Reclaimed By My Alpha (Natalia and Andrei) novel Chapter 225

Chapter 225

I curled my lip back, slightly tightening my grip on Lilith’s throat. Her feet scrabbled beneath me, mouth opening but no sound coming out. One more push. One more push and I would feel the satisfying crunch of her tracheal crumpling beneath my hands.

Goddess, I wanted that so badly.

But Andrei was right. Killing her wouldn’t heal Max’s lungs or erase tra

d experienced.

ing to her side as she

So I released my grip and stood up, my hands shaking. Lilith gasped and cough struggled to draw in a lungful of air. Red marks were already ringing her throat. I clenched my jawa, I stared at that rapidly worsening line, wishing it could be tattooed permanently on her skin.

“Get out,” Andrei said to her. “Now.”

Lilith scrambled to her feet and ran from the kitchen without looking back.

For a long moment, I stood there staring at my hands. The rage was still there, burning in my chest, but now it was mixed with something else….

Shame.

I wasn’t a violent person. I’d never put my hands on someone purely out of anger before, not even during my worst moments. But seeing Lilith, knowing what she’d done to Max…

“I wanted to kill her,” I whispered.

“I know.” Andrei stepped closer, his hand settling on my shoulder. “So did I. Still do, if I’m being honest.”

I looked up at him, searching his face for any sign that he thought less of me for what I’d almost done.

Instead, I found only understanding.

“She hurt our son,” he said quietly. “Any parent would feel the same way. But killing her would just bring more trouble. We need to focus on what’s happening now. Not on the past, but the present. On Max.”

He was right, of course. Although that didn’t make the rage go away.

“Elena mentioned that fresh air might be good for Max’s recovery,” he said then, although I had a feeling that I was really the one he wanted to get out into the fresh air instead. “What do you think about taking the twins outside for a while? As you well know, the gardens here are beautiful this time of year.”

I glanced over at the half–finished breakfast. Having suddenly lost my appetite, I nodded and let Andrei lead me

away.

An hour later, we were sitting on a blanket in the gardens behind the pack house. Max was propped against a pile of pillows, having finally woken up but just barely. He seemed to be struggling to keep his eyes open. Jane was calmly picking wildflowers and weaving them into a crown.

Being out here, in the place where I’d once lived, filled me with an unexpected mix of emotions. I remembered

Walking these same paths during the early days of our marriage, feeling lonely and out of place. The pack house

had felt like a beautiful prison then, a place where I was supposed to be happy but couldn’t quite figure out how to make that happen.

But watching Jane explore the gardens, seeing Max’s face light up just a little bit when his sister came over to place the crown she’d made on his dark hair, felt different. Like we were filling the space with new memories.

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Chapter 225

Better ones, despite everything.

+25 Bonus

“The twins seem to like it here,” Andrei said, noticing how I was wistfully picking at a blade of grass.

“They do.” I watched Jane skip around the garden in search of pretty rocks to collect while Max was now touching good for them to see where his crown and smiling faintly–still half–asleep, but breathing much better they come from.”

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