Rejected by Her Mate Claimed by Four Alphas novel Chapter 137

CHAPTER 121

Alpha Jaden’s POV

“Have you eaten today?” I asked gently.

She shrugged. “I’m not hungry.”

“You need to eat something.”

“Why?” Her eyes focused on me with more clarity than I’d seen in days. “What’s the point of taking care of myself? Our baby is dead. Dead because I was too weak to deliver him properly.”

“Liania, we’ve talked about this. The complications weren’t your fault.”

“Weren’t they?” She laughed, but there was no humor in it. “I insisted on natural birth when the doctors said surgery was safer. I put my pride above our child’s life.”

I wanted to argue with her, to offer comfort, but the truth was that her words echoed thoughts I’d been having myself. If she’d listened to medical advice, if I’d been stronger and overridden her decision, would our son still be alive?

“You should rest,” I said instead.

She nodded and shuffled away, leaving me alone with my guilt and regret.

This was the woman I’d chosen over Clara. This broken, barely functional version of someone who used to shine with confidence and ambition. I’d rejected my true mate, a warrior who could apparently hold her own against the most powerful alphas in the region, for someone who couldn’t even get dressed in the morning.

The comparison was destroying me.

I thought about Clara constantly now. Wondered what she’d become under Darius’s guidance. Wondered if she ever thought about me, about what we’d had before everything went wrong.

Probably not. If the reports were accurate, she was too busy being courted by alphas who actually recognized her worth.

I pulled out my phone and scrolled through old photos, finding one from early in our relationship. Clara in her training gear, sweaty and smiling after a particularly intense session. She looked fierce, alive, completely in her element.

When had I stopped appreciating that fire? When had I started seeing her strength as a threat instead of an asset?

A knock at my door interrupted my brooding. “Come in.”

Derek, one of my senior guards, stepped into the office. “Alpha? You wanted to see me?”

I had called for him an hour ago, then forgotten in my distraction. Now, looking at him, an idea began

CHAPTER 1

forming in my mind. A desperate, probably stupid idea, but an idea nonetheless.

“Derek, I have a task for you. A delicate one.”

“Of course, Alpha. What do you need?”

+25 Points

I hesitated. What I was about to ask went against every rule of pack protocol, every principle of inter–pack relations. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that I needed to see Clara again, needed to speak with her.

“I need you to deliver a message to someone in Darius Kincaid’s territory.”

Derek raised an eyebrow. “Alpha Darius? Should I coordinate with his beta first?”

“No. This is… unofficial. Personal.”

“Personal?” Derek looked confused. “Alpha, I’m not sure I understand.”

“There’s someone in his pack that I need to speak with. Someone who used to be part of our pack.” Understanding dawned in Derek’s eyes, followed quickly by shock. “Alpha, you don’t mean…”

“Clara Ashburn,” I said firmly. “I need you to find her and ask her to meet with me.”

Derek stared at me like I’d lost my mind. “Alpha, with all due respect, Clara Ashburn is dead. She died months ago crossing pack borders.”

“She’s not dead.” The words came out harsher than I intended. “She’s alive, and she’s with Darius Kincaid.” “But the reports-”

“The reports were wrong.” I stood up and began pacing behind my desk. “She’s alive, Derek. I have reliable intelligence confirming it.”

Derek was quiet for a long moment, processing this information. “Even if that’s true, Alpha, approaching another alpha’s mate is extremely dangerous. Alpha Darius is known for his… protective nature.”

“I’m aware of the risks.”

“Are you?” Derek stepped closer to my desk. “Because from what I know of Alpha Darius Kincaid, he doesn’t just kill people who threaten what’s his. He makes examples of them.”

I thought about the spy I’d sent months ago. The one who’d called to report Clara’s death before his own mutilated body had been returned to our territory. A clear message about what happened to those who crossed the warlord.

“I’ll take that risk,” I said.

“Alpha, I really think you should reconsider this. Maybe speak with your council first, or-”

“I’m not asking for your opinion!” I snapped, my control finally breaking. “I’m giving you an order!”

Derek jerked back, startled by my outburst. In the silence that followed, I could hear my own ragged breathing, could feel the weight of weeks of grief and regret and desperate confusion.

CHAPTER 12.

+25 Points?

“You will find Clara Ashburn,” I continued, my voice deadly quiet now. “You will tell her that I want to meet with her. Alone. She needs to come to the Shadowcrest pack to see me.”

“Alpha, please-”

“You will do this, Derek. Today Or you’ll find yourself looking for a new pack to serve.”

The threat hung in the air between us. Derek’s face went pale as he realized I was completely serious.

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