Rejected and Claimed by her Alpha Triplets Chapter 45 - looks scared

45

~Lisa’s POV

I didn’t know how much ti had passed. All I knew was the rhythm of the water rushing from the tap, the feel of the rough brush in my sore hands, and the vegetables lined up in the sink like an endless punishnt. I was still washing, still scrubbing. My back ached. My arms felt numb. The skin around my fingers had started to wrinkle and sting from being in water for too long, but I didn’t stop.

I couldn’t stop.

It was easier to keep scrubbing than to think. Easier to stay bent over the sink than to lift my head and et their stares, the maids who watched like I was sothing foul. Sothing that didn’t belong.

They still whispered about .

They still giggled every ti I moved too slowly or winced from the pain. But I blocked it out. I was sowhere else in my head, sowhere quiet, where I didn’t feel this way. Sowhere far from the kitchen, far from the mories, far from them.

I was trying to hold on.

But then I heard her voice again.

"Why are you still here?"

I froze.

Matilda.

I turned my head slowly to see her standing just behind , arms folded tightly across her chest, her sharp gaze cutting into like a blade.

"I thought by now you’d have finished with the vegetables and moved on to other tasks," she said, her voice filled with irritation. "Or are you just pretending to be busy so you don’t have to work?"

"No, ma’am," I said quickly, lowering my gaze. "I’m sorry. I’ll be done soon."

She stepped closer, and my stomach twisted.

"No. You won’t," she snapped. "It’s too late for that now."

I opened my mouth, trying to explain myself, but she didn’t give the chance.

"If you’re not useful in the kitchen, then be useful elsewhere," she said coldly. "Go to the wine cellar. Get the alphas their preferred bottle and take it to them imdiately."

The words hit like a slap.

To the alphas?

I froze, my heart thudding hard in my chest.

My hands trembled slightly over the sink, still wet from washing. The mory of that night, heir hands, their voices, the way they forced themselves on , flooded back so fast I could barely breathe.

I stared at Matilda in disbelief. "Please... please don’t make go there," I whispered, barely able to get the words out. "I’ll finish with the vegetables now. I promise. I’ll do double the work. I’ll clean the whole kitchen if you want. Just... please don’t make go to them."

Matilda’s expression didn’t soften.

She rolled her eyes. "What’s wrong with you? You act like you’re the first girl who’s had a rough night in the palace. So what if they touched you? You’re still breathing, aren’t you?"

I couldn’t stop the tears from coming. They gathered at the corners of my eyes, hot and heavy. My chest felt tight. My throat burned.

"I can’t face them," I whispered. "Not after what they did..."

Matilda let out a breath of frustration. "You don’t get to say no. You’re here to serve. If you can’t handle it, then maybe you shouldn’t have co to the palace in the first place."

"But I didn’t ask for any of this," I said, my voice shaking now. "I didn’t co here to be abused."

She scoffed. "Oh, grow up. You think you’re the only one with a sob story? Everyone here has been through things. This is not a place for little girls who want pity."

She pointed toward the storage door near the back.

"Get their wine. Now. And wipe your face. You look disgusting."

I stood still, trembling.

"You heard ," she said, her voice sharper this ti.

Slowly, I nodded. My hands were still wet. I wiped them quickly on my skirt, not caring how soaked it was, and walked toward the cellar door like I was walking toward my own execution.

Each step felt heavier than the last.

When I reached the small wooden door, I pulled it open with trembling fingers. The sll of damp stone and aged bottles hit as I descended the narrow staircase. My knees wobbled, my legs barely holding up. My thoughts were spinning in every direction.

What if they touched again? What if they laughed at ? What if I cried in front of them? Would they hurt again? Would they punish for speaking up?

I reached the cellar and searched the shelves for the wine I rembered them preferring. It was hard to focus. My vision was blurry from the tears streaming down my face. My breathing was short and unsteady. I finally found the bottle and clutched it tightly, as though holding it would sohow give strength.

When I climbed the stairs again and stepped back into the kitchen, no one said anything. No one helped. They just stared and smirked as I passed.

One of the maids whispered, "She’s going back to her masters."

The others giggled.

I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood.

The palace halls were quiet as I walked toward the wing where the alphas stayed. I prayed with each step that they wouldn’t be there. That maybe they’d left. That maybe soone else could give them the wine instead. But I knew that wasn’t possible. Matilda would make sure it was .

As I reached their door, I paused.

My hand hovered near the handle.

My heart pounded so loudly it echoed in my ears. I felt like I was going to be sick. I stared at the bottle in my hand, my fingers gripping it so tightly my knuckles turned white.

"Just knock," I whispered to myself.

But my body wouldn’t move.

mories flashed before my eyes, their faces, the roughness, the way I cried and begged them to stop. The way they didn’t listen.

I felt sick.

But I knew I had no choice.

I raised my fist and knocked softly.

No answer.

I waited.

Then the door creaked open... just a bit...and I heard a voice from inside.

"Co in."

I wanted to run. Every part of wanted to turn around and disappear. But my feet moved without my permission, and I stepped inside.

Kael was sitting near the window, reading sothing. Damon and Ramon were lounging by the fireplace, talking quietly, cups of wine already in their hands.

They all looked up at the sa ti.

Their eyes landed on .

And just like that, I was back in the nightmare.

My body stiffened. My throat closed.

I stepped forward slowly and held out the bottle. "Matilda asked to bring this to you," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

Damon stood up and walked toward , taking the bottle without saying a word. But his eyes... they lingered.

Kael didn’t say anything either. He just kept watching , his expression unreadable.

Then Ramon chuckled under his breath. "She still looks scared," he said softly, almost like it was amusing.

Damon poured the wine and stepped back. "You can go," he said.

That should have been a relief.

But it wasn’t.

It still felt like I couldn’t breathe.

I nodded, quickly turned, and left the room without another word. My legs carried faster than I ant to go, and when I was finally far enough away, far enough that no one could hear , I leaned against the wall and broke down.