Mated to Three, Marked by One

Chapter 6

I turned to look at Ben, who had a suspicious expression on his face.

Had he overheard my conversation with Armani? If he did, he might stop talking to me and tell the whole school I was a commoner.

“I… uh… huh,” I stuttered, unsure of what to say. Ben raised his eyebrows, giving me a confused look.

I turned away from him. “What’s wrong with you, Catherine?” I muttered, face-palming and groaning. “Gosh, I’m doomed.” I slowly glanced at Ben, who was still watching me.

“Do you know him?” Ben suddenly asked, making me freeze.

“What?” I asked, looking at him in confusion.

“Armani—the guy you were talking to earlier,” he explained calmly.

It seemed he hadn’t heard our conversation.

What a relief! I took a deep breath as Ben continued to look at me.

I gave him a sheepish smile. “Why would I know him? I’m new here,” I blurted out, trying not to blink to avoid looking suspicious.

“But I just saw you talking to him,” Ben pointed out, making my smile fade.

Did he have to be so observant?

“Well, you see, I wanted to… um… find the pool, and I thought of asking him,” I said, coming up with a lame excuse that I couldn’t even buy myself.

I hoped Ben would believe it because I didn’t have any more excuses ready. If he kept asking questions, I might have to find a way to escape.

Ben looked like he was trying to process my words, his expression thoughtful.

He gave a small smile. “Well, you should have asked me if you wanted to see the school pool,” he said. I nodded, relieved that he didn’t push the issue further.

“Just don’t talk to that guy again, please,” Ben added, his gaze fixed on mine.

His eyes were filled with a mix of desperation, anger, and pain.

“Why not?” I asked, though I wasn’t particularly interested in talking to Armani again.

Actually, I would prefer if Armani could stop attending this school altogether. I knew that with him here, my life would be nothing but trouble, so why would I want to talk to him?

But I was curious about why Ben wanted me to stay away from Armani.

“That’s because he’s bad news,” Ben said simply.

Old news.

Armani was more than just bad news. I was relieved to hear that I wasn’t the only one who saw him that way.

“He and his brothers, Carl and Zephyr, are nothing but a pain,” Ben continued. “They seize every chance to belittle everyone, since they’re the so-called princes of Elite High School.” Ben scoffed, his voice dripping with bitterness. It was clear he really didn’t like the triplets.

But who could blame him? The triplets were nothing but trouble.

“They hold a lot of power here, so I suggest you stay away from them if you want to live peacefully,” Ben said, giving me a concerned smile.

I returned the smile. “They really sound terrible,” I said, pretending not to know them.

Meanwhile, the triplets were a menace not just at school but also in the palace.

“Trust me, they are,” Ben retorted.

You don’t have to tell me twice.

“I’ll stay away from them,” I said, trying to act as if it hadn’t already been my decision.

“Good,” Ben replied.

I smiled and turned away, about to leave, when I thought I heard Ben mutter, “Or I will have to kill you along with them.”

I turned back to him. “Did you say something?” I asked.

Ben looked at me, confused. “Nope, I didn’t say anything.”

“Oh,” I said, wondering if I’d imagined his words about killing me along with the triplets.

“What’s wrong?” Ben asked, noticing my unease.

“Nothing,” I replied before walking away, feeling his eyes on me.

I glanced back to see him still watching. To avoid suspicion, I gave him a smile and a small wave, which he returned.

I quickened my pace. There was something strangely off about Ben, but I couldn’t quite put it into words. Besides, I wasn’t ready to cut off the only person who had been kind to me at this school.

---

At dinner time, the maids were serving the food as I stood quietly in the corner. The Alpha King and his sons entered the dining room.

My gaze immediately locked with Armani’s as he entered, and I quickly looked away.

He scoffed before passing by me.

The dinner was quiet as I stood there, watching. “Won’t you join us, Catherine?” the Alpha King suddenly said, looking at me.

Was he talking to me? I glanced around to see if anyone else was standing behind me, but no one was there.

“I’m talking to you, dear,” the Alpha King clarified, clearing my confusion.

I nodded and walked toward the table, but just as I was about to sit down, Armani stood up abruptly.

“I won’t be eating with this,” Armani blurted out, referring to me as “this.”

“Oh, come on, son, don’t be so mean. You know what Catherine has been through,” the Alpha King pleaded with his son on my behalf.

“I don’t care, Father. You already have her attending my school. Isn’t that enough for her?” Armani retorted loudly.

“I mean, just because her mother died doesn’t mean I have to be nice to this commoner,” Armani continued harshly, ignoring his father’s attempts to stop him.

“I’m not the reason for her mother’s death, so why should I care about her daughter?” Armani spat out before walking away, with Carl and Zephyr following him.

“I will leave now, Alpha King,” I said softly, my voice becoming hoarse.

“Don’t take what my son said to heart, my dear,” the Alpha King said, his voice kind. I nodded and left the room before the tears in my eyes could fall.

---

As I walked down the corridor, I overheard a conversation between the Alpha King and someone else. The discussion seemed to be about me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was about me.

“We have a lot of issues going on, and a mysterious person is threatening to expose the kingdom’s secrets,” an unfamiliar voice said. I couldn’t see who it was because the door was closed, but I recognized the other voice as the Alpha King’s.

“Forget about the mysterious person. Right now, we have to prevent her from knowing the truth,” the Alpha King replied.

What truth were they talking about, and who were they referring to?

I leaned closer to the door to listen more clearly when a voice suddenly said, “What are you doing?” causing me to freeze in place.

Oh no!