The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate

Chapter 81: The Dream

​Scarlett’s POV

​"None of your business, Ethan," I said, my voice harsh and cold.

​Ethan didn’t back down. He lunged forward, his hands gripping my upper arms so tightly I knew they would bruise. "Fuck yes it is my business, Scarlett!" he roared, his face inches from mine. "You are my fiancée!"

​The word felt like a slap. I shoved his hands away with every bit of strength I had, a bitter laugh bubbling up in my throat. "Fake, Ethan!" I yelled, the sound echoing in the room. "It’s fake. It’s not real, and you know it."

​Ethan flinched, a deep frown settling on his face as he searched my eyes. "Is this because of this morning?" he asked, his tone shifting from anger to a disgusting kind of arrogance. "Are you angry because I didn’t want to have sex with you? Is that it? Is that why you ran to Leo the second I turned my back?"

​I felt a surge of pure, white-hot rage. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell him that I had seen him making out with Elara. I wanted to tell him I saw Elara’s hands in his hair and heard their heavy breathing through the glass. But I stopped myself. If he wanted to play a game, I would play it. I would act like the fool he thought I was just to see how far he would go with his lies.

​"Leo is my mate," I spat. "Whatever we do, whatever we are, is none of your business."

​I turned my back on him, heading toward my bed to end the conversation, but Ethan’s voice stopped me cold.

​"It is my business. It seems you are forgetting something, Scarlett." He took a slow step toward me, his shadow stretching across the floor. "I bought you. I paid for you. I own you. You are mine."

​My heart didn’t just sink; it felt like it had been dropped into a void. So that was it. After all the sweet words and the protection on the training field, I was just a piece of property he had acquired.

burning with unshed tears and a hollow kind of defiance. "So this is it? I’m just a property to you?" I stepped closer to him, gesturing to my body. "So how do I pay you back, Ethan? With my body? Is

the scary fury suddenly flickering out like a dying candle. He swallowed hard, a flash of genuine guilt crossing his features, but he didn’t reach for me. He couldn’t

on his heel

in my eyes, hot and stinging, but I refused to let them fall for him. I wiped them away with the back

of my skin still humming from Leo’s touch, and stepped into the shower. I scrubbed until my skin turned red, trying to wash away

and climbed into bed. It was still early in the evening, the sun barely dipped below the horizon, but I was exhausted. I closed my eyes and forced myself into a

the dream

white fog. Slowly, figures began to emerge. My parents were there, looking just as they did before the day of the hanging. But they weren’t alone. Luna Olivia stood beside them, her gaze stern and mournful. Beside her were

them, I could see the triplets. Leo, Liam,

the void. "Let me through! Let them get to

Olivia said, her voice sounding like the rustle of dead leaves. She stepped forward, her eyes locked on mine. "Scarlett, you have to stay

But soon the

heart racing. I was drenched in sweat, my breath coming in short gasps. I sat up, clutching the sheets to my chest, trying to shake

the room

by the wall. My breath hitched as I realized someone was leaning against the far corner, half-hidden by the darkness. The smell of alcohol

​It was Leon.

the wall, one leg crossed over the other, holding a bottle of beer. His eyes weren’t brown; they were hazy as they scanned me from