Mated to the Triplet Alphas-Chapter 64: Banishment

Third POV

Annie stumbled back, holding her cheek as pain bloomed across her face. Mia caught her friend before she could fall, stabilizing her as Annie stared at Liam in utter disbelief. Her blue eyes widened with shock, mouth hanging open. Around them, mall shoppers had frozen, phones already out to record the unfolding drama.

“What the hell, Liam?” Annie shrieked, her voice cracking. “Have you lost your mind?”

Lucas stepped forward, his expression carved from stone. His green eyes, usually warm with golden flecks, had hardened to chips of emerald ice. “Annie Williams and Mia Thompson, by the authority vested in me as the Alpha of Emberfang Pack, you are both hereby banished from our territory, effective immediately.”

Annie’s face drained of color. “What? Banished? This is some kind of sick joke, right?” She looked frantically between the brothers, waiting for the punchline that wouldn’t come.

“This is no joke,” Liam said, his voice dangerously low. “You’re lucky we’re allowing you to live after what you did.”

Mia’s grip on Annie’s arm tightened. “What are you talking about? We haven’t done anything!”

“Really?” Lucas arched an eyebrow.

Without breaking eye contact, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a manila envelope. With a flick of his wrist, he tossed it at their feet. The contents spilled onto the polished mall floor—photographs, receipts, and printed screenshots.

Annie crouched down, fingers trembling as she picked up one of the photos. It showed her and Mia at a pharmacy outside pack territory, leaning over the counter as a sketchy-looking man handed them a small package.

“That’s... That’s not what it looks like!” Annie stammered, dropping the photo like it had burned her.

“Save it,” Liam snapped. “We have the CCTV footage, the receipts, and your text messages discussing how to slip the heat inducer into Hazel’s drink. Did you really think we wouldn’t investigate when our mate nearly died?”

Mall security had started to approach, but one look from Lucas sent them retreating.

Mia stepped forward, pushing Annie aside.

“It was her idea!” she blurted out, pointing accusingly at her friend. “I just went along with it. She was obsessed with getting you back, Liam. She kept saying if Hazel was out of the picture, you’d come back to her!”

Annie gasped, whirling around to stare at Mia with wide eyes.

“You backstabbing bitch! You’re the one who said we should use heat inducers! You’re the one who knew where to get them!”

“You wanted to use wolfsbane at first!” Mia shot back. “You didn’t care if she died!”

Wolfsbane?

Just the thought of it sent the passers-by shivering.

Lucas’s growl silenced their bickering.

“Enough. You both conspired to harm our future Luna. You purchased and used illegal substances with the intent to cause severe harm. The punishment for such crimes is death.”

Whispers rippled through the growing crowd of onlookers, but no one dared intervene. The looks in the Alphas’ eyes were murderous.

Annie fell to her knees before Liam, tears streaming down her face, smearing her mascara.

“Please, Liam. I love you. I... I just love you too much. I was just so hurt when you left me for... for her.” She clutched at his pants leg. “Give me another chance. I’ll do anything!”

Liam looked down at her with cold detachment.

“You tried to kill my mate.” He shook her off like she was nothing more than dirt on his shoe. “You’re lucky we’re showing mercy by only banishing you. If it were up to me alone, especially after seeing what Hazel went through, you’re lucky to even be alive.”

The deadly look in his eyes made Annie shrink back.

“You can’t do this,” Mia protested, looking desperately around the mall as if searching for an ally. “My family has been part of Emberfang for generations!”

“Should have thought about that before you poisoned our mate,” Lucas replied evenly. He nodded to someone behind them.

Four warriors from the Emberfang Pack emerged from the crowd, moving with purposeful strides to flank Annie and Mia.

“Your belongings will be packed and delivered to the pack borders by nightfall,” Lucas continued. “You are forbidden from entering Emberfang territory ever again. If either of you attempts to return or contact anyone within our pack, you will be treated as an invading rogue. Is that understood?”

Annie scrambled to her feet. “You can’t be serious! Where am I supposed to go? What about my family? My friends?”

“You should have considered those questions before attempting to murder Hazel,” Liam said coldly. “Your families have been informed of your crimes and your banishment.”

“No,” Annie whispered, fresh tears welling in her eyes. “My parents wouldn’t abandon me.” She sharply looked up. “Where’s my dad? I demand to speak to him!”

Lucas’s expression didn’t soften.

Samuel Williams had been a prominent member of the pack for decades, working closely with the previous Alpha. But that high rank was not going to do Annie any favors.

Mia grabbed Annie’s arm, her face contorted with rage.

“This is your fault! You and your pathetic obsession with Liam! I told you to let it go, but you wouldn’t listen!” She shoved Annie hard. “Now we’re rogues because you couldn’t accept being dumped!”

Annie stumbled, then launched herself at Mia with a scream. “You lying snake! It was your idea! You hated Hazel just as much as I did!”

“At least I knew that the Sullivan brothers moved on quickly!” Mia yelled back. She yanked at Annie’s hair and the latter screamed in pain. “You should’ve been prepared for the day they would dump your sorry ass!”

“I am going to kill you!”

The warriors moved quickly, separating the fighting she-wolves before they could do more harm. By the time they were pulled apart, their hairstyles were a mess, their outfits ruined, and their faces were littered with red cuts and bruises.

“Enough!” Lucas commanded, his Alpha voice making everyone in the vicinity flinch. “You’ve disgraced yourselves and your families enough for one day.”

“Your possessions will be at the eastern border at sunset,” Liam added. “I suggest you start walking now. You’re no longer welcome to use pack transportation.”

Annie’s mascara-streaked face crumpled. “Liam, please. We had something special. Don’t throw me away for her. She’s nothing—a servant, an orphan. I’m from a respected family. I can give you status, connections—”

“I am the Alpha,” Liam cut her off. “I don’t need your connections.”

“Take them away,” Lucas ordered the warriors. “Escort them to the border and make sure they leave.”

As the warriors gripped Annie’s and Mia’s arms, Annie made one last desperate attempt. “What about my car? My clothes? My life is in Emberfang!”

“You forfeited that life when you decided to harm our mate,” Lucas replied without emotion. “Be grateful we’re allowing you to take anything at all.”

The warriors began to lead the sobbing girls away. The crowd of shoppers parted for them, phones still recording every humiliating moment of their banishment.

“This isn’t over!” Annie shrieked over her shoulder, mascara streaking her flushed cheeks. “You can’t treat me like this! My father will—”

Just as the warriors were about to escort the disgraced she-wolves out of the mall, the crowd parted again. A figure pushed through, stopping directly in the brothers’ path.

“What is going on?!” a familiar voice demanded.