Mated to Three, Marked by One

Chapter 1

**Catherine’s POV**

"Mother," I muttered, my husky voice cracking from crying too long.

The wind blew furiously, carrying my hair across my face. I lay on my mother's grave for a few minutes before I heard footsteps approaching, but I didn’t pay attention to them.

"We have to leave now; it's already dark," Beta Ken said.

I ignored him, still crying over the grave. "Why did you have to leave me?" I asked, desperation in my tone as tears streamed down my face.

"You just left me alone in this world. First Dad, now you," I muttered.

The emptiness of the graveyard hit me more than anything, mirroring the way I felt inside.

"Why? Why? Why!" I yelled, hitting my head on the ground.

"Why did you have to leave me?" I continued, hitting my head against the ground without caring about the blood gushing out.

I had no one left in this world, so what was the reason for living?

"Hey, stop it!" Beta Ken said from behind, running to me and stopping me from hitting my head again.

"Let me go!" I yelled, trying to break free and hit my head once more.

"Didn't you hear me?" he shouted, giving me a tight slap across the face.

I held my cheek, caressing the burning sensation.

"How dare you try to take your own life?" he beckoned.

I didn't know what to say, standing firm with my hand on my face.

"Don't forget that your life isn't yours; it belongs to Alpha Damian and his family," Beta Ken reminded me, bringing back the harsh reality of my sad life.

My father had died when I was six years old, and my mother had no one left to turn to in the Moon Crest pack. Everyone accused her of killing my father, her own husband.

No one gave her a listening ear because she belonged to the peasant wolves. There were two types of wolves: the elite and the peasants. The elite were the wealthy wolves, and the peasants were the poor wolves. I belonged to the peasants.

"Please, just let me die," I muttered as tears streamed from my eyes.

"How can you be so ungrateful? They gave you everything, and this is how you want to repay them?" Beta Ken yelled at me.

He was right in a way. Alpha Damian took my mother and me in when everyone else turned their backs on us.

He gave us shelter, but we had to work as slaves in the palace, which wasn’t that bad since Alpha Damian was really nice to me. He even got me a nice room in the palace.

His sons Armani, Carl and Zephyr, the triplets, were a different story. They never missed a chance to remind me of my place, how I was a bastard, and now an orphan.

I was just seventeen, yet I had seen how cruel the world could be.

"You better not do anything stupid again. Let's go," Beta Ken told me.

——

I woke up to the splash of water in my eyes, making me stand up immediately to see Armani, Zephyr, and Carl smirking at me with smug expressions.

They were all 6'3" in height, with broad shoulders. Carl had green eyes, Armani had blue eyes, and Zephyr had brown eyes with a mixture of red.

They looked so mature for a bunch of high schoolers in their early twenties.

"Look who finally decided to wake up," Carl announced.

"If it isn’t the nerdy little slave with her dorky glasses," Zephyr added, making Carl and Armani laugh.

I wouldn't consider myself a nerd, even though I had to wear big glasses due to my poor eyesight.

"Will you get up from the bed and go make us breakfast? It’s 4 a.m., and you're still sleeping!" Armani yelled, splashing more water on me.

My body began shivering from the cold, the water as frigid as ice.

"Is little nerdy cold?" Carl said in the most babyish voice I'd ever heard.

"I will make your breakfast. Just give me a minute to clean up," I managed to say with trembling lips.

I looked like a pure mess, my hair tacky and looking like it hadn't been washed for years, my eyes red from crying too much, and my cheeks swollen.

"Bullshit, we don’t have a minute to spare. You better get up now and get to work!" Armani yelled, throwing the bowl in my direction before leaving with Carl and Zephyr following behind.

They left my room, leaving me freezing. I slowly stood up from my bed, shivering as a breeze blew over my petite body.

I walked towards the standing mirror in the middle of my room, only to see the pathetic little orphan staring back at me.

"You are nothing but a shame. No one will ever love or want you," my subconscious muttered as I found myself laughing bitterly at my own reflection.

I quickly freshened up and went downstairs to prepare breakfast for the three idiots I hated more than anything in this world.

As I was making breakfast, a thought of burning the food crossed my mind, but I remembered the last time I was punished just for adding too much pepper to the triplets' meal by mistake.

