Rejected By My Mate; Claimed By Lycan Quadruplets Chapter 201

Enzo's POV

I sat on the edge of my desk, arms folded tight across my chest, staring out the wide windows of my study. The war had barely ended, blood still fresh in my head, yet the silence tonight gnawed at me more than the chaos of battle. Lisa was gone. Not kidnapped, not dragged—but gone by her own decision. And that truth kept splitting through me like a blade.

The heavy doors to my study slammed open. Ash stormed in first, fire in his eyes, his boots pounding like thunder. Kael followed with his usual icy calm, though his jaw was clenched so hard I could see the muscles twitching. Atlas closed the door behind them, slower, his expression unreadable but his shoulders carrying the weight of restrained fury.

“Enzo,” Ash barked, his voice rough. “What the hell have you done?”

I didn’t answer. My silence was enough to set him off. He crossed the room in three strides and shoved me hard in the chest.

“You let her go with him? With Bryan?” Ash’s voice cracked with disbelief. “After everything? After what they did to her five years ago? Do you even remember?”

I grabbed his wrist before he could shove me again, squeezing until his knuckles turned white. “Don’t forget yourself, brother,” I warned in a low growl. “I’m not the enemy here.”

Kael stepped forward, his sharp eyes cutting through me. “Then explain it. Because to us, it looks exactly like betrayal. We stood with her, fought beside her, and now you just… hand her over to the wolves that once tore her down?”

Atlas’s deep voice finally broke in, quieter but heavier. “Enzo, why? Why would you let her go with him, knowing the cruelty of Bryan’s pack, knowing Irene is there waiting to tear her apart again?”

I finally released Ash’s wrist and stepped back. My chest rose and fell, my wolf pacing within me, angry at their accusations but angrier at the helplessness clawing at my gut.

“She chose it,” I said firmly, each word slow, deliberate. “Lisa chose to go. She looked me in the eyes and said it was her duty to save Baron. She said she would come back.”

Ash let out a harsh laugh, his hand flying through his hair. “And you believed that? You believed she’d be free to walk back out once she steps foot there? Bryan doesn’t let go. He never has.”

Kael narrowed his eyes. “Or maybe you wanted her gone. Maybe part of you was glad to let her walk away.”

That stung deeper than any blade. I took a step toward him, our gazes locking, heat burning between us. “Watch what you say, Kael.”

Atlas lifted a hand between us before either of us lunged. “Enough. Fighting each other won’t bring her back. But Enzo… do you really think she’ll be safe there? That Bryan won’t twist her arm until she breaks? That Irene won’t sink her claws into her again?”

I clenched my fists, nails biting into my palms. “She isn’t the same fragile girl we once pushed around. She isn’t naive anymore. She carries strength none of us can fully grasp. Did you see her on the battlefield? Healing men while bleeding herself dry? She is fire now. And I…” My voice cracked for a second, but I steadied it. “I couldn’t cage her. Not after she chose. Not after she stood her ground. If I tried to stop her, I’d be no better than the ones who once silenced her.”

Ash slammed his fist against the desk, the wood splintering. “So we just wait here like idiots? Wait for Bryan to strip her of everything again?”

Before I could respond, the sharp trill of my phone rang on the desk. I snatched it up, expecting bad news, my gut already coiled.

“Alpha!” a guard’s frantic voice echoed through. “It’s the children—something strange is happening! You need to come, now!”

Every muscle in my body froze. “What do you mean strange?”

“They… we can’t explain, Alpha. Just hurry.”

I didn’t even end the call properly before bolting toward the door. My brothers were right behind me, their boots pounding through the halls as we raced outside, the tension of Lisa’s departure momentarily forgotten.

The courtyard blazed with torchlight, guards rushing in panic. My heart clenched as I spotted the small figures of our children gathered in the middle. For a second, I thought the worst—that they’d been attacked, cursed, or worse. But then… I saw it.

Bright banners fluttered across the walls. A long table was set with clumsy arrangements of food and flowers. And the children—our children—stood with wide, excited eyes, each clutching something handmade, something small but brimming with love.

Ash stumbled to a halt beside me, his anger draining into shock. Kael blinked, utterly unprepared. Atlas’s lips parted, his usually cold expression softening.

“Happy birthday, Daddy!”

The chorus of little voices broke through the night. And then they came running.

My son threw himself into my arms first, his tiny hands clutching my neck. I held hkm tight, burying my face in his hair as warmth spread through my chest.

Kael’s son rushed him, clutching a crudely wrapped box with paper that barely held together. “I made it for you, Papa!” the boy cried, his face lit up with pride.

Ash was tackled by two of the children at once, nearly knocking him off balance as they squealed, “We stayed up all night making it perfect!”

Atlas’s daughter, usually shy, walked up with a handmade crown of flowers, her small hands trembling as she lifted it to place on his head. Atlas actually knelt down, letting her set it there, his eyes glassy with emotion he rarely showed.

The courtyard, once heavy with fear, now pulsed with laughter and warmth. The brothers, warriors drenched in blood and scars, stood speechless in the face of the pure love of their children.

I tightened my hold on my son as he whispered, “We wanted to surprise you, Daddy. Even if Mommy isn’t here, we wanted you to smile.”

Those words pierced deeper than any blade. I lifted him up, pressing a kiss to his forehead. My brothers met my gaze across the courtyard, and for once, none of us spoke. No anger. No accusations. Just silent understanding—this was what we fought for. This was what Lisa fought for.

Yet as the children laughed, as they tugged us toward the table to show us the crooked cakes and unevenly tied balloons, I couldn’t stop the heaviness in my chest. Lisa wasn’t here. And though I let her go, though I believed in her strength… the hollow ache remained.

Still, I forced a smile for my son, for all of them. Tonight, we would let them have their joy. Tonight, we would let them remind us of the light in the middle of all this darkness.

But deep inside, I vowed—if Bryan, if Irene, if anyone dared to break Lisa again… I would burn their world to ash.