nodded, letting the idea become his own. I didn’t blame him. We didn’t have time for pride. We didn’t have time for anything but survival.

Aurora helped me steady Hazel as we moved fast, slipping through the High House halls, avoiding anyone who might question us. I chose our Her chamber Because if anything was going to wake her up, it was this room. The place where she spent most of her days in here in the high house.

She lived in this room. She loved in this room.

Maybe... maybe it could remind her of who she was.

We laid her down gently on the bed. I brushed a strand of hair from her face, just like I used to when she fell asleep in my arms. The softness was still there. Somewhere.

I just had to find it again.

"I brought some things," I said.

Cayden and Aurora turned to me. I pulled a small bag from the corner of the room and opened it carefully.

Inside—Ariel’s favorite toy.

crooked button eyes and tangled red yarn hair. This is the little sister

had been found beside Ariel’s

too long,

today," I said quietly. "Both Marcus and

looked down, eyes

swallowed hard clenching his

rest of

of Hazel’s old sweaters. Worn, faded, still smelling faintly like cinnamon and vanilla. She wore it back when she lived in her father’s

her life would

whispered. "Come back to

arms across his chest. "We’ve already lost half of the

My jaw clenched.

I said. "I

Between the witches’ ambush and Hazel’s outburst, dozens of wolves had fallen. Dahlia’s traps. Hazel’s power

vulnerable? That we didn’t have enough warriors

We’d be challenged.

said it softly. "Other packs will come. They’ll think

turning toward

"Remember? When they found out our mate was human or

wall—the one still blackened with the

them.

try

might," Aurora said. "But if they do, they’ll

all looked at

So still. So quiet.

down and took her hand,

told her. "You’re going to open those eyes, slap me across the face, and call me a

immediately vanished from the room, like he knew. Like he

my moment. My last chance to pull her back

my

expression unreadable. She pinched the bridge of her nose, then slammed her palm across her

switch me back on," she said with

gaze darted to the

she

it when

but I saw something twitch in her face—something that looked like a crack.