I wasn't given food for a day and was locked up in my room. My mother pleaded for my forgiveness, even falling at the triplets' feet.

Here, the triplets were the ones who called the shots, especially Armani, who was the coldest and very evil.

Alpha Damian, the leader of the Moon Crest pack, saw his sons as gold. He couldn't bear any harm coming to them and severely punished anyone who went against them.

I finished making breakfast and went to the dining table to see Armani already sitting there.

I sighed before making my way to him slowly.

"It's about time," Armani muttered, looking at the clock. It was just 4:30.

I served his breakfast and was about to leave when he grabbed my hand, stopping me.

"Stay," Armani uttered, making my breath seize a little.

"Wh... what?" I stuttered, unable to speak.

"You heard me. I said you should stay." His voice was so cold.

"But why?" I managed to ask.

"Because I don't like eating by myself," Armani said, giving me a sassy look.

I tried my best not to speak, but the words came out. "But what about Carl and Zephyr?" I said in a low tone. I knew how much Armani hated being questioned, but I couldn't help it—I was curious.

"Will you shut the hell up and stop asking me useless questions?" He yelled, making me flinch.

I nodded before standing in front of him.

“I don’t need your big, dorky eyes staring at me while I eat, okay? Look down,” Armani ordered, and immediately, I complied.

I stood there silently for minutes until a voice spoke up. “Hey, Armani, eating without us?” I heard Carl say as he walked towards the dining room.

I slowly turned my head to see Carl and Zephyr coming. I frowned a little, as if one of them wasn’t enough.

It was curious how they all shared the same face, yet I could identify each of them without even looking into their eyes.

“How is the food?” Zephyr asked as he and Carl sat down.

“s**t,” Armani remarked bluntly.

“No surprise there,” Carl scoffed, then turned to me. “Can you ever do something meaningful in your life?” he yelled, but I remained silent.

“Just get me my food, I’m hungry,” Zephyr whined, causing discomfort in my stomach.

I hurried to fetch their meals and serve them.

They were eating when Alpha Damian entered the dining room. I quickly bowed in his presence.

“How are you doing, my dear?” Alpha Damian asked kindly.

“I’m fine,” I muttered quietly.

“You’re just saying that. One isn’t fine when they lose a family member, especially their mother,” Alpha Damian observed.

The triplets’ eyes widened slightly, especially Armani, though he maintained his cold demeanor.

“What does that mean, father?” Carl asked.

“Well, my son, Catherine lost her mother last night,” Alpha Damian informed them.

I felt Armani’s gaze on me.

“That’s sad,” Carl said solemnly.

“So she’s an orphan now,” Armani uttered with a chuckle.

“Armani, be nice,” Alpha Damian reprimanded.

I wasn’t even shocked that he would mock me for losing my mother. For someone who grew up without a mother, he certainly lacked sympathy for others.

“Yes, Armani, it isn’t easy to lose a loved one,” Zephyr remarked with a slight smirk.

Armani glanced at Zephyr, his expression a mix of amusement and disdain. “Well, you’re right. Catherine here is just like a loved one,” he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence as Armani muttered something under his breath.

“I hope I find out what it feels like when she’s gone,” Armani muttered under his breath.

Though his words were indistinct, I caught the implication, feeling a chill despite the warmth of the room.

Alpha Damian, sensing the tension, decided to shift the focus. “I have great news,” he announced, his authoritative voice commanding everyone’s attention.

“What news, Dad?” Zephyr asked eagerly, breaking the awkward moment with curiosity.

“Well, it has to do with Catherine here,” Alpha Damian said with a smile, his gaze fixed on me.

“Of course it does,” Armani muttered sarcastically, his attention still on his plate.

Alpha Damian ignored Armani’s remark and continued, “Well, Catherine, my dear,” he began, and I turned my attention fully to him, unsure of what was coming next.

“From now on, you will be attending the same school as my sons,” Alpha Damian announced excitedly, his words causing my eyes to widen in surprise and anticipation.

“What?” Carl and Zephyr exclaimed simultaneously, their voices filled with disbelief.

Armani choked on his food, glancing at his father in astonishment before turning to me with wide eyes. I could sense the anger in his gaze as he clenched his fists tightly.