The Four Beta Brothers
Chapter 85

JUNIPER

Something went wrong, but I was whisked away to another memory before I learned exactly what happened after I took the wolfsbane from James.

My head ached the most when I woke up, but my entire body was heavy with pain. I couldn't even open my eyes. There was a steady beat of a machine that reflected my own pulse, and my torso and head were wrapped in bandages. I knew I was in the hospital, but the memory of how I got there felt foggy. I went in and out of consciousness several times, and reality and dreams started to blend together.

Then I heard James' name.

"James would still be alive if it weren't for us," a woman said. Her voice was familiar, but I struggled to place a name and a face. I wanted to open my eyes to see who it was, but I was too tired.

"If Craig had done his job right, James would be alive instead of the girl," a man growled in response. The hair on my arms rose, and there was only one man who made my body shiver with just his voice.

"You're the one who sent an assassin after a little girl!" The woman had to be Mrs. Burrell. She was the one who tucked me into bed at night when my own mom was gone.

Beta Burrell growled. "We sent the assassin. You agreed to it, so don't try to put the blame only on me. You're at fault here, too. You knew exactly what I was doing."

"I'm not the one who wants to kill Alpha Williams."

"Keep your voice down, woman! Do you want us to be caught after everything we've been through?"

"I don't care anymore. Our son is dead. Doesn't that matter to you?"

"We have four other sons. We'll be fine."

A slap rang through the room, making my body flinch. Three heart beats of silence passed, but they felt like an eternity.

Then a cry rang out. A body slammed against the wall, making the shelves around it shake. Beta Burrell lowered his voice. "Pull yourself together. If you don't, we'll get caught. If we get caught, do you know what will happen?" "Get off of me," Mrs. Burrell demanded, but she sounded weak in the presence of Beta Burrell.

"You'll lose all of your sons," Beta Burrell. "If Alpha Williams finds out what we're trying to do before we accomplish the job, then he'll have us executed, and you'll never see the rest of your sons."

"James is dead, and all you're worried about is being caught?" she cried.

"The girl stole the wolfsbane and all of the letters incriminating us. We have to get rid of her, or she'll destroy our family with that information."

"Hasn't there been enough death? We can't kill her. She's just a child. I'm sure we can reason with her."

"You're right. She's a child, which means she can't be trusted. Either we kill her before she wakes up from that coma and exposes us, or you lose the rest of your sons and make them grow up as orphans. I'll leave the choice up to you, Lolly." Beta Burrell's voice was sinister, and there was a knowing confidence in his ultimatum.

I focused on keeping my breath steady as the beta discussed my potential murder. I knew my heart was hooked up to the machine, and if it started going erratically suddenly, it would give me away. If they knew I was awake now, surely they wouldn't have let me live. "What if we erase her memories?" Mrs. Burrell suggested almost frantically. "If she can't remember what she saw, then she won't be able to tell anyone. Then we'll be safe."

"She ruined my plans, and you want me to just have her memory erased and let her live? You do realize that she destroyed years of work? There's no way I'll be able to go through with the plan anytime soon now. She deserves to die for her crimes." "She's just a child! Anthony, please. I can't take any more death. I'll find a witch who can erase her memories, and then we all can just move on. Please let her live since our son died."

Beta Burrell growled, frustrated with his wife. "Fine. If you can find a witch to erase all of her memories in twenty-four hours, then we can go through with your plan. We will tell her parents they have to leave and that the girl can never see our sons again, or she'll face substantial consequences. If you fail to find the witch in time, then the girl dies."

"I'll find someone," Mrs. Burrell said confidently. A warm hand grabbed mine and squeezed gently. "I'll protect her."

***

When I opened my eyes, I was back in the room with Remy and the others. Everything felt foggy, and all of the memories that came flashing back blurred together. The blood in my head pounded, and my face was streaked with tears.

I went to wipe the tears away, but I quickly realized that Asher and Axel were on either side of me, holding my arms. Everyone was staring at me, but nobody said anything, as if they were waiting for me to speak first.

