Olivia's POV
Night had fallen over the Alpha's castle, and with it came a silence heavier than the stone walls themselves. The echo of polished floors, distant footsteps, and flickering torches were the only sounds accompanying Olivia as she moved through the grand halls. She had spent the entire day cleaning, dusting, and arranging the decorations for the coming celebration. The castle was alive with the flurry of servants preparing for Mal's eighteenth birthday. Banners of silk, golden streamers, and carved silver lanterns lined the walls. Musicians had already begun tuning their instruments, and the aroma of spiced cakes and roasted meats seeped through the corridors.
Olivia paused for a moment in the grand hall, inhaling the scent. A bitter smile tugged at her lips. Mal's birthday. Once, she would have been excited, waiting for the perfect gift, practicing her smile, and hoping to see the joy in her best friend's eyes. But that girl, the one who had once shared every secret and every dream with her, had long since abandoned that bond. Now, the celebration meant only one thing—reminders of loss, betrayal, and her mother locked away.
As she straightened a golden-framed portrait along the wall, a group of workers approached, carrying a large frame. Olivia froze. It was her own image—captured years ago in a photograph that now hung in the hall for the grand celebration. She blinked, unsure whether to feel humiliated or… honored. But no matter. Her face, her expression, had become a mask she wore for survival, just as her silence had.
The night deepened. Shadows swallowed the corners of the hall, and the soft whisper of the wind outside made the castle feel endless. Olivia had just set down her bucket and rag, ready to return to her small, sparse quarters, when a sound made her stop.
A low moan, sharp and desperate, echoed from somewhere above. Her pulse quickened. In the Alpha's castle, such noises at this hour were forbidden. Who would dare make themselves heard like that in the dead of night?
Curiosity, reckless and burning, propelled her forward. She moved silently, a shadow among shadows, weaving past guards with practiced ease. Every step was careful, every heartbeat a drum warning her of danger. She climbed the staircases she had been told never to tread, entering a wing reserved strictly for the Alpha's sons.
And then she saw it.
Levi.
Her breath caught. He was with a maid—a young, trembling girl who clung to him as though her life depended on it. Olivia froze, her hand gripping the railing so tightly her knuckles turned white. Levi's movements were relentless, merciless, and the sound of their intimacy cut through the hall like a whip. Her stomach churned with shock. The Alpha's son… one of the feared triplets… sleeping with a common maid. It was unthinkable.
For a heartbeat, Olivia considered retreating. She could vanish quietly, remain unseen. But as she turned, Levi's voice cut through the air.
"Who's there?"
Her heart nearly stopped. Panic surged, primal and immediate. Without thinking, she fled—darting into the shadows, hiding behind an ornate tapestry. Levi's footsteps pounded as he searched, calling out, sniffing, sensing.
"I know you're here somewhere!" he shouted. "Show yourself!"
Olivia held her breath, silent, every nerve screaming, every pulse a warning. He prowled the room, eyes sharp, ears attuned, but he could not find her. Eventually, his frustrated growl faded as he stormed off, leaving her trembling yet alive.
Her escape route was blocked for just a second longer—then, suddenly, she collided with someone. Strong, steady, immovable.
Lex.
Time slowed. His brown eyes met hers, unblinking, filled with an intensity that made her knees weak. Their shared history—the punishments, the fear, the unspoken tension—hung in the air between them like electricity. For a moment, the world narrowed to the space that separated them, to the heat in the room, to the pull of everything unsaid.
"I… I'm sorry, my lord," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I was just heading down."
Lex's expression softened. "No need to apologize. I should be the one asking… what are you doing here at this hour?"
She hesitated. The truth—the stairs, the forbidden wing, Levi—hung on the tip of her tongue. She swallowed it down, gave only a small shrug.
"You know… you shouldn't be up there," Lex murmured, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips.
"And if I do?" she replied, her voice cool, challenging.
He chuckled, low and amused, the kind of sound that made her chest tighten. "Then you should get going… before my brothers or Mal sees you."
She nodded, murmuring, "Yes… my lord."
"Come on. Don't call me that," Lex said, stepping closer.
Olivia tilted her head, feigning innocence, though her pulse raced. "But that's what you are, my lord," she said lightly.
"You are right… my lady," he replied, a playful sparkle in his eyes.
A small smile ghosted across her lips, fleeting and fragile. But then reality crashed back—the memory of her mother, the absence of her father, the injustice that had defined her life. She frowned, bitterness curling inside her.
"Don't call me that," she said firmly, before turning away and walking down the corridor.
Lex watched her retreating figure, a question in his gaze. She had smiled… and then hardened again. Olivia had changed. She wasn't the same girl who once clung to his hand in the courtyard. The fire in her eyes was sharper, colder, more dangerous.
And elsewhere, Mal watched from the shadows, hidden but attentive. Every word, every gesture was recorded in her mind. Her pulse quickened, her jealousy flaring, but not in the way it had before.
Fear.
Mal's thoughts twisted. He still loves her. Mother was right. She's dangerous. She's a problem. And I know exactly how to handle her.