The Triplet Alphas' Secret Mate-Chapter 89: Their old Tricks
Scarlett’s POV
I sat on the edge of my bed. My arm was throbbing, a nasty sting that reminded me of Elara’s blade every time I moved. A bowl of warm water sat beside me as I tried to wash away the dried blood. My mind was a mess. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Ethan’s face—the way he looked at her. The way he shouted at me.
The door suddenly opened slowly. I stiffened and frowned. I had forgotten to bolt the door again. My frown deepened; I was ready to kick whoever it was right back into the hallway, but when I lifted my head, I froze.
The three brothers were standing side by side, and for the first time in years, I could no longer tell them apart. Three pairs of identical eyes were staring at me with amused smirks. Over the years, they had usually dressed differently or cut their hair in their own styles to show their personalities. Liam usually looked like a soldier, Leo like a rebel, and Leon like a man who hadn’t slept in a week.
But now? They were all wearing the same matching black long-sleeved shirts, hiding the tattoos on their arms that I usually used to identify them. Their dark hair was styled exactly the same way. Even their eyes—the one thing they couldn’t usually change—were wrong. I looked for Liam’s piercing forest green, Leo’s sea blue, and Leon’s deep brown. But all six eyes staring at me were a strange, haunting green.
Lenses, I realized. They were wearing colored contacts.
I frowned and tried to inhale their scents, but I frowned again, realizing they were hiding their smell from me.
"We came to check up on you," the one on the left said. His voice was smooth, trying to hide its natural pitch.
That had to be Leo. He was always the one that liked talking first whenever they were together. I call him the conversation starter.
"Are you okay?" the one on the right said, his voice flat and fake. "Should we call a healer?"
That was definitely Leon. He was always the most worried one.
I frowned, already knowing the trick they were using to tease me. I used to love it—the way they would try so hard to fool me. But that was then, not now. Things had changed. I was no longer that girl, and my heart was too heavy to carry the weight of their games.
I glared at them, my voice tight. "What is the meaning of this?"
The one in the center looked at the others, his lips curling into a familiar smirk. "I told you she wouldn’t be able to differentiate us today. The eyes were a nice touch, don’t you think?"
I scoffed and looked away, focusing back on the bowl of water. I dipped the cloth and pressed it to my arm, the sting making my eyes water. "I’m busy. Go away."
"Oh, come on, kitten," the one on the right teased, leaning against the doorframe. "You used to be better at this. Is the ’princess of the Pack’ too tired to play?"
Did he just use two annoying names he knew I hated? I hated their nicknames; it was annoying.
"Let her be. It seems she has lost her skills in picking us out," the one on the left teased.
The irritation rose in my chest, but it was a good kind of irritation—one that briefly pushed away the image of Ethan holding Elara. I turned sharply and pointed at the one on the right. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
"You are Leon," I said firmly.
He let out a low groan, his shoulders slumping. "I knew it. I told you guys, the stance gives me away." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a heavy gold chain, and handed it to the brother on the left.
I knew their game. They had placed a bet, and Leon had lost by betting I wouldn’t be able to tell them apart.
The brother on the left—the one who now held the gold chain—tried to change his voice, making it higher and raspy. "You only got Leon because he’s the easiest. But you’re still guessing on the rest of us, aren’t you?"
Joke’s on him. I had lived almost my entire life with them. Hiding their smells and faking their voices wouldn’t deceive me. I could see the way they carried their weight, the way Liam always kept his chest out like he was on duty, and the way Leo tilted his head when he thought he was winning.
"You are Liam," I said, looking at the center one. "And it was so easy. You still stand like you’re waiting for an order."
He smiled, looking genuinely excited that I’d caught him. I turned to the last one, the one holding Leon’s gold. "And you are Leo. Now, can you three leave my room? You are Alphas; you should be busy with duties, not playing silly games with someone who just wants to be alone."
My voice was harsh, but my heart fluttered in a way it hadn’t all day. I missed this part of us. I missed when they were my brothers and my friends, before the mate bonds and the betrayals made everything so complicated.
Leo laughed, tossing the gold chain into the air and catching it. "Nice one, Scarlett. You can still tell us apart."
I ignored them, keeping my eyes fixed on the bloody water in the bowl. I wondered what was wrong with them. Why were they here, acting like they cared?
Liam moved closer and knelt in front of me, his black shirt stretching across his shoulders as he reached for the cloth in my hand. "Let me help," he said, his voice dropping its pitch. It was soft now, the way he used to talk to me when we were children and I’d fallen out of a tree.
"No," I snapped, pulling my arm back. "I can do it myself."
"I have already called for a healer," Leo said, leaning off the doorframe. He tossed the gold chain into the air and caught it with a metallic clink. "She should be here soon."
"Do you want to eat anything?" Leon asked from my right. He looked around my messy room, his brow furrowing as he noticed my scattered clothes. "I could tell the cook to prepare something special for you. Whatever you want."
I stopped. I let the cloth drop into the bowl with a splash and glared at all three of them. The identical green eyes stared back, full of a strange, collective guilt that made me want to scream.
"What the fuck is this?" I asked, my voice shaking with raw irritation. "What is the meaning of all this? The clothes, the lenses, the ’caring’ act. What are you trying to do?"
My voice broke. "Because you lost the right to act like you care."
