The Rogue Triplets’ Little Nerd

CH 11 - Keres

KERES POV

That f*****g thing smelled like nothing.

Not blood.

Not wolf.

Not human.

Nothing.

Samael was losing his goddamn mind over it, snarling while we tore through the forest after that f*****g creature like two rabid monsters straight out of a horror movie.

Branches snapped beneath our paws.

Mud sprayed.

Cold air ripped through my lungs.

And still—nothing.

No scent trail.

No heartbeat.

Just flashes of black fur between the trees and those glowing red eyes disappearing and reappearing like some sick hallucination.

Ferus lunged first.

His massive silver body slammed through the undergrowth hard enough to uproot half a bush while his jaws snapped toward the creature’s hind leg.

He should’ve landed the bite.

Should’ve crushed bone.

Instead the thing f*****g dissolved.

Smoke.

Black smoke exploded apart beneath Ferus’ teeth before reforming three feet away like the laws of nature had decided to go f**k themselves tonight.

What.

The.

Fuck.

Samael skidded violently across wet dirt, hackles raised so high they hurt while a snarl ripped out of my throat loud enough to shake leaves from the trees.

Those things should’ve been dead already.

All of them.

Burned.

Hunted down.

Gone.

And yet this one was here.

Running through Bloodclaw territory.

Hunting down the Alpha’s daughter. Persefone Savage.

My little nerd.

Our mate.

Mate.

The word alone almost made me crash straight into a tree.

The bond had snapped so hard the second midnight hit that it felt like someone had shoved a knife between my ribs and twisted.

One second we’d been running through the woods trying to burn off the bullshit in our heads after what Thane had shared with us—

and the next...

her scent exploded through me.

Roses.

Lightning.

Fire.

Need.

I’d almost f*****g shifted mid-run from the force of it.

So had Ferus.

So had Pluto.

And the worst part?

The second it happened, every instinct inside me stopped belonging to me anymore.

Protect.

Find.

Claim.

Mine.

Mine.

Mine.

I f*****g hated it.

Hated how fast it happened.

Hated how my body reacted before my brain could catch up.

Hated that even now, while chasing down a nightmare creature through the woods, part of me could still think about Persefone on my brother’s back.

I should be focusing on the hybrid, instead I was thinking about a f*****g woman that had haunted every single day of my life for the last four years.

Samael snarled harder.

The hybrid darted left suddenly, disappearing between thick trees near the creek.

Ferus immediately cut it off while we came from the other side, silver fur flashing through the darkness like a f*****g beacon under the full moon.

The thing stopped.

For one second.

One horrible second.

Its red eyes locked onto us and I swear the fucker was smiling like a demon.

A low distorted growl crawled out of its throat, wrong enough to make Samael’s fur rise all the way down his spine.

Then it winked.

Actually f*****g winked.

And it was gone.

Dissolved again before either of us could tear its throat out.

Smoke swallowed the trees.

Ferus paced violently first, huge body tense and ready to lunge again... but there was nothing.

Nothing we could chase.

Samael wanted blood.

So did I.

I shifted back hard enough my knees nearly buckled when human skin replaced fur again.

Cold air slammed into my naked body immediately.

Didn’t feel it.

Couldn’t.

Not with adrenaline flooding every inch of me.

“f**k!” I roared, driving my fist straight into the nearest tree.

The trunk cracked loudly.

Didn’t help.

Nothing f*****g helped.

Thane shifted a second later nearby, chest heaving while his eyes still glowed faintly blue in the darkness.

Ferus was right there beneath his skin.

Mean.

Violent.

Ready to kill.

Aiden came out of the trees moments later carrying Persefone over his shoulder while she cursed loud enough to wake the dead.

Good.

She was conscious.

Still fighting.

Still alive.

Relief hit so hard it actually pissed me off.

Because I shouldn’t feel relief like that.

Shouldn’t feel anything like that.

Not over an Alpha.

Not over a f*****g pack princess.

Not over someone who represented everything our mother had nearly died because of.

And yet the second I saw her moving, breathing, glaring murderously at Aiden—

something unclenched inside my chest.

Dangerous.

Very f*****g dangerous.

Aiden finally lowered her onto her feet near the edge of the creek.

Big mistake.

The moment her feet touched dirt, Persefone shoved him backward hard enough to make Pluto snap aggressively beneath his skin.

“You kidnapped me!” she shouted.

Aiden blinked slowly.

“You were being hunted.”

“You still kidnapped me!”

Fair point honestly.

Her curls were a mess now, dark red silk clinging to her body while the skirt of her dress was half ruined from running barefoot through the woods.

And f**k.

The bond made everything worse.

The sight of her hit like drugs straight to the bloodstream.

She was gorgeous.

And even if every survival instinct in my body should’ve been screaming at me... one whiff of her scent and I was calm.

Steady.

“Mine,” Samael snarled hard enough to make my teeth ache. “Claim her now.”

I ignored him violently.

Persefone looked between the three of us, breathing hard, green eyes blazing brighter than the moon overhead.

“Explain,” she demanded.

None of us answered immediately.

Mostly because none of us knew where the f**k to even start.

Yeah, because that conversation would go over f*****g great.

Hey sweetheart, surprise:

we’re your mates.

Nightmare hybrids are hunting you.

We hate everything you represent.

And our wolves are one bad second away from ripping each other apart over you.

Yeah.

That would go over well.

Distant howls suddenly ripped through the forest.

Close.

Too f*****g close.

Bloodclaw was on the hunt.

Fucking magnificent.

Persefone heard it too because her entire expression changed in half a second. Relief flashed across her face so fast it almost pissed me off.

“They found me,” she breathed.

Aiden’s reaction was immediate.

“No.”

The single word came out sharp enough to cut skin.

Persefone blinked. “No?”

“You’re not going back there.”

Excuse me?

Her outrage exploded instantly.

“The f**k do you mean I’m not going back there?”

More howls echoed through the trees.

We didn’t have time for this.

Ferus paced beneath Thane’s skin hard enough to make his jaw tick, but unlike Aiden, he looked… conflicted.

“We shouldn’t even be here,” he muttered roughly. “We take her back. Her parents can protect her.”

Aiden turned toward him so fast the movement almost looked feral.

“Protect her?” he snapped. “A hybrid walked straight into Bloodclaw territory tonight and almost got her. Someone drugged her inside her own pack house. You think she’s safe there?”

That landed.

Hard.

Because Persefone’s face paled instantly.

Good.

Maybe now she’d realize this wasn’t some f****d-up prank.

Another howl tore through the woods.

Samael snarled violently beneath my skin.

Too close.

Way too f*****g close.

Persefone looked between the three of us like we’d all collectively lost our minds.

“You are talking about me like I’m not standing right here,” she hissed.

Honestly?

Fair.

I dragged a hand down my face aggressively before the tension exploded even worse.

“What if we go with her?” I muttered.

Silence.

Then Thane scoffed so hard it was almost a growl.

“Absolutely f*****g not.”

Persefone pointed at him immediately. “See? Caveman gets it. I’m going home without any of you.”

“Don’t test me, nerd,” I warned.

“Watch me,” she shot back.

Brave words for someone trying very hard not to look directly at Thane’s naked body.

Unfortunately for her, I noticed everything.

The tiny hitch in her breathing.

The pink slowly crawling up her throat.

The way her eyes snapped upward a second too late.

Oh.

Oh that was f*****g priceless.

A slow grin pulled at my mouth.

“Sweetheart,” I drawled, “if you keep staring at my brother like that, we’re definitely kidnapping you.”