Mated to alpha triplets at all-boys school Chapter 74

Elias pov

“What sort of question is that?” I grumble as I drop the earring on the table and walk closer to the door.

Ethan isn’t one to drink much. Or often, as a fact. Hence why my brother is barely standing and grinning at that asshole’s servant like a lunatic.

Carefully, I place a hand on Ethan’s shoulder and urge my brother to have a seat before his knees give out. At first, he’s teasing the impatient man standing in the hall, but eventually, Ethan gives up and does as I told him to.

Then, I look at the man and raise an eyebrow. “Sorry, would you mind repeating the question? My brother isn’t quite right up there, very smooth brain situation, so sometimes he misunderstands a lot of things.”

The man grins and nods eagerly. “Yes, of course, I understand. I was sent here by the prince himself; I need to visit every apartment in this building and make sure none of the students have seen a woman living in one of the apartments. If there is one, he would like to know.”

I glance over my shoulder. Everett looks puzzled, Ethan’s eyes are focused on something on the ceiling and Ash is as pale as, well, actual ash.

Looking back at the man, I shake my head. “Sorry, but I don’t think we can help much. I haven’t seen a woman around and neither have my flat mates. This is an all-boys school and if that’s not enough, I can assure you that we’re too busy with our day to day life to even notice anything. We literally go to classes, train and come back home to collapse.”

“Okay, that’s fair. Mind if I ask a couple of questions?” The man mutters as he tries to see past me.

I frown but agree, mainly to ensure Ash isn’t the center of attention. I promised to keep her secret and I’ll be damned to ever break I promise I’ve given. I’m not that type of a man, simple as that.

“Great. Since I know where you three are from, is it possible to know where your friend is from? Pack, to be specific?”

I glance over my shoulder once again. Ash is unusually tense and quiet, so before she can stutter out a response, I return my attention to the man and grin. “My friend is very shy and socially awkward. I hope it doesn’t bother you if I answer the questions for him? Trust me, it would be a true hassle for you, since it took me weeks to finally get the guy to talk to me and we’re living together.”

He doesn’t look too pleased with my offer, but eventually, he gives in and sighs. “I suppose any answer is better than none at all. Also, I understand why the lad feels like that, I’ve been in the same position in my earlier days.”

“He’s from overseas, Russia to be exact, but he’s staying with family friends on the weekends. The Blood Moon pack. I believe the pack back home has something to do with River, but I really don’t remember the full name,” I start and lean closer to the man to whisper. “He’s not talkative because of an abusive father, has seen awful things and vile things happen to him. It’s best if we keep this conversation to a minimum unless we want to trigger another episode. The poor guy has had a mental breakdown twice since he joined the Academy, believe me, the sight isn’t pretty. Shit, once I saw foam coming from his mouth and his body convulsed like he was being tortured. Scary shit, man, scary shit.”

His eyes widened, but the man didn’t dare to even glance at Ash. “It must be some sort of PTSD,” he whispers.

“Mhm,” I hum in agreement.

“Do you think he would mind if I asked more questions?”

I think for a moment and shake my head. “If it’s anything personal, that’s not a good idea. I have to spend the next four years with the guy as my roommate, the last thing I want or need is for him to hate me and shut me out completely. My brothers and I are working on getting him to come out of his shell, not force him deeper down in the abyss of his trauma. I hope you understand how delicate the situation is with this one. Other than that, we really can’t help you much. I haven’t seen any women around here, besides the bunch that attended the party today and we’re all dudes here.”

The moron sticks around for longer than I like, but I managed to put on my unbothered persona. How, no idea, but I still do, so I deserve a pat on the back anyway.

Eventually, he gives me one sharp nod and leaves, although half-heartedly and probably unwillingly, at least he’s out of our hair.

As I close the door and lean against it, I realize I’m not the only one who has noticed how strange Ash is acting all of a sudden. There’s something unusual about her.

“Ash?” Ethan starts, clearly leaving the question hanging.

Everett takes the chance and steps closer to Ash. “Have you seen this girl they’re looking for around here by any chance? You’re so quiet and weird, I swear, one might think you’re hiding her.”

“I’m weird because I’m tired. I’ve been tired for a while, especially since that mission Elias and I went on, but I keep pushing myself to keep up with the classes and others, so I feel like I’m squeezing out the last juices I have in my body,” Ash groans and tries to stretch her limbs, but even those fall with lack of energy.

Everett raises an eyebrow and frowns. “That’s not what I asked. Don’t avoid my questions, please.”

Ash rolls her eyes and huffs. “If I had seen this woman around, I would have told you, don’t you think? Hell, I would tell the dude who just left too. I’m bloody tired, that’s all. And no, I’m not hiding anyone.”

Everett accepts the answer, shrugs and drops on the couch next to Ethan to ruffle his hair.

My eyes don’t leave Ash as she mutters that she’s tired and will head to her room to sleep. Tonight, for some reason, she doesn’t close the door behind her so I watch her get into the bed and pull the covers over her, back turned to us.

I don’t move even when Everett and Ethan head to their rooms. Once I hear both showers, I silently tip-toe to Ash’s room and carefully sit on the edge of her bed. She looks so peaceful and calm while she sleeps, I wish she could be like this awake.

As I sit there, watching like a creep, I can’t help but wonder what else is she hiding from us.. From me.. No matter how I look at the situation, I can’t drop the suspicion that her secret and the decision to hide her identity has something to do with the prince.