The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate

Chapter 87: Against Each Other

Scarlett’s POV

​I looked at the center of the field. Five circular wooden platforms had been raised. They weren’t stable; they were mounted on massive iron gears.

​"Each pair will stand back-to-back," the Elder continued. "The platforms will spin. You will be given ten silver-tipped arrows. You must hit the moving targets released from the treeline. If you fall off the platform, or if you miss more than three targets, you are finished."

​Ethan led me toward the third platform. He didn’t say a word, but his movements were stiff, his jaw tight. He was still reeling from the fact that I’d found him so quickly in the woods.

​"Back-to-back, Scarlett," he commanded, stepping onto the wood.

​I climbed up and pressed my spine against his. He was a pillar of heat. I could feel the steady thrum of his heart through his shoulder blades. My skin prickled where we touched.

​"Don’t lean away," he muttered. "If you shift your weight, we both go down. Trust my balance."

​"Trust is a heavy word, Alpha," I whispered back, my fingers tightening around the grip of my bow. "Maybe just focus on the targets."

​I looked to my left. Leo and Tessa were already in position. Leo was standing perfectly still, but his eyes were fixed on us.

​To my right, Leon and Elara were mounting their platform. Leon looked exhausted, but his focus had shifted. He wasn’t looking at me anymore; he was looking at the woods with a grim, determined stare. Elara stood behind him, her face a mask of quiet concentration. She reached out to steady herself by grabbing Leon’s belt, and he nodded once, anchoring his feet into the wood.

​"Begin!"

​The gears beneath us groaned, and the world began to spin.

​The movement was slow at first, then faster. The trees, the crowd, and the sky blurred into a dizzying circle of color. My stomach lurched. I felt Ethan’s weight shift, his heels digging in to keep us centered.

​"Targets! Mark!" Ethan shouted.

​From the woods, wooden discs were launched into the air. They flew fast, zig-zagging through the wind.

​"Three o’clock!" Ethan barked.

fired. The silver tip whistled through the air and shattered the disc into a cloud

o’clock!" I shouted back as a target soared over his side. Thwack.

him. When the platform jerked, his hand

spinning fast, but Leon was a rock. He timed his shots perfectly, his arrows splitting the air with a deadly hiss. Elara, though she looked pale, didn’t miss. She moved with him, her eyes sharp as

the warrior pairs had lost their balance and were flung

pair out!" the Elder

speed. Three targets were launched

​"Now!" Ethan roared.

last arrow, pivoted on my heel, and released it. It caught the

world stopped spinning, leaving me breathless. Ethan turned

standing. They had hit every mark. Leon was breathing

stepped off their platform with

"The final trial is here... The three Alphas and their partners will face each other in the Combat

wasn’t just a contest anymore.

Elder shouted. "Ethan and Scarlett. Leo and

his sword drawn. Leo and Leon moved like lightning. The three cousins crashed together in the center of the ring. They weren’t just fighting for a prize; they were fighting with

Ethan barked,

to be protected. I gripped my spear, the wood smooth

blind side. She was fast, moving with the silent grace of a hunter. I

fighting me,

heavy hit with the shaft. The vibration rattled my teeth, but I didn’t buckle. I stepped into her space, swept her legs with

is out!" the

power. While

​"Leo is out!"

of us. Ethan

storms collide. But I saw the moment Leon lost. His eyes flickered toward me for a split second—a moment of distraction, a flash of that raw pain he’d been carrying all

just me and

crowd went silent. If she beat me, she would take the prize with

quiet or kind anymore. Her eyes were wide, burning with a hidden rage I didn’t understand. She lunged at

​Slash.

I looked down. My shirt was torn, and blood was beginning to soak the