The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate

Chapter 30: Absence

The atmosphere around the long banquet tables was loud and lively. Meat was being carved, wine was being poured, and the hum of hundreds of voices filled the cool evening air.

​Liam sat rigidly, his plate untouched. His mind was back in that small, cramped room, feeling the weight of Scarlett’s arms around his waist.

His eyes kept scanning the lines of servants moving between the tables, but she wasn’t there. A flicker of irritation—or perhaps it was anxiety—twisted in his chest.

Is she still crying?

He pushed the thought away and tried to focus on the pack around him, but his gaze kept drifting back to the empty space where she should have been.

​Beside him, Leon was also staring. He wasn’t looking for a servant; he was looking for Scarlett. His own words from the library echoed in his head, sounding more cruel in the silence of his mind than they had in the heat of the moment.

"I don’t want to see you ever again."

He had said it to protect himself, to keep the walls around his heart strong. But now her absence felt wrong—like a sudden drop in pressure that made it difficult to breathe.

He scanned the faces of the girls carrying trays. No brown curls. No downcast eyes. The unease inside his wolf was slowly turning into something painful.

​Leo noticed her absence and had no intention of waiting in silence. He needed to see her. He needed to make sure she was actually okay and not collapsing somewhere. He caught the eye of a passing maid. "You," he called out. "Go tell Scarlett to bring me a bottle of water. Now."

just needed her to stand in front of him so he could confirm she was

few minutes passed. The maid returned, looking confused. "Alpha Leo... I

him: her scent. It wasn’t just faint; it was fading. The warm, earthy scent of her that usually permeated the stone

commanded a nearby guard, his voice filled with unease. "Find her and bring her

the arm of another

a tense, vibrating silence until the messengers returned. The guard looked at Liam, then at his brothers. "She... she isn’t in

triplets spoke in a

died mid-sentence. Hundreds of eyes turned toward the head

Levi and Alpha Lennox exchanged a lightning-fast glance. Lennox looked at his sons, his expression unreadable,

this?" Levi asked calmly, though his brow was furrowed

Liam said, his chair screeching against the ground as he stood up. "She’s not in the mansion. She’s not

I sent her on an errand for me. A guard accompanied her to fetch me some herbs from

a spring. Beside him, Leo’s claws were digging into the wood of the table, and Leon was staring at his father with

lie?" Lennox’s voice

will shift and hunt her down before she even reaches the border. So we

gave

row,

cleared, and the pack began to relax, but Scarlett still hadn’t returned. Every second she was gone, the air around the brothers

of them hid their emotions carefully, unwilling to let the others