I gave Lolita a small, firm smile. “Maybe, yes… if they weren’t in the picture, I’d give him a chance to know him. But they are in the picture. They’re my mates… my everything. That’s not changing.”

“Don’t worry, sis,” he said finally, his voice low and calm. “I’m not going to force you to do something you don’t want to do… but…”

“What are you going to do?” Nora asked.

“They have a right to know,” she argued gently. “This isn’t some random trouble you can hide from them. If what Alpha Calvin says is true, this is life or death. And you know damn well they’ll want to fight for you.”

“I’m going to think,” I said firmly. “There has to be a way out. I’m not his. I’ll never be his.”

So no matter how tempting Lord Frederick might seem… no matter how curious I might be about him… it doesn’t change the fact that my heart belongs to the triplets. “I have to meet the seer,” I said aloud, more to myself than to anyone. “If there’s even the smallest chance I can heal my mother, she might be the one who can help me… and if my mother wakes, she can guide me. She can help me with this decision.”

I narrowed my eyes. “But what?”

Nora exhaled, relieved at my answer. Lolita just nodded, but I could tell her mind was already working on the next thing to say.

But that was a fantasy.

And yes… he was exactly my type physically. If the triplets had never been in the picture… if I hadn’t felt what I feel for Lennox, Louis, and Levi… maybe, just maybe, I would have thought about giving him a chance.

“You’re telling me my life depends on some stupid promise my great-grandmother made years ago?”

I shook my head, my throat tight. “If they know… they’ll lose their minds. Lennox will go to war. Levi and Louis will follow him without hesitation. And Frederick-” I bit my lip. “Frederick isn’t just some random vampire we can push around. He’s ancient. Old magic runs in his veins.”

Lord Frederick… I don’t even know him. I don’t know the real man behind that charming smile or the things he’s done over the centuries. For all I know, his hands are stained with blood I could never forgive him for.

And then… I teleported.

“Dead serious,” I replied.

“It’s never happening,” I hissed. “I’m not getting married to Lord Frederick just because I was vowed to him by a woman I never even met. Who the hell gave her the right to vow me to him?”

I scoffed in anger, my hands flying to my hair as I yanked at it in pure frustration. Then I snapped my gaze to him, my eyes burning with rage.

I shook my head, cutting her off. “Yes. I’m not wasting another minute. I can’t make this choice without her.”

“That was how it happened,” Calvin finished, his voice weighed down by the ridiculous story he had just told me.

His silence was answer enough.

I hated that I even had to think about it.

I didn’t answer. I had no idea what to say. Instead, I sank onto the bed, my thoughts spinning. “Why now…?” I whispered, my fingers tightening around the edge of the blanket. “Why now, when my life was finally starting to fall into place…”

Lolita sat beside me, her hand brushing mine in silent comfort.

My head snapped up. “No,” I said without giving it a second thought.

I crossed my arms, glaring. “Spit it out, Calvin.”

The reality was… the triplets are my life.

Nora crouched in front of me, so I had no choice but to meet her eyes. “You have to tell the triplets.”

He hesitated, then leaned forward. “If you refuse him completely… if you try to break the bond… the magic will turn on you. And I don’t know if even I can stop it.”

Olivia’s POV

With one last look at their worried faces, I whispered, “Trust me.”

“Olivia-” Nora began, but I was already stepping away.

Nora’s head tilted in concern. “Liv, are you prepared for that? Your healing ability…”

Lolita broke the silence first, tilting her head and watching me closely.

I gritted my teeth and shook my head. “Then I guess we’re going to find a way to break it… because I’d rather die fighting it than live as someone’s property.”

Lolita frowned deeply. “So what? You’re just going to sit here and wait for him to claim you?”

The question caught me off guard. I froze, my lips parting but no words coming out. “What if there were no triplets?” she asked quietly. “What if you were still… you know… having issues with them? Would you have at least considered Lord Frederick?”

They are a part of me in ways I can’t explain. I know their flaws, their bad sides, their tempers, their mistakes… but I still love them. And they love me back with that fierce, possessive, unshakable way that feels like home.

I stared at him, my heart pounding in my ears.

His jaw tightened before he continued, “But the blood oath Hailee made wasn’t just a simple promise. It’s sealed magic. And if what Frederick said is true…”

I pushed myself off the bed suddenly, determination replacing my earlier frustration. With that, I turned and stormed upstairs.

Calvin let out a deep sigh and sank back into the couch, his elbows resting on his knees. His frown cut deep into his face as he studied me.

My mind drifted for a second… and the truth was, Lord Frederick was insanely hot. Strong. Tall. Confident. He carried himself like the world already belonged to him. He was dangerous in that way some men are. He was magnetic, alluring, the kind of man that made you wonder what it would be like to be claimed by him.

I glanced between them, my decision final. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t worry about me. And… don’t tell my brother where I went.”

Lolita straightened from the bed, studying my expression. “You’re serious.”

Silence settled between us for a few seconds, heavy and suffocating.

Back in my room, Lolita and Nora were there, their faces showing they’d overheard everything.