Rejected By My Mate; Claimed By Lycan Quadruplets Chapter 186

Irene's POV

I slammed the door shut the moment I entered my room. My chest was heaving, my entire body burning with rage, my thoughts boiling in ways I could barely keep together. I ripped the pins from my hair and let it tumble down my shoulders, but instead of calming me, it only fueled the fire inside me. The scent of Lisa still lingered in the halls, faint but enough to mock me. Enough to remind me that my husband, my Alpha, had allowed her to live another day.

I shrieked at the top of my lungs, the sound echoing in the chamber. The maids standing by the wall flinched, their eyes lowered instantly. My fury made the air thick, and I wanted to tear something apart. I grabbed the nearest vase and hurled it against the wall. It shattered, pieces flying everywhere.

“Do you all stand there staring like fools while I burn with rage?” I snarled, my voice cracking. “Do you not see me? Do you not understand what I feel right now?”

They dropped to their knees, trembling, muttering apologies I didn’t care to hear. Their pathetic submission only irritated me further. I picked up a golden candlestick and threw it toward one of them. She ducked just in time, but the crash it made as it hit the floor sent her shrieking.

“Useless!” I barked. “All of you are useless!”

My nails dug into my palms as I paced across the room. The rage inside me wasn’t just about Lisa being alive—it was about Bryan’s eyes. The way I caught him glancing at her when he thought no one was watching. As though she was worth his attention. As though she, a nobody, an ordinary omega, had suddenly become something in his sight.

I couldn’t bear it.

“You!” I shouted, pointing at the youngest maid cowering closest to the door. Her hands were pressed tightly together, her lips quivering. “Come here.”

She crawled forward quickly, eyes lowered, as if afraid to breathe too loudly in my presence. Good. Let her tremble. Let her feel the claws of my fury even if I didn’t touch her.

“Do you know what I saw today?” I asked, leaning down so my face was right before hers. “Do you?”

“N-no, my lady,” she stammered.

I gripped her chin tightly, forcing her head up. “I saw my husband looking at her. That filthy omega. The one who should have been cast out long ago. He looked at her as though she mattered.”

The maid whimpered. “I-I’m sorry, my lady.”

I slapped her across the face so hard she fell backward, her head hitting the floor. “Sorry? Sorry?” I yelled. “You dare give me sorry? You think sorry will change the fact that Bryan dares defy me?”

Another maid rushed forward to help her, but my glare stopped her in her tracks. I stood tall, my fists clenched, my chest rising and falling heavily. The silence that followed only angered me more, so I began throwing whatever I could grab. A chair overturned, a mirror cracked under my palm, the curtains ripped down from their hooks. My rage filled the room until every inch of it reflected the storm inside me.

Finally, when I was panting hard and my throat burned from screaming, I pointed toward the older maid who had always been in charge of the rest. Her eyes were wide, her hands shaking.

“You,” I growled. “Go. Fetch Beta Henry’s most trusted guard. Not any fool roaming around the grounds—his most loyal one. Bring him to me at once.”

She bowed so low her forehead nearly touched the ground before scrambling out of the room as if her life depended on it.

I turned back to the others. “If Bryan thinks I will sit quietly and watch him bring that woman back into this pack, he is mistaken. If Henry thinks his loyalty to that omega will go unchecked, he is a fool. And if Lisa thinks she can crawl her way into my husband’s sight, then I will rip her apart with my bare hands.”

My words dripped with venom. I wanted them etched into the walls, into their bones, so that none of them would ever forget it.

The maid I had slapped was still on the ground, holding her face and sobbing softly. Her tears only disgusted me. I kicked her side lightly, enough to make her yelp.

“Get up,” I spat. “Do not cry in my presence. I will not have your tears staining my floors. If you want to cry, cry for Lisa. Because she will not live long enough to see another sunrise if Bryan dares bring her back here.”

The room was silent again, the only sound my own heavy breathing. I dragged my nails across the arm of the sofa before collapsing onto it. My head fell back, my chest still heaving. The maids stayed pressed against the wall like frightened animals, none of them daring to move.

Minutes passed, though I had no patience to count them. My mind replayed every glance, every whisper, every hint that Bryan was beginning to soften toward Lisa. It made bile rise in my throat. That girl was beneath me. Beneath all of us. She was nothing more than a pawn who had overstayed her welcome.

I sat forward slowly, my voice quieter now, though no less sharp. “Do you know what will happen if that woman is ever allowed to step foot into this pack again?”

None of them answered.

I slammed my palm against the table in front of me, making them all jump. “Answer me!”

“She—she will destroy the peace of the pack, my lady,” one of them stammered quickly.

“Yes,” I hissed, narrowing my eyes at her. “She will bring filth and weakness. She will make fools out of us all. Bryan may be blinded by whatever he thinks he sees in her, but I am not. I will not let that omega ruin everything I have built, everything I am owed.”

The door creaked open then, and the older maid returned with a tall, broad-shouldered guard in tow. His presence filled the doorway, his eyes sharp, his expression grim.

“My lady,” the maid whispered, bowing low. “This is Darius. Beta Henry’s most trusted guard.”

I stood at once, smoothing my dress though my movements were still sharp with anger. I studied him carefully, the way his jaw was set, the way he did not flinch even under my gaze. Yes, this one would do.

“Close the door,” I ordered.

He stepped inside, shutting it behind him. The maids lowered their heads even more, clearly terrified of what was about to come.

I circled Darius slowly, my eyes raking over him. “I hear your loyalty is to Henry. That you would kill for him without hesitation. Is that true?”

“Yes, my lady,” he said without faltering. His voice was deep, steady.

“Good,” I whispered. “Because you are going to do something for me. Something that will decide whether you remain standing as his most trusted guard—or whether you fall like the rest of them.”

He didn’t blink. “I await your command.”

I stopped in front of him, tilting my head. “From this moment forward, you will keep watch on Alpha Bryan and Beta Henry. Every step they take, every word they utter, every plan they attempt—you will know it, and you will report it directly to me.”

He frowned slightly, though he tried to mask it. “My lady… they are my superiors.”

I stepped closer, close enough that he could feel the venom in my breath. “Do not mistake me, Darius. You are not betraying them—you are ensuring their loyalty. You are making certain that they do not betray this pack by bringing that wretched omega back here. Do you understand?”

His jaw tightened. “Yes, my lady.”

I smiled coldly. “If Bryan or Henry make even the slightest move to protect her, to shelter her, to whisper her name with anything other than disgust, you will come to me immediately. And if they dare attempt to bring her back into this territory, you will stop them until I arrive.”

His brows knitted. “Stop them, my lady?”

“Yes,” I said sharply. “With whatever means necessary. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, my lady.”

“Good,” I said again, satisfaction curling in my chest. “You will obey me, Darius. Not Bryan. Not Henry. Me. Because I will not let Lisa poison my pack, my marriage, or my life. Do you understand the weight of what I am saying?”

“Yes, my lady.”

I leaned closer, my eyes locking onto his. “If you fail me, if you dare falter in this task, I will make sure your death is slower than anything you’ve ever imagined. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, my lady,” he repeated firmly.

I straightened up, finally satisfied. My heart still thundered, but at least now I had a thread of control over this madness. At least now, Bryan would not have the chance to think his little omega pet could crawl back into his world without my knowledge.

“Leave,” I ordered. “Begin your watch tonight.”

He bowed slightly before stepping out. The door shut behind him, and I exhaled, though it was not relief—it was fire.

I turned back to the maids, who were still huddled together, shaking. My lips curved into a smile that held no warmth. “Now you see,” I murmured. “Now you see what happens when someone thinks they can threaten what is mine.”