Chapter 3

I didn’t respond. I just stared at her, wide eyed and lost, while she stared back, equally stunned. My throat tightened as I swallowed hard… and only managed a small nod. My heart skipped painfully.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, is this for real?” she breathed, but it didn’t sound like the question was meant for me at all.

She exhaled sharply, then focused on me again. “Kamari… please tell me you’re accepting this.” There was excitement in her voice… excitement for me?

“What… what?” I stuttered, completely thrown. “You’re okay with this?”

I had to ask, because none of this made sense. This was the same man she had claimed in whispers and fantasies since she was a teenager.. The man whose name she moaned in her sleep thinking no one heard. The Alpha she wanted to belong to more than anything.

And now… I was his mate.

And she was just… fine with that?

“Yeah,” she said with a small, disbelieving laugh, giving me a look like I was the crazy one. “Why wouldn’t I be, silly?”

I scratched the back of my head, letting out a weak, nervous laugh. “Well, um… I thought you’d be upset that I’m mated to him because, you know…” I trailed off, watching her confused expression. “The whole crushing on him thing. I thought you’d be mad that I… stole him from you.”

Silence filled the room like a heavy mist. She raised a brow at me, and I instantly regretted opening my mouth. I stared at her; she stared back. Neither of us moved. Neither of us spoke.

“I’m sorry, if I—”

“Nonsense,” Arial cut me off sharply. “Stole him from me? He was never mine to begin with and it would be stupid of me to resent you just because the Moon Goddess chose you instead of me.” She shrugged as if it were the simplest thing in the world. “If he isn’t my destined mate, then he isn’t my destined mate.”

She flopped back on the bed, eyes on the ceiling. “Although…” she sighed dreamily, “…I still wouldn’t mind fucking him. He’s so damn fine.”

I nearly gagged right then and there. Still with her gaze at the ceiling, she swallowed.

“However… three mates?” Arial blinked at the ceiling, baffled. “Is that even possible? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

Neither have I. And by the look on everyone else’s faces earlier, I doubt they have either. It sounds impossible, unless they were lying, competing just to claim me and destroy whoever my real mate is. Yes. That had to be it. They must be lying.

“Do you feel a bond with them?” Arial asked as she dropped onto her bed, propping herself up on one elbow. “Do you feel that mate pull to any of them?” Her brows lifted, waiting.

“No.”

She blinked. “No?”

“No,” I repeated firmly.

Now she looked truly confused. Honestly, I couldn’t blame her.

“Trust me, I’m confused too,” I admitted, frustration slipping into my voice. “I don’t know if they’re telling some twisted lie or if this is actually… real. But I don’t feel the pull you told me about…the one where your wolf reaches for theirs. I don’t feel anything.”

I breathed out, shoulders slumping. “Maybe… maybe it’s because I just got my wolf? Maybe it’s taking time for her to adjust?” I suggested, though even to my own ears, I sounded unsure.

Arial considered it, stared blankly at the wall for a moment, then finally shrugged. “Maybe.”

The door handle twisted, and Ma stepped into the room. Arial and I immediately rose, but she stopped us with a gentle lift of her hand. Her focus shifted to me, a soft, nervous smile forming on her lips.

“Come, Kamari… the pack doctor is here,” she said, closing the distance between us. Her fingers smoothed a stray lock of hair behind my ear, the gesture, tender but laced with anxiety.

Arial and I exchanged a confused glance. “Is something wrong with her, Ma?” Arial asked, worry tightening her voice.

Ma turned to her with a practiced motherly calm. “No, baby. Your sister is perfectly fine. Her situation is just… complicated.” She offered a small smile that didn’t quite calm the dread building in my chest. “We just need to get to the bottom of this… mates situation.”

Arial nodded, accepting the reassurance but my heart hammered hard enough that I could feel it shake my ribs.

Ma’s gaze dropped knowingly to my chest. “You’re scared,” she murmured. “I can hear it.”

Her hand lifted to my cheek. “I know you hate needles, but don’t worry, I told the doctor not to bring any this time.”

It wasn’t the needles I was worried about. It was the possibility that I might be wrong… and that they might be telling the truth.

What then? Would Ma and Pa force me into rejecting them?

Everyone knew the consequences of rejecting a mate. The bond doesn’t just break, it tears. Rips straight through the soul. Wolves have died from that pain alone. Those who survive are left with a hollow ache so crushing that some don’t make it to the next sunrise.

The only cure is finding another mate, forming a new bond strong enough to silence the old one.

And if the Moon Goddess really had tied me to three Alphas? If Ma and Pa ordered me to reject them…Would I endure that agony three times?

