The Four Beta Brothers
Chapter 80

JUNIPER

them.

"I don't have to choose?" I repeated like a baby bird. I knew what Remy was suggesting, but the thought hadn't even occurred to me. In some ways, having all of the brothers would have been nice, but after the way Asher reacted, I couldn't imagine sharing any of Remy shrugged. "It's just a thought, not a suggestion. In the end, it's up to you."

I shook my head. "I... I don't know. I don't even know how that would work or if the others would be open to something." The idea was such a foreign concept to me, so it didn't make any sense. Yet, at the same time, there was a part of me that felt rejoiced at the idea of not having to choose. The more I thought about it, the more appealing it became.

"There's only one way to find out," Remy said. "Anyway, we should probably get back to your boys before they end up tormenting Blade." She seemed amused by this idea.

"Wait, there's one more thing." I reached for her arm, stopping her from getting up.

Her eyebrows rose. "There's more?"

I licked my lips. I was the most nervous about this part. "Someone recently told me that there was a curse placed on me when I was a child."

"One other than the memory block spell?" Remy asked.

I chewed on my lip as I nodded. "Beta Burrell told me that the curse causes those around me who love me to die. He told me that was why his son died, why my parents were killed, and why Axel nearly died. I don't know if this is a real curse or not, but if it is, I need you to remove it. If you can't remove it, I need you to tell me, because I have to leave if you can't remove the curse."

Remy's shoulders sank deeper than they had this entire meeting. "The Beta Burrell told you this?"

I tensed, realizing I had let the family name slip. Everyone seemed to act differently once they learned they were in the presence of the Burrell family. I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to figure out how to get her to forget I had said Burrell in the first place. "Yeah," I said, realizing it was too late to take back my words.

"And Axel and Asher are his sons?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said again. I waited for Remy to get excited or ask for money or something.

Instead, she sat back in her chair and said, "Huh, interesting. I wouldn't have expected that family to be involved in all of this, but I shouldn't be surprised. Those kinds of families always have their hidden secrets. I can look for this curse when I go to remove the memory block. It'd be a similar process, but depending on how the curse was casted will depend on if I can remove it. It could have worse side effects than removing the memory block spell."

A wave of relief washed over me as Remy moved on from the topic of the family. "Nothing can be worse than knowing I'm the cause of the death of those I care about," I said. "If the curse is there, and you think you can remove it, I want you to do that, even if the process could kill me."

"Are you sure?" She seemed hesitant to help for the first time.

"I'm positive. I have been living with this guilt for too long, and I don't know what I'll do if this curse is real, and you can't remove it. I will leave them if I have to, but even the idea of leaving them makes my heart ache." I pressed my hand against my chest to emphasize my point. The pressure began to build, but I took a deep breath to suppress it. One way or another, I would know the truth soon.

"And you haven't told Axel or Asher about this curse," Remy concluded. There was no questioning in her voice. "I would feel better if you at least told them what was going on before I tried to do anything. Like I said, this process could be dangerous, depending on the level of magic and the depth the curse was woven into you-if it is real."

"No." My voice was firm. This was not something I was going to change my mind about. "I can't tell them, because if everything goes wrong, and I have to leave them to save them, they won't understand that." Remy pulled her lips tight. "If that's what you think is best." She wasn't happy about my decision, but she also didn't argue with me.

***

ETHAN

"Father, you're looking well today," I said, sitting down at the table across from him.

He was already seated by the time I made it to the restaurant. He set down his menu as I arrived. He looked me over as he always did, searching for the slightest flaw to nitpick. "You've looked better."

I cleaned myself up as much as possible, knowing I was going to be meeting with my father, but there was little I could do to hide the bags that had developed from the week of sleep I had missed.

"I've been busy. There has been a lot going on with the hunter near town." I picked up the menu and started to scan the options for what suited my appetite.

"I've already ordered for the both of us. I hope you don't mind." Beta Burrell smiled at me, but there was a challenge in his voice.

In his eyes, I didn't have the right to argue with him. He was the beta after all, which meant he expected everyone, especially his own sons, to follow his every order. No one could convince him otherwise.

I put on my fakest smile and set my menu back down. "Of course not. You do know best after all."

