Rejected and Claimed by her Alpha Triplets

Chapter 311- for death

311

~Belinda’s POV

When I opened my eyes, my whole body ached. My back felt sore, my legs heavy, and my head was pounding. I blinked a few times before I could even sit up. The smell of damp stone hit me first, cold, sharp, and dirty. Then it hit me.

I was in prison.

I sat up slowly, my body shaking as I leaned on the wall. My arm burned a little, but when I looked down, I saw it had been cleaned and wrapped with a torn piece of cloth. My heart skipped. Someone had touched me, helped me.

Then I turned to my right.

He was sitting there. My father.

"Father..." my voice came out low, hoarse, like I hadn’t spoken for days.

He didn’t say anything. He just looked at me with those eyes I had known all my life, now filled with disappointment, pain, and something I couldn’t name. His face was pale, his lips cracked, and there were bruises all over his arms. His shirt was torn, and his hands were trembling slightly.

"Father..." I whispered, my voice shaking. "It’s me. It’s Belinda."

Still, no answer. He just kept staring, silent, his chest rising and falling weakly.

I forced myself to move closer despite how sore and heavy my body felt. Every step made my wounds sting, but I didn’t care. I knelt in front of him, tears already spilling down my face. "Please, say something. Yell at me, hate me, just... don’t be quiet. Please."

He blinked slowly, then finally spoke, his voice deep and tired. "You’ve brought shame, Belinda."

The words hit harder than a slap. I swallowed hard, staring at him. "Father, I..."

He raised his hand slightly, stopping me. "You’ve disgraced our family. You’ve disgraced my name." His tone wasn’t loud, but it carried so much pain that it broke something inside me. "Everywhere I go, they whisper. They say my daughter betrayed her pack, betrayed her Alphas, betrayed everything we stand for."

I shook my head quickly, my tears falling faster. "No, Father. I didn’t. I swear I didn’t mean to. I was trying to protect my place. I didn’t know what to do...."

He leaned forward, his eyes hard now. "You think I care what you wanted? Do you think that changes what you did? You think crying will undo the mess you’ve made?"

I bit my lip to stop myself from sobbing too loudly. "I was trying to protect myself. I didn’t even know how things got this bad. I was just trying to survive."

"Survive?" He let out a dry, bitter laugh. "And now look where that’s brought us. You, half-dead in a cell. Me, sitting beside you, broken and humiliated."

"You ran," he said quietly, looking away. "You ran and left me to face it all. Do you know what they did to me?"

I looked at him properly then. The bruises, the cuts, the torn cloth on his arm... it was all there. My stomach twisted painfully. His hands were trembling slightly, and I could see how weak he was. The sight broke something inside me. I’d never seen my father like this before, so fragile, so beaten. He had always been the strong one, the one who never bent for anyone except his Alphas. But now, because of me, he looked like a man who had lost everything.

"Father..." I whispered, my voice cracking as tears rolled down my face. "I’m so sorry. I didn’t know they hurt you. I didn’t know they’d do this to you."

He gave a small, bitter laugh that made my heart ache even more. "You didn’t know?" he said quietly, shaking his head. "You think your choices only affect you? You’re my daughter, Belinda. When you fall, my name falls too."

I covered my mouth as a sob escaped me. "I didn’t mean for this to happen," I said, my words rushing out. " I thought I was doing the right thing."

He stared at me for a moment, his eyes tired but sharp. "The right thing?" he asked bitterly. "And what exactly was the right thing, Belinda? To disobey? To bring shame to your family? To stand against those who trusted you?"

I couldn’t look at him anymore. I dropped my head, staring at the dirt floor as tears hit the ground. "I didn’t mean to ruin everything," I whispered, shaking. "I didn’t mean to make you suffer. I just wanted power. I was scared, and I made mistakes."

He sighed, and I could hear the pain in his voice. It wasn’t just from his wounds, it was from disappointment, deep and heavy. "I know, child," he said softly after a moment. "I know you didn’t mean for things to turn out this way. But the damage is done."

I glanced down at my bandaged arm again, then noticed the edge of his sleeve was torn, just like the cloth around my wound. My eyes widened.

"You... you dressed my wound?"

He looked away for a moment, then nodded slightly. "You were bleeding when they brought you in. I couldn’t just watch."

"Even after everything... after I shamed you?"

"You’re still my daughter," he said simply.

That broke me. I covered my face with my hands, crying hard. "I’m sorry, Father. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. I’ll fix this somehow. I promise."

He didn’t answer right away. I heard his breathing, slow, weak, strained. When I looked at him again, he seemed even more tired than before.

"You can’t fix anything, Belinda," he murmured. "Some things... once broken, they don’t go back the same."

"But I can try!" I cried. "Please, just... give me a chance to make it right. I’ll face them. I’ll tell them the truth. I’ll beg them to forgive us both."

His eyes flicked toward me, unsure. "You’ll do that?"

"Yes," I said quickly. "They can punish me, I don’t care. But they have to know you didn’t do anything wrong. They have to free you, Father."

Before he could answer, I stood up too fast. My vision spun, my legs almost gave out, but I didn’t care.

I turned to the metal bars and banged on them. "Guard!" I shouted, my voice echoing. "Please! Somebody help!"

My father tried to pull me back. "Belinda, stop! You’ll only make things worse..."

"No!" I yelled, still hitting the bars. "He didn’t do anything! He’s innocent! You can take me, punish me, do whatever you want, but let him go!"

"Belinda!" my father’s voice rose, both angry and scared. "Stop shouting!"

I didn’t listen. My heart was racing, tears still streaming down my cheeks. "He’s not guilty!" I screamed again. "Please, just call the alphas! I’ll tell them everything! Just let him go!"

A guard appeared down the hall, frowning. "What’s going on here?"

I gripped the bars tightly, shaking. "Please, call the alphas. I beg you. My father doesn’t deserve this. He’s innocent. I’m the one they want!"

The guard frowned deeper, his eyes scanning both of us. "You’re making trouble, Belinda."

"Please," I begged again, my voice breaking. "Just tell them I want to see them. Tell them Belinda is ready to talk. Please..."

"Keep quiet!" he barked. "You think this is a market square? You no longer hold any power here, so don’t shout here unless you’re begging for death!"

I froze, trembling, my eyes wide.

"Get back and sit down," he ordered.

I hesitated. "But..."

"Now!" he shouted, his voice echoing down the corridor.

I quickly backed away, my heart pounding hard, and sat down beside my father again. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking.

He stared at me, silent, tired. The guard looked between us, his eyes still sharp. "One more sound from you," he warned, pointing at me, "and I’ll make sure you don’t open that mouth again."