The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate

Chapter 86: Scent Trail

Scarlett’s POV

​The river water was still dripping from my clothes, making me shiver as the wind picked up. We stood at the edge of the Deep Woods—the part of the forest where the trees grew so thick that the sun barely touched the ground.

​The Elder stepped forward, holding a stack of black silk blindfolds. "Twenty pairs finished the climb. Ten pairs finished the river. Now, we test the soul. The fourth trial is the Scent-Trail."

​My heart hammered. This was the event I feared most.

​"The males will be taken deep into the woods," the Elder explained. "They will be placed at different points. The females will be blindfolded. You must find your partner using only your nose. If you touch the wrong male, you are out. If you do not find him before the time is up, you are out."

​I felt Ethan’s hand on my shoulder. His grip was firm, almost painful. I looked up at him, seeing the way his eyes searched my face. He looked like he wanted to say something—maybe apologize for the river, or maybe yell at me again—but he just tightened his jaw.

​"I’ll be waiting," he said, his voice a low, rough command. "Don’t follow the wrong trail, Scarlett. Focus on me. Only me."

​"I know your scent, Ethan," I said, my voice cold. I thought of yesterday. I thought of the way he smelled like cedar and Elara’s perfume when I caught them kissing. "It’s hard to forget."

​He didn’t know I had seen them. He didn’t know that every time he touched me, I felt the ghost of Elara’s hands on him. He just nodded and walked into the trees with the other males.

eyes burning with a silent message. Leon walked with his head down, his shoulders slumped, still looking like he was in pain. Ethan didn’t look

eyes. Suddenly, the world was gone. All I had was

​"Begin!" the Elder shouted.

the branches. I tripped almost immediately, my hands scraping against the dirt. I pushed myself up, taking a

of smells. I could smell the damp earth. I could smell the pine needles. And then, the scents of the males hit

​It was like suffocating.

cold mountain top and fresh rain. Leo. It was so sweet, so inviting. It pulled at my heart, making me want to turn left and run toward him. My wolf, Zoe, whined in my head, wanting to go to

like woodsmoke and old whiskey. Leon. It felt jagged and sharp, full of the same pain I had seen in his eyes last night. It made my skin prickle with a strange kind

I had to block them

deeper. And there it was. Cedarwood.

way past the trunks of the trees. I could hear other females crying out in the distance as they got lost or touched the wrong tree. I heard

told myself. Don’t look for the rain. Don’t look for

got stronger. I was getting close. But then, the smell of Elara’s flowery perfume suddenly hit me.

a part of him. I felt a

pushed through a thicket of thorns, the branches scratching my arms. I reached out

inhaled deeply, my

the heat. I knew the way his heart beat—slow and