Rejected by Her Mate Claimed by Four Alphas novel Chapter 173

CHAPTER 157-1

Alpha Darius’s POV

The past three days had been the longest of my life. Every minute without her felt like an hour, every hour felt like a day. I’d thrown every resource I had into finding her, called in favors from other Alphas, sent out

search teams in every direction.

All of it had been useless.

The trail went cold at our border. Whoever had taken her had been smart about covering their tracks. My

best trackers had found nothing useful, no scent trail to follow, no clues about which direction they’d

gone.

It was like Clara had simply vanished into thin air.

Killian, Lucien, and Ronan had arrived yesterday with their own tracking teams. They’d spent hours going over the same ground my people had already covered, looking for anything we might have missed. Their

wolves were some of the best trackers in the region.

They’d found nothing either.

“We’ll keep looking,” Killian had promised before they’d spread out to search neighboring territories. “We

won’t stop until we find her.”

But with each passing hour, each failed search, the hollow ache in my chest grew worse. It felt like someone was slowly carving out my heart with a dull knife.

I tried to focus on pack business, tried to keep everything running smoothly while my personal world fell apart. But it was getting harder every day. The simplest decisions felt impossible when all I could think

about was Clara.

My body was breaking down from the stress and lack of sleep. I hadn’t had a full meal since Clara disappeared, couldn’t stomach the thought of food when she might be hungry somewhere, when she

might be hurt or scared.

As the minutes passed without her, I felt like I was slowly dying.

A knock at my door interrupted my thoughts around midday.

“What?” I called out, not bothering to hide my irritation.

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“Alpha, I brought your lunch,” Xander’s voice came through the door. There was a careful quality to his

tone, like he was trying not to provoke me.

“I’m not hungry.”

“You need to eat something. You haven’t had a proper meal in days.”

I could hear the tray being set down outside my door, could smell the aroma of roasted meat and

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vegetables. My stomach cramped with hunger, but I ignored it.

I said I’m not hungry,” I repeated, my voice getting sharper.

There was silence for a moment, then I heard Xander’s quiet sigh through the door.

“She wouldn’t want you to starve yourself,” he said softly.

+25 Points

The words hit me like a physical blow. Clara would be furious if she knew I wasn’t taking care of myself. She’d lecture me about setting a good example for the pack, about keeping my strength up.

But she wasn’t here to lecture me.

“Just leave it outside the door,” I said finally.

I heard his footsteps moving away, but I made no move to retrieve the food. I’d vowed not to eat until

Clara was found, and I meant it. Food felt like a betrayal when she might be suffering.

Two hours later, there was another knock.

“The food’s getting cold,” Xander said through the door.

“Then throw it away.”

“Darius, please. Just a few bites.”

“Go away, Xander.”

Another sigh, then silence. But I knew he hadn’t left. I could sense him standing outside my door, probably debating whether to force his way in.

“I’m not moving from this spot until you eat something,” he said finally.

“Then you’ll be standing there for a long time.”

“So be it.”

True to his word, Xander remained outside my door. I could hear him shifting occasionally, could smell his scent lingering in the hallway. After an hour, I heard him slide down the wall to sit on the floor.

The stubborn bastard was serious about not leaving.

Evening came, and I heard the sound of another tray being delivered. Xander must have called for dinner

to be brought up.

“Fresh soup,” he announced through the door. “Clara’s favorite recipe.”

The mention of her name and her favorite food was like a knife to the chest. I pressed my face into my hands, trying to block out the memory of her sitting across from me at dinner, smiling as she tasted the

chef’s latest creation.

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+25 Points

CHAPTER 157-2

“That’s not fair,” I said.

“I’m not trying to be fair,” Xander replied. “I’m trying to keep you alive.”

“I don’t want to be alive without her.”

The honesty of the statement surprised even me. But it was true. Every breath without Clara felt wrong, every heartbeat felt pointless. The world had lost all its color when she disappeared.

“She’s counting on you to find her,” Xander said quietly. “How can you do that if you’re too weak to stand?”

I wanted to argue with him, but I couldn’t find the energy. The hunger was making me lightheaded, making it hard to concentrate on the search plans spread across my desk.

But eating felt like giving up, like admitting that this might be permanent.

“Just leave me alone,” I said finally.

I heard him stand up, heard the tray being lifted from the floor.

“I’ll be back in a few hours,” he said. “This isn’t over.”

As the evening wore on, I tried to focus on the maps and reports covering my desk. Search patterns, territory boundaries, potential hiding spots. But the words blurred together, my exhaustion making it

impossible to think clearly.

Around midnight, Xander made one final attempt.

“Alpha, I brought some tea. Something light,” his voice came through the door, persistent as always.

I could hear the clink of porcelain as he set down what was probably a cup and saucer. The man never

gave up.

“You need to at least drink something,” he continued. “You’re going to collapse if you keep this up.”

“Get out,” I shouted, my patience finally snapping completely. I grabbed the first thing I Could reach, a heavy paperweight from my desk. “Don’t come back unless you’re bringing me Clara.”

The paperweight flew through the air, hitting the door with a loud crash that echoed through the hallway

“Darius, please,” Xander said, his voice closer to the door now. “She wouldn’t want this. Clara wouldn’t

want you destroying yourself.”

“Don’t you dare tell me what she would want,” I roared, standing up so fast my chair toppled backward.

“You don’t know her like I do. You don’t understand what she means to me.”

“I know she loves you,” Xander said firmly. “And I know she’d be heartbroken to see you like this.”

“Then bring her back to me,” I snarled, grabbing another object from my desk A picture frame this time, one that held a photo of Clara laughing “Bring her back or get the hell away from my door.”

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hurled the frame at the door, and the sound of breaking glass mixed with the crash of wood.

“Alpha,” Xander said, his voice urgent now. “You need to listen to me.”

“I need you to leave me alone,” I shouted back.

But even as the words left my mouth, I could hear something else. Noise from outside, distant but

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