Offered to the Triplet Alphas

[Raven]

"Enroll her?" Ezra winced.

"Yes," I said firmly.

Ezra's lip curled in a sneer as he casually leaned back against Asher's bike, a smirk playing at the corners of his mouth.

"Enroll her to be a healer?" He chuckled; his words sharp with sarcasm. "What's next, finding her a fairy godhusband?" His voice tinged with bitterness and disdain. "She can find a lot of hook ups in Helxton and then you can choose who fucks her better..."

"Ezra!" A growl tore through me. I glared at him; my jaw clenched with frustration. "I don't have time for your nonsense-"

"And I don't have time for 'your' nonsense!" He snapped, the fake smile faltering into a scowl.

"Ezra..."

"No," Ezra declared in an authoritative tone. "I will not allow it."

I wasn't expecting him to, anyway. Pulling up the sleeves of my shirt, I let out a sigh.

He remained silent for a while, and then he slid his hands into his pockets.

"Like all other brides that came before her, she'll stay in the castle like a good bride. Throughout the week, she'll obediently prepare herself for the sex nights, awaiting to pleasure her husbands. She'll dutifully adorn herself like a beautiful little toy she is. And when the night comes, she'll entertain us until she becomes pregnant. That's her role as our breeder and she will 'not' stray from it."

"Her education will not affect her role as our breeder."

"Tell this rubbish to someone else, Raven. Work life balance is bullshit! A woman's education and her career affect her life in all aspects. From her body to her mind. She needs to have a sound body and mind to bear children. You'd know it better than me. It's a man's job to provide for a woman, and I think the three of us are more than capable of providing her with whatever the fuck she needs. So, why do you suddenly want her to become a healer?"

"I don't want her to have a healer's career. She'll not work! I just want her to have a healer's license. She has an eidetic memory. And that's something that will be extremely useful in my research. If things work out, she can change the entire course of our pursuit."

Ezra chuckled wryly.

"Really? You think I give a damn about your fucking research which... let's be real, we all know, is a failure through and through?"

I clenched my fists, holding myself back from punching him in his damn mouth.

"Moreover, what you're saying is not sanely possible. You want to enroll her in the healer's programme, which is a six years' long course. Even if she tried through the fast course, she'll at least need three years. That is, if she gets a good healing partner. I might not know much about your med and shit, but I know how courses work in Helxton. Its technology branch is mine, after all."

Ezra looked at Xanthea who stood with her gaze held low. Her heart was ravaging in her chest so loudly I could hear her beats scream.

"She doesn't have that kind of time in her hands," Ezra said, his eyes darkening.

"I know her potential, Ezra. I've tested her myself and I can tell you for sure that she has it in herself to get the healer's license within a year," I said.

"Potential? I know one when I see it and I see no potential in her. All she is going to do is get herself unhealthy attention from the other demons and cause trouble for us. That's the only potential her body holds. Once she is out in the wild, there will be no way to keep a check on her interaction with the other men-"

"No one would dare lay an eye on her. Or are you questioning the power of our soul pact?" I grunted, closing in on him.

"She is not going. End of conversation. No matter what you say, she is not entering that fucking healer's shit. Asher, decide!" Ezra looked at Asher.

I turned around to face Asher.

Now everything depended on him.

A mixture of anticipation and fear wafted through Xanthea's restless eyes as she looked at Asher and then dropped her gaze.

She fidgeted with her fingers, nibbling her lips uneasily. Her chest rose and fell, matching the rapid beat of her heart, as she anxiously awaited Asher's decision.

Asher looked at her with an expressionless face and then at me.

I couldn't tell what was going on behind his stoic demeanor. It was never easy to read Asher and predicting him was even more difficult.

"Xanthea..." he called out to her in a soft tone.

She stiffened her body as she hesitantly lifted her eyelids and looked into Asher's eyes.

"What do you have to say about this? Do you want to become a healer?" he asked.

Her eyelids fluttered weakly as she drew in her brows. With a tight gulp, she looked at me with uncertain eyes.

I maintained eye contact with her until she averted her gaze.

"Xanthea, do you want to take this course?" Asher reiterated, raising his voice slightly. "This course won't be easy. Six years of knowledge in one year. As you can imagine, the mental pressure on you will be extreme. And, as I can see, Raven has high expectations of you. And if you fail to meet them, you will face consequences, mentally."

I frowned.

So now he was trying to manipulate her into rejecting this opportunity herself by making me the villain.

00000

Fucker!

"Not just that, you'll be exposed to a cruel world of life and death where someone's death could mean someone's life and the choice of whom to kill and whom to save will be in your hands. This is not your earthly realm. Because healing within immortals, as I have known, is not for the fainthearted. Even if you don't practice as a healer after you get the license, you'll still have to do practicals like the other students on living subjects during the course. You'll have to take lives in your hands and play with them in that process."

Xanthea drew in a shuddering breath, horror spreading across her face at Asher's words.

"Asher! Stop scaring her!" I snarled, walking closer to them.

"Am I wrong, Raven?" Asher challenged, meeting my eyes evenly. "You have known this world of healing better. Tell me, if I am wrong."

I parted my lips to speak, but held back my words. He wasn't wrong, but...

"Not just mentally, she'll suffer emotionally, morally. I need to make sure she knows what 'you' want her to get into-"

"She has already seen what she'll get into. Do you think I took her to Helxton for a picnic? I do not waste my time, Asher. I invest my time and I think she'll be a worthy investment."

"That's exactly the pressure I am talking about, Raven," Asher growled in an impassive tone as he squared up. "Even with your support, she'll have to face this world all by herself. If she isn't prepared for the course, then I will not allow you to force it on her."

My face tightened with rage.

"Stop playing these mind games with her, Asher. You are trying too hard to maintain this facade of a good man."

"I'm merely stating facts."

Asher looked deadpan into my eyes.

I nodded, sidestepped and walked past Asher as I stood facing Xanthea. She looked terrified, bewildered, a mess of emotions.

"This is your last chance, Xanthea. Today, either your fears win or your dreams. You'll have to choose one of them." I raised my voice. "Speak up like you did before. Say what's on your mind, unfiltered." I grabbed her upper arms and pulled her closer, holding her gaze. "You don't have to choose us, but today, I want you to choose yourself."

Tears flushed in her eyes. She looked at me, breathing heavily through her mouth.

Asher held my hands and pushed me away from her.

"I agree. I don't have the noblest motive behind doing this. In fact, what I am doing is completely selfish. I want to use you for-"

"Stop it!" Asher commanded, standing between us. "She has heard enough-"