Claimed by My Bully Alpha Chapter 417

Aurora’s P.O.V

I spotted Caleb standing right outside the infirmary door, his arms folded and his jaw set tight, just like I had told him to do earlier. The moment I got closer, he glanced at me, a silent acknowledgment passing between us before he turned his head toward the others gathered around.

“No one goes in,” he said firmly, his voice low but commanding enough to stop everyone in their tracks. “You can see him from here, but you don’t go near him. That’s final.”

Maggie’s face twisted almost instantly, her lips parting as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “But, Caleb—” she started, stepping forward.

He didn’t budge, not even a fraction. “Maggie, no.”

She opened her mouth again, clearly about to argue, when Ashton stepped in, his tone calm but edged with that quiet warning he always carried.

“You promised,” he reminded her, his gaze locking with hers. “You said you’d keep away.”

Maggie froze, her jaw tightening. I could see her battling herself inside, wanting to fight him on it but knowing she had no ground to stand on. She swallowed hard, then gave a small, reluctant nod.

“Fine,” she muttered under her breath.

With that, we all moved into the room, and I silently thanked Alice for thinking ahead—Jade was enclosed in a sealed glass tube, the kind you couldn’t get through even if you wanted to. The moment my eyes landed on him, my chest tightened. Even from here, those burn-like patches of deep red and black on his skin were still there, crawling along his arms and neck like some cruel mark.

Maggie’s hands flew to her mouth, a sharp gasp escaping before her knees buckled, and she fell to the floor with a thud.

“Oh my god…” her voice cracked, the words trembling out of her. “How… how could this happen to him?”

She clutched the edge of the wall as if the room was spinning, tears already streaming down her cheeks.

“He was fine… he was—he was fine…” she kept whispering, shaking her head.

Ashton took a step closer, his voice softer now but still steady. “He’s still here, Maggie. He’s still breathing.”

“That’s not him,” she shot back, her voice breaking as she pointed toward Jade in the tube. “That’s not my Jade. Not like this…”

No one said anything for a moment. Even Caleb’s usual coolness faltered as he lowered his gaze, the air between us heavy with things we didn’t dare speak aloud. I knew I owed him an explanation, but I was glad that he was helping me now without asking questions, even though he couldn’t even look at Jade.

I stood there, my arms crossed tightly over my chest, watching as Alice finally stepped forward, her expression serious enough to quiet the entire room.

“He was found unconscious in the forest,” she said, her voice low but cutting through the tense silence after Ashton managed to silence Maggie’s hysteria. “The patrol guards brought him here as soon as they found him, but we don’t know yet what caused it.”

I swallowed nervously, feeling the weight of her words settle like cold stones in my stomach, because I knew that it was a well planned lie. But she didn’t stop there—her gaze shifted to me, then Caleb.

“Aside from the… skin condition, Jade is severely dehydrated and malnourished.”

I frowned hard, my throat tightening. “What? That’s… that’s impossible,” I blurted out, glancing quickly at Caleb who looked just as stunned. “We thought he was getting his regular meals. I mean, how can that even happen? He came to the cafeteria every single day!”

Caleb stepped forward, his voice rough with disbelief. “Yeah, someone has been making sure he’s fed, right? I mean…I saw him eating his meals, sometimes going for seconds…or even thirds. We all thought he was probably stressed about something, but malnutrition? H-how in hell is he malnourished?”

Alice shook her head slowly, clearly frustrated. “Something serious is going on,” she said firmly, looking at Maggie and Ashton through her lashes, before she let out a sigh. “And until we figure it out, he needs to stay here for observation.”

There was a pause, one of those sharp, suffocating ones where no one quite knows how to breathe—when suddenly, Maggie pushed herself off of the floor where she had been sprawled until now, her posture suddenly rigid. Before I could even ask what she was doing, she marched straight up to Ashton and, without a single word, slapped him across the face so hard the sound cracked through the room, echoing off the walls.

I felt my mouth fall open in shock as Ashton’s head jerked to the side, his hand flying up to his cheek. “Maggie, have you lost your damn mind?!” he barked, his voice a mix of shock and anger.

Her hands were trembling now, her face red and tear-streaked, but she didn’t back down. “This is your fault!” she screamed, her voice breaking with something raw. “You told me Jade would be safe! You swore to me, Ashton!”

I felt my heart jump into my throat as Maggie suddenly lunged at him, her hands curling into fists like she was ready to tear him apart. “Maggie, stop!” I shouted, but she didn’t hear me.

Ashton caught her wrists mid-swing, his jaw tightening. “Enough!” he snapped, and before anyone could intervene, he muttered a short incantation under his breath. Maggie’s body went limp instantly, her head dropping forward as she slipped into unconsciousness.

The room went completely still, the only sound was my own heartbeat pounding in my ears. Caleb took a step forward, his body shielding mine as he looked at Ashton, his voice sharp. “What the hell was that, Ashton?”

Ashton looked up at us, his grip still on Maggie’s arms, his expression unreadable. “She was out of control,” he said flatly. “And right now, we don’t need more chaos. Not when Jade is like this…”

I stared at him, feeling anger, confusion, and fear all twisting together in my chest. Something about all of this felt like it was just the surface of something much, much worse.