Would I be cursed to feel loneliness for each of them, three fractures in one heart and have to find three new mates to feel whole again?

It was a theory I didn’t dare test. A nightmare I prayed the Goddess wouldn’t make real.

“Everyone is waiting for you,” Ma’s voice cut through my spiraling thoughts, dragging me back to the present. “You’ll be fine.” She brushed her thumb across my cheek… only then did I feel the wetness.

Was I crying?

I swallowed and nodded. Without another word, we left the room and walked downstairs to the living area. Every gaze shifted toward me.

Alpha Casper sat with one leg crossed over the other, polishing a spotless shoe with a white handkerchief. Alpha Jake lounged comfortably on a stool, chuckling over a glass of wine with Pa. Alpha Kyron stood separate from them all, back against the wall, arms folded, gaze fixed on the floor beneath him.

For once, none of them moved toward me. No grabbing. No growling, just uneasy silence.

Some Alphas had already departed, urgent affairs to return to, no doubt but a handful remained, clearly driven by their curiosity. A girl with three supposed mates? Who wouldn’t linger?

Then I saw her, Pack Doctor Patricia, standing proudly in her crisp medical uniform, first aid kit in hand. The sight of her pulled at old memories I thought I’d buried.

She was the one who used to take care of me when I was always sick. The one who brought candies to soften bitter medicine. The one who promised I’d find my strength someday… even when everyone thought I was cursed.

Her warm smile hadn’t changed, though the bun on her head was neat and elegant now, making her look even more professional.

“My sweet child…” Her voice softened as she opened her arms.

I didn’t hesitate. I rushed forward, wrapping my arms around her in a tight hug.

“You’ve grown so much,” she murmured, pulling back just enough to inspect me. “And your aura… you’ve finally awakened your wolf.”

I nodded, unable to stop the small smile tugging at my lips. “It’s been so long, Dr. Patricia. How have you been?”

“Oh, busy as ever. Transferred to a new hospital in the East…they keep me running wild.” She chuckled before lightly tapping my chin. “To think the last time I saw you, you were barely tall enough to reach my knee and now look at you…”

Her smile dimmed slightly, curiosity and concern creeping in. “Imagine my surprise,” she continued, lowering her voice a little, “when your mother calls about… your situation.” Her eyes flicked to the Alphas before returning to mine. “I just had to rush over myself..”

I forced out a shaky chuckle as Pa walked toward us. Doctor Patricia straightened, offering him a polite smile.

“I’ll need to prepare everything,” she said. He nodded, and with another reassuring smile, she turned and got to work.

She opened her medical kit, pulling out a few instruments and lining them neatly on the table. Everyone watched in tense silence. When I glanced over my shoulder, I spotted Arial peeking from behind the stairs, though her attention was mostly glued to Alpha Casper’s broad back instead of me. Figures.

“Okay… Kamari, please come here,” the doctor instructed gently.

I stepped closer. She took hold of my wrist, and with practiced ease, slid a needle beneath my skin. Dark red blood began to fill the syringe. I watched, heart pounding, until it was full. She capped it and set it aside. By the time I looked down again, the prick on my wrist was already healed.

She performed the same procedure for each Alpha. Once she had the samples she needed, Doctor Patricia exhaled and retrieved a set of glass dishes, petri dishes, she called them.

“To prove or disprove the Alphas’ claim, there’s a simple method,” she explained, looking around the room. “Wolves feel their mate through the bond, yes, but our blood responds too. When mate blood is close, it reacts… pulled like a magnet.” Her gaze flicked to me briefly before continuing, “So, I’ll place a drop of her blood in each plate, then a drop from each Alpha beside it. If the blood pulls together and mixes, then the bond is confirmed.”

Ma and Pa both nodded, understanding the implications. My stomach twisted into knots. Strangely, the Alphas didn’t look nervous, just expectant, as if they already knew how this would go.

Doctor Patricia distributed the samples carefully, sealed each dish, and set them in front of us. We all waited and waited but Nothing happened. No reaction, No pull, Nothing.

Ma, Pa, and I exhaled in collective relief. My shoulders sagged, maybe the Alphas really were lying.

Doctor Patricia smiled and began to speak, “It seems she is telling the truth. The blood—”

“Wait.” Alpha Kyron’s deep voice cut through the room like a blade. He stepped closer, eyes narrowed. “What’s that?” We all leaned in.

Dear Goddess…

My jaw fell open, because right before our eyes, the drops of blood in each dish shivered… slid toward one another… and then merged, completely.

All three plates, all three Alphas. My blood reacted to every one of them!!