"Hey," I said, unsure of what else to say.

"Hey there, J.J.," Axel said.

"Welcome back," Asher added.

I looked at Remy, trying to read her face. "It worked. You brought my memories back."

Remy swallowed and then forced a smile. "Luckily it was pretty shoddy work from a sorcerer. It was an easy job for me to untangle the magic. More memories will continue to emerge. It could take a couple of weeks, and it might take time to sort some of them out. Just be patient with yourself."

I nodded, pulling my lips tight. There were countless memories that flashed back in a short amount of time, and some of them mixed with others in ways that confused me. There were a handful of memories that stood out among the others, and those ones scared

me.

It was clear that Beta Burrell was not a man to be trusted, which made one thing clear. "There was no curse, was there?"

Remy shook her head. "You were lied to."

I nodded slowly, not surprised by this in the slightest after the things I remembered.

"What are you talking about? What curse?" Axel asked.

Remy let go of my hand and quickly stood up. "I'll give you three some space." She looked at me with wide eyes, and something felt off from the way she looked at me. She grabbed Blade's arm and pulled him out of the room, leaving me alone with the twins. Asher and Axel's eyes bore into me as they waited for me to explain. There was no reason to keep it a secret any longer, but I knew they wouldn't be happy when they learned I had been keeping such a big secret from them.

"I thought there was a chance I had been cursed to kill the people close to me who loved me," I admitted.

Asher furrowed his eyebrows. "Why would you think that?"

I bit my lip and looked down. "Your father told me I was cursed and that it was my fault James died, my parents died, and that Axel was shot. He told me I had to leave to save you."

Axel jumped to his feet. "And when did he say this to you?" His voice made me flinch. I couldn't tell if his anger was directed towards me, his father, or both.

"The day I found you passed out in the kitchen."

"Why didn't you tell me he said this to you?" Axel's anger was definitely directed towards me this time.

"Because if the curse was real, I knew you wouldn't let me leave to protect you," I said firmly. I understood Axel's anger. He was justified. I knew I would've been furious if the roles were reversed, but I also felt like I had done the right thing by keeping it a secret. "You're damn right. I wouldn't have let you leave," Axel snapped. "Curse or no curse, I don't care. I would've risked it, especially knowing my father was the one to tell you such a thing. He manipulates and lies to get his way. I would've told you that." "Even if that's true, we wouldn't have known for sure if he was lying. I wouldn't have risked your life like that."

"So you would have just done what? You would've just left in the middle of the night without a word?" Axel looked hurt as he stared at me.

"Yes," I said confidently. It hurt to admit it, but I was tired of lies. "I would've left to protect you. I would've protected all of you." I looked at Asher, and he was just watching the scene unfold, shifting uncomfortably.

"I wouldn't have let you leave," Axel said, crossing his arms.

"That's exactly why I didn't tell you." I squeezed my hands into fists, trying to calm my frustration. "You would've convinced me to stay, putting yourself in danger, and I couldn't risk it." I stood up, ready to walk away. My head was too convoluted from all of the sudden memories, and the last thing I wanted to do was fight with Axel.

However, as I stood up, I suddenly felt light-headed. I nearly fell back, but Axel and Asher grabbed my arms, steadying me.

"Maybe we should talk about this later," Asher suggested. "Juniper just went through a lot. She should get some rest."

"I think I need some air," I said. I didn't want to stay in this room any longer. I needed a moment just to think, breathe, and sort through all of the new information in my head.

"You need rest," Asher repeated.

I shook my head. I didn't want to rest. I wanted to sort out my thoughts. I needed to figure out how to tell them how truly awful their father was, especially when Axel reacted so intensely when he found out that his father lied to me.

"I need some air," I repeated. I stood up slower this time, and Asher and Axel held onto me the entire time.

"I'll come with you," Axel offered.

"No," I said too quickly. I knew I wouldn't be able to sort my thoughts out with him by my side, especially knowing he was angry with me. "I need a moment by myself."