*~ Hazel’s POV ~*
I crashed onto the cold, hard floor as I yanked myself out of his grip. My knees scraped against the rough ground , but I barely felt it. My eyes darted frantically around the forest searching for my babies. And then I heard their voices perfectly laid on the ground .
My gaze snapped back to Cyrius. My mouth opened. "Cayden!" I breathed. "He’s here..!"
But nothing... no response or Atleast a voice. My heart screamed. And Cyrius? He just stood there..calm, unaffected, as if the world wasn’t crumbling around me.
"We’re not going through the border anymore," he said, like this was just another chore. "Turns out there’s another route out of New Orleans. A hidden one. In this forest." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖
He stepped closer. "So get up. We need to go."
I shook my head, sobbing. "I’m not going anywhere. Please... just let me go."
His voice chilled. "Do you want me to compel you again?"
"Compel me then!" I snapped, rising to my knees. "Do you really think I’d give myself to you like this? Do you think I’ll ever choose to start a family with someone who strips away my will? Who forces me to do things feel things..I don’t want to?!"
He paused. I could see the calculation flicker in his eyes. "If I let you go," he said slowly, "then I lose any chance of starting a family with you. But if I make you stay... I still have that chance. Even if I have to compel you."
My stomach turned. "You’re disgusting," I hissed. "I’m not getting up. Kill me if you want. Because I’m not going anywhere with you."
His jaw clenched. "Hazel. Don’t make me do it again."
"Fuck you!" I spat. "
Yes...fuck me! You made me a monster! You dragged my brothers here..knowing what they did to me!" He yelled.
I stood slowly, trembling with rage. "You want to know the truth? The second time they daggered you... it was me. I fixed the dagger. I pushed it into your chest."
His eyes widened, that flicker of control faltering for a split second. "What did you say?" he whispered.
"You heard me," I snarled. "I daggered you, Cyrius. I did it because I was done. And if Caspian agreed , it’s because you indeed a monster . You think I don’t ask myself every day if I did the right thing? But I did. Because you are a monster. You’re worse than Cayden himself."
The moment those words left my mouth, something inside him cracked. I saw it..the way his fury flared, then crumbled into something darker.
He threw his head back, a guttural scream ripping from his throat. "Fuck!" The sound echoed like a storm inside the room. His chest heaved, his shoulders trembling. "Even my mate hates me," he rasped.
I caught the glint of tears in his eyes before he blinked them away, jaw clenched tight. And then, just like that, something snapped. His expression shifted—veins bulging beneath his skin, fangs elongating with a sickening crack. My breath hitched.
I shivered.
Not from the cold.
From fear.
"So you were with them?" he growled, stalking forward, his voice thick with betrayal. "You planned this? You were daggering me with them?"
My lips parted, but no words came. He didn’t wait. In one swift motion, his hands gripped my waist, yanking me toward him. My body slammed into the heat of his chest, his tight abs like stone beneath my palms. His heartbeat pounded against my ear, frantic, furious, feral.
"Why?" His voice cracked. "Why?!"
And in that moment, I finally found the strength to shove him back. My hands pushed against his chest.
He didn’t budge.
But I did.
I stumbled backward from the force, crashing onto the cold floor.
"No." He narrowed his eyes. "Then I’ll make you."

But that softness held a steel edge. I nodded.. I didn’t want to. But I did...Because I didn’t have a choice.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Fated to the Alpha–And His Triplet Brothers