My father smiled in return, but his eyes gave away his true feelings. He knew I didn't actually think that. I was just saying what he wanted to hear. Even so, he didn't call me out. It would break the rules of the unspoken war we were fighting.

"I was surprised to discover you still hadn't tracked down that hunter," he said. Once again, I heard exactly what he meant to say. I expected better of you, and this failure is unacceptable.

"I have come to the conclusion that the hunter was just passing through, and Axel ran into him by an unfortunate accident." This was not true. While there was no proof, and there had been no other signs of the hunter since the attack, I was convinced it wasn't an accident. I knew I should've told my father this. He was the beta. It was his responsibility to keep werewolf packs safe.

He deserved to know there was still a possible threat, but I couldn't tell him. There was a voice in the back of my head screaming at me to keep my theory to myself.

"That is the second best scenario at least," he said.

The waiter brought over two glasses of wine. My father picked up his glass between his pointer and middle fingers. He swirled the deep red liquid around several times before taking a deep inhale. Once satisfied with the scent, he took a small sip and let the liquid roll around his tongue.

"This is a fine wine. You should have some," he said.

I didn't touch my glass. "I have other plans today. I need to stay sharp for them."

"You can afford to relax a little, son," he said.

This made me smile. "I seem to recall you saying otherwise."

He chuckled. His mood seemed to be brighter than I would have expected. He must not have heard the news yet. "You have to learn when to relax. When you become the future beta, there will be even less time for yourself than you have now. It's what makes relationships so difficult in my position. Your mother couldn't handle the pressure. That's why she took her own life, you know? She was unhappy and needed an escape."

He actually smiled as those words came out of his mouth.

Ice filled my veins at the mention of my mother. I knew she had taken her own life. I saw the blood and the cuts that went from her wrists to her elbows. I never fully knew the reason she decided to take her own life. The only note she had left said, "I can't live this way anymore. I'm sorry."

It was only months after James died, and I always assumed that the death of her son drove her to such a severe state of depression that she couldn't find another way out. It was only one more knife stabbed into my heart, and for a long time, I was simply a robot, going through the motions of life. Only when I decided to dig into James' death did I find a new purpose in life.

However, my father never spoke of my mother after that day. It was almost as if she had completely disappeared from his life, and he didn't care. I never saw him cry or slow down for even a second. Now, of all times, he decided to bring up her death, and I instantly knew he did it to hurt me.

He wasn't in a good mood. He was furious with me.

"Why don't you say what you really want to?" I said. Despite my inner turmoil, it was easy to keep my face neutral. I had had years of practice keeping a mask on to hide what I was truly feeling-even from my own brothers.

"You're choosing the wrong girl to protect," he said, setting the glass of wine down. Despite the other customers in the restaurant, the sound of the glass hitting the table felt poignant. "Juniper is bad news. You should've just let her leave this school instead of convincing her to stay. She won't make you happy, and you won't make her happy. If she were to choose a life with you, it would only end the same way your mother's life did. She's not strong enough to handle the pressure it takes to lead and protect a pack. Do you both a favor and stop this now before it ends badly for both of you. Is that clear enough for you, son?"

There was some sort of relief that came with his words. For once, he wasn't trying to play a silent game. He was honest, even brutally so.

"I'm curious, Father, why are you so convinced Juniper is so weak? You don't really know her, so how could you possibly know if she could handle that kind of life?"

"I can read people well. I have to because of my position. I have the experience to back it up, so listen to me. I know best." His smile was stained with wine.

I stood up, knowing I was about to make a splash in the steady water. "No, Father. You don't. This is just one of the many times you're wrong."

His face completely changed, showing the fury in his heart in the way he bared his teeth.

I left the restaurant before he could say another word, knowing I had just played the card I had been holding close to my heart. My father didn't control me anymore, and now he knew it.

My phone started buzzing as I climbed into my car, and I saw Nathan's name on the caller ID. I answered, but the noise was muffled as the device switched to the bluetooth in my car. "Say that again, Nathan. I couldn't hear you."

"Ethan! I think I found what you're looking for." His voice was ragged and distressed, and my chest tightened.

My instincts told me something was wrong. "What is it?