Chapter 183: Still Mine
Callum’s POV
My chest tightened so hard it hurt. That scent—sweet honey wrapped with nutmeg—flooded through the cracks of the door. I gritted my teeth, my hand already twitching to rip it open.
Ten years. Ten years of hunting, of torture, of losing sleep. And now she returned like she didn’t even reach out to me.
Leo’s hand lifted, like he meant to stop me.
"Alpha Callum—"
I snapped my head toward him, my eyes flashing with rage.
"Don’t," I warned, my voice rough. "Don’t test me, Leo. You’re Nathan’s Beta, I respect that. But if you stand between me and Hailee, I’ll put you on the floor."
He clenched his jaw, hesitating, then dropped his hand.
"Let’s knock..."
"I won’t." I bit out.
My wolf pressed hard against my skin, snarling, restless. Of course she wasn’t our mate, but my wolf has come to accept her.
My hand gripped the door handle. For a moment, I hesitated, my pulse hammering in my ears. I wasn’t sure if I would find her smiling, crying, or hating me. I wasn’t sure if those children would be or look at me like a stranger.
But one thing I did know—Nathan wasn’t keeping her.
I shoved the door open. The room fell still.
Hailee.
She was standing in the center of the room, her boys clustered around her. They froze as the door slammed against the wall. Her sea-blue eyes lifted and locked with mine.
For a second, neither of us breathed.
"Hailee," I rasped, her name breaking from my throat.
Her fingers trembled on the comb. She clutched her sons tighter, shielding them behind her instinctively.
The sight cut me. Goddess, it cut me deep. Why was she staring at me like she had seen death itself.
But before I could move closer, one of the boys—red hair, sea-blue eyes—whispered something to her. And then he spoke. His little voice was bold, unshaken.
"Are you another Alpha fighting over my mom?"
The words froze the air in the room.
My gaze snapped to him. He was fearless, staring right back at me. Just like—
My wolf let out a low growl in my chest.
Mine.
The claim rattled my bones.
I looked back at Hailee. Her face had gone pale, her lips pressed tight, her body stiff as stone.
I stepped forward, my eyes fixed on the boy. My wolf howling inside me, claiming mine....
My breath came hard as I stepped forward, my eyes locked on the boy with the sea-blue eyes. Every line of him screamed me—my eyes, my cheek, the shape of my nose. My wolf pressed so violently against my chest I thought my ribs would crack.
"Is that..." my voice cracked, raw, "is that my son?"
The boy didn’t flinch. His chin tilted up, brave like a little warrior.
But before Hailee could answer, my eyes darted sideways—catching sight of the other two. Same flaming red hair, different faces... but when I searched them, my wolf was silent. No howls. No recognition. Nothing.
My brow furrowed, my jaw tightening. Why only one?
Hailee’s lips parted, her face twisting in fury.
"Goddess," she spat, her voice shaking, "why are you men claiming my children? One by one—Nathan with Oscar, Dane with Ozzy, now you!"
Her words confused me, but I couldn’t tear my eyes off the boy. My wolf was still clawing, howling, and chanting, Mine, mine, mine.
Then a low growl rumbled from the corner.
I stiffened, snapping my head toward the sound.
Nathan.
He was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, eyes cold as steel. His presence filled the space like a storm. He had been there the whole time, and I didn’t notice.
My wolf was still howling for the boy, clawing, demanding I claim him outright. But I forced myself to focus on Hailee.
My chest heaved as I dragged my eyes back to her, the way she stood, clutching them close like I was the danger.
"Hailee... where have you been?" I whispered while trying my best to hold myself from rushing to her and hugging her.
Hailee shrugged nonchalantly. "I’ve been around."
"You’ve been around?" I growled, my voice breaking with anger and pain. "Ten years, Hailee. Ten fucking years—and you just say around?"
Her lips pressed tight. She didn’t answer right away.
I took a step forward, my voice raw.
"You disappeared, vanished into thin air, and now you show up here? With triplets? And when you finally come back, you come only to Nathan."
My hands curled into fists at my sides.
"What about me? Didn’t I matter? Didn’t our love mean anything to you?"
The words scraped my throat, sharp and bitter. I felt exposed, bleeding in front of her and those boys.
