Claimed By My Three Alphas
Chapter 174

Everything is as I remember it.

Not that I'd even expected much to change, considering it not being too long age since I'd left the human realm.

It's barely even dawn, but I've long since crossed the border.

I'm still sore from last night.

Really sore.

Slipping out of bed earlier was a lot harder than I expected it to be. Not because I didn't want to wake them from their slumber, but because I knew what I was slipping away for.

I knew what was at stake.

The full moon is tonight.

My heart was heavy with the knowledge that if I couldn't save them tonight, I would never be able to save them again.

It still is:

They were a mess of tangled limbs, snoring heavily. We had all lain in the same bed last night, cuddling, just existing in the presence of each other.

No words were said, there didn't need to be any

Last night, is what I want forever. Not just for them.

I want to live with all of them, be with all of them. Grow old with them. Not just one.

So I trudge up the familiar path to my family home, all I feel is anticipation, for what comes next. For the chance to save my boys

The one car my parents share isn't parked in the driveway once I get to the house, which means either one, or both of them are gone. I walk up the steps to the foyer, trying the handle on a whim. Unlocked. My brows furrow.

"Mom?" | call, as I step passed the threshold. The house is quiet. It seems like no one's here, but... they'd never leave the house unguarded.

"Dad?" I call, "Is anyone home?"

There's no answer.

The living room is a mess, with pillows from the sofa strewn all over the floor. They probably got into another one of their petty disagreements and Mom must have made Dad sleep on the couch again. He never picks up after himself when he wakes in the morning. I walk through the quiet house, my footsteps echoing like the building is empty. Something feels off.

The floorboards creek above me. A single sound of movement came from upstairs. I toss my gaze to the ceiling, listening for something else, but it doesn't come.

"Mom?" I call again, making my way up the stairs.

I pause when I reach the top landing, my heart leaping in my chest. Up here is even worse than downstairs. It's a disaster.

The framed pictures are tilted in their positions, some face down on the floor, a pool of shattered glass surrounding them. And then I see it, the faintest drop of crimson soaked into the beige carpet. Blood.

A surge of panic rises in me as I notice more of the splatter, tiny, circular drops making a direct trail to the closed bathroom door. Oh, God. No.

I grip the handle, steadying my breathing to prepare for whatever I might see once I look inside. The door shrieks quietly as I push it open.

Red.

That's all I can see. Dark, gooey red covering almost every inch of the white tiles. It drips down the counter, covering the entire floor. My eyes lift to my reflection in the mirror, a horrified gasp slipping out of me. NAIVÉ LITTLE GIRL

written in bold, dripping crimson letters on the glass surface.

I see him before I even feel his presence behind me. Before I can react, he grabs my centre, forcing my back into his chest, his other hand pressing a damp white cloth to my nose.

My fear makes me inhale lungfuls of the chemical, burning a path down my nostrils and my throat as I feel my body weaken. My eyes droop, and I sag against him, unable to hold my weight anymore.

"We knew you'd come." He tosses the cloth to the floor, spinning my limp body around and tossing me over his shoulder.

My hands slap at his calves as he carries me down the stairs, and out of the house. My vision is unfocused and blurry. The sound of a door sliding open, my body hitting the leather interior of the vehicle, the door sliding shut. I'm awake, I'm experiencing it all, but I'm also not.

I feel detached from my body.

What did you do to me?' I want to ask, but my lips don't move. The engine roars, and then were speeding away.

He drives for a long time, hours maybe, I can't tell. My body is soaked in sweat, overheating as I lay there unmoving, not a sound coming from me no matter how much I try to scream.

I want to wipe the sweat from my brow, it's dripping into my eyes. I feel a hand swipe at my forehead

My hand.

I move it.

I try to speak again, only muffled mumbles coming from my barely parted lips..

"Starting to wear off, huh? Perfect timing."

I'm scared.

I've never been so scared in my entire life. What happened to mom and dad? Whose blood was on the bathroom mirror? I feel the panic brewing in my gut. Was this all a waste? A ruse? There was no way out, was there? A naive little girl.

I feel the tears, hot and thick, sliding down the sides of my. face, matting my hair to the leather seat. How could I have been so stupid?

And now I've put everyone at risk. My parents could very well be dead. The boys might come looking for me. What will they think? When do they realize I'm gone?

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

How could I have been so stupid?

The car comes to a stop a long while after. I've regained most of my mobility, but my reactions are slow and sluggish. It takes a full two seconds to blink.

The man gets out of the car, instantly shoving my door open and picking me up, bridal style this time. He holds me to him with an arm around my back and the backs of my legs.

It's already sunset from what I can see.

"Where are you taking me?" It's an incoherent stream of words, all jumbled together. He ignores me, walking briskly down a path I can't see. When he reaches what I assume must be the door, someone speaks to him. "You're late. He's been waiting."

"Yeah, well," His grip on me tightened, "She didn't show up last night like I'd expected. She came in this morning"

Oh God.

Any hope I'd had of this situation not being what I thought disintegrated then and there. Are they going to kill me? Is that what this is?

A moan slips out of me, my face contouring.

The other man grunts, opening the large door without another word and moving to the side so we can pass.

My eyes are fixed on the ceiling, my vision growing more vivid with every bright light we pass. I lift an arm, pressing it against the man's chest, trying to push away. It's futile, he doesn't even acknowledge it. Too weak. It feels like we've been walking forever when he comes to a stop in front of another large door. He sets me down on my feet. I'm wobbly, but I can stand. I look over his shoulder, down the path we just came. "Don't even think about it." He warns.

"Why am I here?"

"King Casper wants you here."

My insides coil tight.

King Casper?

C?

Oh no.

My fight or flight instincts kick in, and I duck past the man, it's embarrassingly slow. I couldn't outrun a kid in this state.

He grabs a handful of my shirt, yanking me back to him and grasping my throat. My eyes bulge as he slams my head back against the door, coming within inches of my face.

"I wouldn't try that again." He seethes, letting go of me, and I crumble to the floor.

He bangs on the door with a closed fist.

No one answers, but he pushes it open immediately after.

The door gives out behind me, and I fall on my back on the cushioned floor.

The man grabs the back of my neck, forcefully yanking me to my feet. The room were in is enormous, the panelled walls and arched windows giving off the vibe of a church.

But there are no seats, no aisle. It's empty, keep for the velvet rug leading from the door down the centre of the large space, stopping On a dais, where a man sits on a lone throne.

The king.

My mind runs a mile a minute.

The man walks us towards the opposite end of the room, the King's eyes holding onto my every move. He tosses me on the ground before the throne, my elbows burn as they graze the velvet carpet. "You may leave." The King says.

The man behind me grunts, exiting the room without a word.

"You've arrived just in time."

I rise on my hands and knees, staring at the man before me from underneath my lashes. "What is this?" I choke, "Just in time... just in time... for what?"

He drops an elbow on one knee, leaning forward on the grand chair. "Why," he begins, a look of absolute glee crossing his features, "Our wedding of course."