Bound to the Triplet Alphas

Chapter 13: Chapter 14: Huntress

ARIA POV

The deer’s smell led me deeper into the forest. I moved quietly between the trees, feeling more alive than ever before. This was my first pack hunt since discovering my true nature, and I was eager to prove myself.

A twig snapped behind me. I spun around, expecting to see another shooter from our group.

Instead, Elira stepped into the open. And she wasn’t alone.

Four of her friends appeared from the trees, surrounding me in a tight circle. All of them were betas - strong, skilled, and loyal to Elira.

"Lost, little omega?" Elira asked, her lips curling into a wicked smile. "Or should I say, pretend Alpha?"

My heart hammered against my ribs, but I kept my face calm. The hunt had spread the pack across miles of forest. No one would hear me if I screamed.

"I have as much right to be here as you do," I said, standing taller. The silver chain felt warm against my skin beneath my shirt.

Elira laughed. "You have no rights here. Not anymore." She stepped closer. "I’ve known Kael, Jaxon, and Lucien my entire life. We were meant to be together. Then you show up with your lies about mate bonds and Alpha blood."

"They’re not lies."

"No?" Elira circled me slowly. "Then why did you grow up as an omega? Why did no one notice this so-called Alpha bloodline until now?"

I had asked myself the same questions a thousand times since finding my mother’s necklace two days ago. Since Jaxon had shown me the old symbol that matched my birthmark.

"Someone wanted to hide the truth," I said. "But it’s coming out now, whether you like it or not."

Elira’s face darkened. "You’ve turned this pack upside down. Alpha Darius is hunting his own kids. The triplets are fighting each other. And for what? For you?"

Her friends moved closer, tightening the circle.

"The Blood Moon is tomorrow night," I said, remembering the plan. "Everything will be clear then."

"You won’t live to see it." Elira’s eyes flashed dangerously. "Leave the pack tonight, and maybe we’ll let you go. Stay, and we’ll make sure you never reach those rite grounds."

So she knew about the ritual places too. How many lies had been kept from me?

"I’m not going anywhere," I said, feeling heat rise within me. The same heat that came before changing.

Elira smirked. "I was hoping you’d say that."

She lunged forward suddenly, pushing me hard. I stumbled back, nearly falling.

"Poor little Aria," she mocked. "Always alone. Always unwanted. Did you really think you could become Luna? That any of the triplets would actually choose you?"

Her words stung, hitting old wounds. All my life I’d been ignored, pushed aside, made to feel less. But something had changed in me. The white wolf was stirring.

"I don’t need to be chosen," I said, standing my ground as she pushed me again. "I know who I am now."

"And who is that?" Elira sneered. "Alpha Thorne’s daughter." I straightened my back. "The white wolf."

One of Elira’s friends laughed. "She’s crazy. There hasn’t been a white wolf in three generations."

"Crazy and dangerous," Elira agreed. She grabbed my arm, her nails biting into my skin. "Time to go, little dog. Before you get hurt."

Something snapped inside me. Not anger – something deeper, more primal. Power rushed through my blood like liquid fire.

I grabbed Elira’s wrist and twisted. She gasped, her eyes widening as I forced her to her knees with strength I never knew I had.

"Don’t touch me again," I said, my voice strangely calm.

Elira’s friends moved to help her, but stopped when they saw her face. For the first time, there was fear in her eyes.

I released her, stepping back. My hands were shaking, but not from fear. From restraint.

Elira rose slowly, rubbing her wrist. "Get her," she hissed to her friends.

They paused, exchanging uncertain glances.

"Now!" Elira ordered.

Two of them rushed me at once. I dodged the first but the second got me around the waist, throwing me to the ground. Pain shot through my shoulder as I hit the forest floor.

I rolled away as a foot came down where my head had been. Scrambling to my feet, I faced my foes.

"Five against one," I panted. "That seems fair."