Her face twisted, but her voice stayed steady, though low.
"Callum, please..." Her eyes flicked toward her sons, their wide gazes fixed on us. "Mind your words. My sons are here. Don’t—don’t let them hear this."
I shook my head, my jaw trembling.
"I searched for you every damn day, Hailee. Every day. You knew I would. And you didn’t even bother to let me know you were alive. That you were safe. That you—"
My chest ached.
"That you were back."
Her shoulders trembled, but she straightened and forced the words out.
"Please, Callum. Wait for me outside. I’ll come to you. We’ll talk then."
I stared at her, my wolf still growling in my chest, my hands itching to grab her and never let go. But I couldn’t miss the way the boys clung to her, the way she shielded them.
So I swallowed down the fire and turned my gaze.
First to him—the boy my wolf screamed for. His sea-blue eyes locked on mine, unafraid, almost curious.
Then to the other two—similar, yet silent in my wolf’s senses. Their eyes watched me warily, clutching to their mother.
Triplets, but only one is mine. How is that even possible?
I clenched my jaw so hard it hurt, my chest burning as I stepped back once.
Nathan still leaned against the wall, arms folded, eyes sharp. Silent, but watching me like a hawk.
I ignored him. My eyes stayed on Hailee as I rasped,
"Don’t keep me waiting, Hailee."
Then I turned, my wolf still howling inside me.
I stormed out of the room, every nerve in my body burning. My wolf still clawed inside me, refusing to calm down.
Mine, it kept repeating for the boy.
I made it down to the living room, my chest heaving, when I felt Nathan’s presence.
He walked in slowly, his hands shoved into his pockets, but his eyes were as sharp as blades. He didn’t look surprised to see me waiting—like he had planned this all along.
"So," I spat, pacing like a caged wolf. "You had her here. For how long? How long, Nathan, before you thought of telling me?"
Nathan’s jaw flexed, but his voice stayed calm, too calm.
"Why would I tell you? I brought her back myself. She’s under my roof. My protection."
I barked a bitter laugh, running a hand through my hair.
"Protection? You think I’ll believe that? You knew I searched for her every damn day. You knew, Nathan! And you let me keep searching while she was here with you."
His eyes narrowed.
"You talk like she’s yours. Like she ever belonged to you. But she doesn’t, Callum. Not anymore."
A low growl ripped from my chest, my wolf pressing harder.
"Careful, Nathan. Don’t start with me. Last time, we both agreed to share her—to let her choose. Don’t forget that."
His lips curved into a humorless smirk.
"I was young and naive... This time, I’m not sharing. She’s mine now."
The words detonated inside me.
I stepped forward, my aura snapping through the room, shaking the air between us.
"Say that again."
Nathan didn’t flinch. He held my stare like stone.
"She’s mine. You want to rip her away? You’ll have to go through me this time."
My fists clenched, my claws itching to tear out. The tension between us was thick enough to choke on.
For a moment, silence. Just the sound of two alphas breathing heavily, wolves snarling beneath our skins.
"She was always mine," I growled finally, my voice raw, trembling with fury and pain. "Nathan, you are a coward. You never admitted your feelings for her until I came and did..."
Nathan’s eyes gleamed with rage, his wolf pressing hard beneath his skin. The air between us grew heavier, charged like a storm about to split the earth in two.
"Get out of my pack." He growled.
My chest heaved. My claws slid out.
"I will only after I take Hailee and the boys with me."
Nathan scoffed in rage.
"That will be over my dead body."
That did it. My wolf lunged forward inside me, snarling, snapping, demanding I strike. My hands tightened, ready to rip through him.
Nathan didn’t back down; his wolf rose too, his eyes glowing with a dangerous light.
One step. That’s all it would take. One step and this entire house would turn into a battlefield.
I growled, low and enraged. We were a breath away from colliding—power colliding against power, two alphas ready to tear each other apart—when a furious voice shattered through the air.
"ENOUGH!"
The sound was a whip crack, cutting between us.
I jerked my head, and there was... Dane.
He stepped out of the corner of the hall, his aura crashing into the room like a wave. His eyes blazed with rage, his jaw tight as stone.