Murder, Juggling, and Dishwashing
SCARLETT
“That is a lot of dishes,” I sighed, staring at the mountain of plates, bowls, cups, and trays stacked beside the outdoor washing station.
It was evening now. The river trial had been the last activity of the day, and the camp kitchen had apparently decided to feed almost a hundred hungry shifters like it was their last meal. The pile looked like it could reach the moon.
“How many plates does one person need?” I groaned. “Did they use a new one for every single bite?”
Lily laughed, rolling up her sleeves with zero hesitation. “Welcome to camp life, princess. Come on, the faster we finish, the faster we can sleep.” She bent down, grabbed a sponge, and started scrubbing like a pro.
I was about to join her when Kaiden appeared beside us, crouching gracefully. “Room for one more?” he asked quietly, picking up a stack of greasy trays without waiting for an answer.
Saint followed right after, still quiet and a little shy after everything that happened in the tent and silently started passing dirty dishes to Lily and me, organizing them neatly like it was the most important job in the world.
Rhys and Kane, however, just stood there.
Kane had his arms crossed, lip curled in pure disgust. Rhys looked like someone had asked him to lick the floor. His golden eyes narrowed at the soapy water like it had personally offended him.
I planted my hands on my hips. “Why are you two just standing there? This punishment is for all of us.”
Kane smirked. “I’m supervising, love. Quality control.”
Rhys tilted his head, expression calm but horrified. “I would rather cut my own arm off than touch that.”
I narrowed my eyes at them. “Then maybe you both should have behaved. It’s only the first day of a three-day retreat and we’re already losing points because of you psychos.”
Kane grinned wider. “Worth it. Got to throw you around, kill a river monster, and taste your…”
“Finish that sentence and I’ll drown you in dishwater,” I snapped.
Lily shook her head, smiling as she scrubbed faster. “Come on, Scar. Let’s just hurry up before they start throwing things.”
I glanced at her hands moving in quick, efficient circles. She was washing like she’d done this a thousand times. “You seem really good at this,” I said softly.
Lily smiled, a little sad around the edges.
“Well… I did all the work back at my uncle’s estate. My cousins would rather die than do ‘menial chores.’” She shrugged like it was nothing, but I caught the flicker in her eyes.
Lily was always secretive about her home life.
I knew her uncle wasn’t a good person, but this was the first time she’d mentioned cousins or an estate.
I nodded, not pushing. I knew she’d tell me more when she was ready.
Then, from the corner of my eye, I saw Kane casually pick up a plate and throw it toward Rhys.
Rhys caught it one-handed without even looking, rinsed it under the running water with elegant flicks of his wrist, and dropped it onto the clean stack.
I blinked. “What are you doing throwing the dishes?!”
Rhys smiled that serene, terrifying smile. “What does it look like, darling? Helping, of course.”
Before I could protest, he picked up three glass dishes, juggled them once with effortless grace, then tossed them in a smooth arc toward Kane. Kane caught two in his hands and the third in his mouth, balancing it on his teeth like a circus act before spinning and rinsing all three at once.
My jaw dropped.
Lily paused mid-scrub. “Wowwww…”
Kane winked at her. “We don’t do boring, sweetheart.”
Kane threw another plate high in the air.
Rhys spun, caught it behind his back, rinsed it mid-twirl, and sent it flying back.
They turned the entire punishment into a ridiculous, show-off competition, plates spinning, glasses juggling, Kane catching things with his teeth while laughing like a maniac.
Saint quietly kept passing us dishes, but even he had a tiny, proud smile on his face as he watched his pack turn punishment into performance.
I threw my sponge at Kane’s head. It bounced off his chest with a wet slap. “You two are such children!”
Rhys caught another plate mid-air, rinsed it with a flourish, and set it down perfectly. “You wanted us to help, little one. Be specific next time.”
Kane threw a bowl high, spun dramatically, and caught it behind his back before rinsing it. “See? Teamwork.”
Lily was laughing so hard she had to lean on the sink. “I can’t believe I’m jealous of dish duty right now.”
I shook my head, fighting my own smile as the ridiculous mountain of dishes slowly shrank under their circus performance.
Kaiden, who had been quietly washing beside me the whole time, leaned closer and muttered, “You know, for three of the most feared Alphas in the academy, they’re surprisingly good at looking like clowns when they want to.”
I snorted. Lily burst out laughing again.
“They’re very talented,” I whispered back, glancing at the Triumvirate. “Multi-talented, actually. Murder, juggling, psychological torture, *and* dishwashing.”
Kaiden’s hazel eyes sparkled with amusement. “Just wait until they start throwing knives instead of plates. That’s when you’ll know they’re feeling romantic.”
I was giggling so hard my shoulders shook. “Stop, they’ll hear you…”
Suddenly a big hand smacked the back of Kaiden’s head, not hard enough to hurt, but loud enough to echo.
“What the fuck is pretty boy saying about us?” Kane growled, looming over him with a fake scowl.
Kaiden didn’t even flinch. He simply raised his middle finger right in Kane’s face without looking up from the tray he was scrubbing.
Kane blinked. “Did you just… flip me off?”
“Yep,” Kaiden said calmly.
I stiffened, ready for chaos, but Kane just stared for a second… then threw his head back and laughed like a maniac.
“Cheeky little shit,” he muttered, ruffling Kaiden’s hair roughly before walking away.
Saint quietly passed me another clean plate, the corner of his mouth twitching like he was trying not to smile.
We finally finished the last of the dishes twenty minutes later. My hands were pruned, but the station was spotless.
“Good job, everyone,” I said, wiping my hands on my gown. “Even you two clowns.”
Kane bowed dramatically. Rhys gave a tiny, elegant nod like he’d just won a war.
Professor Ryan’s voice carried across the clearing. “Everyone gather round!”
We all moved toward the central fire pit.
Ryan stood with the other instructors, looking far too pleased with himself.
“Due to today’s… events,” he said, glancing pointedly at our group, “there will be no dinner provided this evening.”
Murmurs erupted immediately.
Ryan raised his hand for silence. “You will find your own dinner tonight. You are expected to shift into your wolf forms, hunt any animal you find in the woods, kill it, and eat it raw. This is part of survival training.”
The murmurs turned louder. Some students looked excited. Others looked horrified.
I stiffened.
Raw?
I couldn’t shift.
Lily turned to me immediately, worry etched on her face. “Scar… what are you going to do?”
Around us, students were already stripping clothes or shifting on the spot. Bones cracked. Fur rippled. Howls echoed into the trees as wolves of all sizes shook out their coats and disappeared into the woods.
I swallowed hard, panic rising in my chest.
Before I could answer, three massive presences appeared behind me.
Kane’s arm slid around my waist possessively. “Don’t worry, love. We’ll hunt for you.”
Rhys stepped closer, golden eyes calm but intense. “You’re not hunting alone. Ever.”
Saint pressed against my other side, already shirtless, gently nuzzling the top of my head. “We’ll bring you the best parts.”
I stared at them, equal parts touched and horrified. “You can’t just…”
Kane leaned down, lips brushing my ear. “Watch us, love. Tonight you’re dining on whatever the fuck you want, and we’re serving it to you on a silver platter… or between our teeth.”
I looked up at the three of them, completely fixated on me and felt my heart do a stupid little flip.