Rejected By My Mate; Claimed By Lycan Quadruplets Chapter 175

Lisa's POV

I had finally finished my rounds at the infirmary. The scent of herbs and sterilizing tinctures still clung to my hands, even after I had washed them. My body felt drained, but my mind was restless. It had been years since I last stepped into this place, years since I had allowed myself to breathe the air of the pack, and yet, here I was again. The healers had looked at me with wide eyes, half in disbelief and half in gratitude, and I gave them what they needed—a steady hand, calm instructions, a reminder that they were not alone.

But the moment I left the infirmary, my steps were no longer steady. My chest tightened. My heart pounded. I knew where my feet wanted to take me. No matter how much I tried to resist, I couldn’t stop them from moving. I had told myself countless times not to let myself fall into weakness, not to let myself look, but the bond of blood is stronger than any vow.

I wanted to see my children.

The hallways stretched endlessly, and every turn reminded me of what I had lost and left behind. When I reached the wing of the house reserved for the younger ones, my throat nearly closed. Voices carried through the air, laughter bubbling like a river of warmth. My heart clenched painfully.

I pushed the door open, slowly, almost fearfully, and there they were.

My children.

I stopped breathing. For a moment, I thought I was dreaming, that perhaps my exhaustion was playing tricks on me. But no—those were their faces, their little forms running about the room, their laughter ringing so purely it sliced straight through my soul.

And then I saw Calla.

She turned at the sound of the door creaking, her eyes widening as if she were staring at a ghost. Her lips parted, trembling, and then without hesitation, she rushed toward me.

“Lisa!” she cried, her arms flinging around me.

The impact of her embrace jolted me, and my chest swelled with emotions I had been burying for far too long. I hugged her back before I could stop myself, my hands gripping her like a lifeline. Her body shook against mine, and tears slid down her cheeks as she whispered, “Where have you been all these years? Where?”

I couldn’t answer immediately. My throat burned with unshed tears, and my mind fought for words that wouldn’t betray the chaos within me.

“I…” My voice cracked. I swallowed hard and tried again. “I had to leave, Calla. If I stayed, I would have drowned. You know I didn’t leave because I wanted to. I—”

“You vanished, Lisa,” Calla whispered fiercely, pulling back just enough to look into my eyes. Her own were brimming with pain and relief all at once. “Do you know what that did to me? Do you know how many nights I prayed you’d come back, that I’d see you walk through that door again? And now—now you’re here, and I don’t know if I should scream or cry.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. The words felt too small, too powerless for the weight of years I had been gone.

Her hand cupped my cheek. “You left me, Lisa. You left all of us. But more than that…” Her gaze flicked toward the children, her voice softening. “You left them.”

My chest constricted. I turned my head slowly, forcing myself to face the truth. They were there, three little souls who carried pieces of me in their faces, in their eyes, in the way they moved. My children. My flesh and blood.

The smallest one was tugging at Calla’s dress, looking up at me with wide, curious eyes. “Mama?”

The word nearly broke me.

I sank to my knees, unable to stop the sob that tore from my chest. My arms opened before I could think, and the child stumbled into them, small arms wrapping tightly around my neck. I buried my face into the softness of their hair, my tears spilling freely.

“Yes, baby,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “Mama’s here.”

Two more little bodies came running, their laughter mingled with confusion. They clung to me, their warmth surrounding me as if to anchor me back to this place I had long abandoned. My tears wouldn’t stop, and I didn’t want them to. For once, I let them fall freely, let them cleanse me of the silence I had carried all these years.

Calla knelt beside me, tears slipping down her cheeks as she whispered, “They never stopped asking about you. Not once. Even when everyone tried to change the subject, even when no one would answer them, they kept asking, ‘Where’s Mama?’ And now, here you are. You don’t know what this means.”

I clutched my children tighter, my heart both breaking and healing at the same time. “I should never have left. I thought I was protecting them, protecting everyone… but I only hurt them more. I can see that now.”

Calla’s hand rested on my shoulder. “You did what you thought you had to. I won’t pretend to understand it fully, but I know you. I know your heart. And if you’re back now, then maybe… maybe it’s not too late.”

Her words settled into me like fragile hope, something I wasn’t sure I deserved but desperately needed.

The children pulled back slightly, their little voices overlapping with questions.

“Where were you, Mama?”

“Why did you go away?”

“Will you stay now?”

Each question stabbed me, each innocent voice demanding answers I didn’t know how to give. I kissed their foreheads one by one, holding them close.

“I can’t change the past,” I whispered. “But I’m here now. And I’ll do everything I can to make it right. I promise.”

They seemed to accept that for the moment, their smiles returning as they nestled against me.

Calla sat down beside us, wiping her eyes. “I missed you so much, Lisa. Do you know how hard it was not to have you here, not to share my burdens with you? You were always my safe place, my sister in everything that mattered. When you left, a part of me broke.”

I leaned against her shoulder, still holding the children close. “I missed you too. Every day. There wasn’t a single night I didn’t think of you, of them. But I thought… I thought you were better off without me.”

Her laugh was wet with tears. “Better off without you? Lisa, you were the glue that held so much together. Even when you thought you were weak, you gave us strength. You may have left, but you never stopped being ours.”

I closed my eyes, letting her words sink into me. For years, I had carried guilt, shame, and the weight of betrayal. But sitting there, with Calla beside me and my children in my arms, I felt something stir within me—something that felt dangerously close to hope.

For a while, none of us spoke. The children played with my hair, tugged at my clothes, giggled as they clambered over my lap. Calla watched with a soft smile, her eyes never leaving me, as if afraid I might vanish again if she blinked.

Finally, she whispered, “Will you stay this time?”

I met her gaze, my heart twisting. “I want to. More than anything. But I don’t know what the future holds. All I can promise is that I’ll fight for it. For them. For you. For all of us.”

Her hand squeezed mine. “Then that’s enough for me.”

I smiled faintly, brushing tears from my cheeks. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness, Calla.”

“You don’t have to deserve it,” she said softly. “You just have to accept it.”

I nodded, my eyes returning to my children. Their laughter filled the room, and for the first time in years, I allowed myself to dream—just a little—of a future where I could belong again.