Scarred Wolf Queen Chapter 186

**Briony's POV**

"What date?" Christopher's fork clattered against his plate.

Noah stared at me like I'd just announced I was joining a circus. "You never mentioned dating anyone."

I took a breath, trying to stay calm. "First off, it was part of my mission. I had to get close to the rogue wolves and infiltrate their group. Playing girlfriend was just cover. And second," I shot him a look, "since when do I owe you updates on my love life?"

"Don't try to dodge this." Noah's voice had an edge to it. "Who was this guy?"

"Oh please. If you guys ever bothered telling me about your hookups, maybe I'd consider - "

I caught sight of Freya's face and immediately felt like shit. That came out wrong.

"Stop changing the subject." Noah wasn't letting this go. "I want details. Who was he?"

"You don't need to worry about it." I sighed. "He's not a problem anymore. Trust me on that."

"Bri, what's really going on here?" Benjamin's voice was softer, but his eyes were intense. "If it's no big deal, why won't you just tell us?"

God, I was tired. Why did they get all worked up about me and other guys, but when it came to Victoria, they just sat there and took it?

"Remember that box with the eyeballs?" I looked each of them in the eye. "Robert - that was him. He's dead now."

I stood up and grabbed my plate. My appetite was gone, and I wanted out of there before Victoria and her dad heard any more of this conversation.

Back upstairs, Sophia and Freya followed me.

"Pack your stuff and move it to my room." I was done playing nice. "I'm sick of catering to Victoria and her dad. You're my guests, so you're staying with me."

It took them all of five minutes to gather their things. We spread out on my carpet, going over the camera locations we'd mapped out today.

"Look at this coverage," Sophia said, marking spots on our makeshift blueprint. "There's basically nowhere to hide."

"And check out these angles," Freya added. "This was definitely done by pros."

A knock interrupted us.

"It's us." Ethan's voice came through the door. "Can we come in?"

I knew if I said no, they'd just find another way in. "Fine, come in."

All five boys filed in. Maxwell spoke first. "We should apologize. What we said at dinner... we didn't realize what that guy meant to you."

I rubbed my face. "He didn't mean anything to me. Getting close to them was just part of the job. I needed to infiltrate their circle to figure out how they kept dodging our tracking."

"But exactly how..." Benjamin started, then stopped and threw his hands up. "Forget it. I don't want details. Just thinking about it makes me sick."

"Let's talk about dealing with Victoria's family instead." Sophia jumped in, bless her. "We've got a plan started."

We spent the next few hours working out how to get Victoria's house finished in a month. Everyone got assigned tasks, and the tension finally started to ease.

Around midnight, I noticed all three triplets rubbing their temples like they had splitting headaches.

"What's wrong with you guys?" I walked over, worried.

"It's nothing," Maxwell forced a smile. "Just someone trying to break into our pack link."

"Who?" I frowned.

The brothers looked at each other, and Christopher finally answered. "Victoria. She's... figured out how to use emotional waves to break through our defenses."

"What kind of emotional waves?" Freya asked.

Maxwell's face turned red. "She sends mental connections during... climax. Trying to mess with us."

"That's disgusting!" Sophia nearly spit out her water.

"And she's not alone when she does it." Benjamin looked like he wanted to puke. "She makes sure we feel... everything."

Seeing how miserable they looked, I stood up. "Come on."

"Where?" Christopher asked.

"Your room. If being around me helps with the headaches, then let me help."

The triplets exchanged glances, then Maxwell just scooped me up. "I knew you were the best."

Lying between them, surrounded by their familiar scents, I felt safer than I had in weeks. Christopher was on my left, Maxwell on my right, and Benjamin stretched out on the nearby couch.

But just as I was drifting off, a thought hit me like a punch to the gut.

They were adults now. Soon they'd find their mates. When that happened, this would all be over. No mate would share them with me, and I'd lose all of this.

The thought made my chest tight. I was going to lose them. The realization hurt more than I'd expected.

When I woke up the next morning, my cheeks were damp. I'd been crying in my sleep - that was a first.

I slipped out quietly to wash my face, not wanting them to see me like this. When I came back, all three brothers were standing in the middle of the room, clearly having some kind of silent conversation through their link.

Christopher noticed me first and pulled me into his arms. Maxwell came over to touch my face gently, while Benjamin just looked at me like he was trying to read my mind.

I took a deep breath, letting their scents calm me down. There was work to do today. No time for wallowing.

Downstairs in the kitchen, Victoria's shrill voice hit us the second we walked in.

"Good morning, my Alphas." She gave the triplets a look that made my skin crawl. "Sleep well last night? Hope I didn't disturb you."

"Actually," Christopher's arm slipped around my waist naturally, "thanks to Briony, we slept great. She always knows how to help us... relax."

Sophia nearly choked on her coffee. Freya looked stunned.

"What?" Victoria's face went white. "What did you just say?"

"I said," Maxwell moved to my other side, "maybe keep your mental connection closed next time you're doing certain things. It's basic respect for pack members."

Victoria's father's face went bright red. "How dare you - "

Maxwell held up his hand, shutting him down cold. "Enough. This is the Pack house dining room, not some street corner for your drama."

He turned to Dora with a completely different expression. "Thanks for breakfast, Dora. Smells amazing as always."

We grabbed our food and got the hell out of that toxic atmosphere, heading for the training grounds.

The morning air felt crisp and clean after being stuck in there with those two. Kids were already gathering at the training area, and the second they spotted us, they came running over.