"Nothing about this is fair," Elira spat. "You shouldn’t exist. The prophecy was supposed to die with your parents."

Her words hit me like a physical blow. "What do you know about my parents?"

Instead of answering, Elira shifted – her human form melting into a sleek brown wolf with bared teeth. Her friends followed, surrounding me with growls and snapping jaws.

I backed against a tree, feeling the change coming. The heat spread through my limbs as my wolf clawed to get out. I hadn’t achieved control yet – shifting was still painful and slow for me.

A wolf lunged. I raised my arm to protect my throat and screamed as teeth sank into my skin.

Blood dripped onto the forest floor. The coppery smell filled the air, sparking something deep within me. My vision improved, colors becoming more vivid.

I felt my bones starting to shift, but it was happening too slowly. Another wolf darted forward, teeth aimed for my leg.

A blur of motion stopped it. A massive black wolf with golden eyes threw the attacker away like it weighed nothing. The new wolf stood in front of me, facing Elira and her pack, a deep growl rumbling from its chest.

Lucien.

Elira’s wolf paused, then backed away slightly. Her friends followed suit, building distance.

The black wolf – Lucien – stood guard as I fought through my partial change. My hands had become claws, my teeth elongating into fangs, but the full shift stayed just out of reach.

A sound broke through the strain – howling. More wolves were coming.

Elira’s pack turned and fled, disappearing into the trees. All except Elira herself. Her wolf form stared at me for a long moment, anger burning in her eyes, before she too vanished into the forest.

As the danger passed, my body relaxed. The partial shift faded, leaving me human again, though my arm still bled where I’d been bitten.

Lucien shifted back to human form, his transformation smooth and easy. Unlike the night in the cave, his eyes were normal now – concerned as he studied my wound.

"Are you okay?" he asked, pulling a strip from his shirt to bandage my arm.

"How did you find me?" I asked.

"I felt it," he said quietly. "Through the link. Your fear, then your anger."

I remembered how the mate bond had changed after Jaxon’s kiss, becoming clearer, focusing in one direction. Toward Lucien.

"Thank you," I said, groaning as he tied the makeshift bandage.

"Elira knows more than she should," he said, his voice tight. "About the prophesy. About your parents."

"She said the prophecy was supposed to die with them." My voice shook slightly. "Lucien, does that mean—"

"That your parents were killed to prevent the prophecy?" He nodded grimly. "I’ve been putting it together. The lost records. The lies about your background. Someone has been influencing events for a very long time."

"Your father?"

Lucien’s eyes darkened. "I thought so at first. But now I’m not sure. There’s someone else pulling the strings."

The forest had gone quiet – too quiet. Even the birds had stopped singing.

"We should get back," I said, suddenly uncomfortable.

Lucien looked around, his body tensing. "Something’s wrong."

A howl cut through the silence – not the regular call of a pack member, but a sound that raised the hair on my arms. A calling. A task.

"Kael," Lucien whispered, his face pale.

"What does it mean?" I asked.

"He’s calling for a Blood Challenge." Lucien’s eyes met mine, fear in their depths. "He’s challenging me for the right to be your mate."

"Can he do that?"

"Only on the night of the Blood Moon." Lucien looked up at the darkened sky. "Which is tomorrow."

"But why would he—"

"Because he knows," Lucien said, his voice breaking. "He knows what I did. What I’m still doing."

Before I could ask what he meant, Lucien’s eyes started to glow – not their normal gold, but a deep, unnatural red that spread until his entire eyes were crimson pools.

When he spoke again, his voice wasn’t his own.

"The white wolf rises tomorrow night," he said in that strange, old voice. "But only one mate can stand beside her. Blood must be spilled. A life must end."

His hand shot out, grabbing my wrist with painful strength. His red eyes bore into mine.

"Run from me, Aria," he gasped, fighting for control of his own words. "I’m not what you think. I’m the reason your parents are dead."