The Four Beta Brothers
Chapter 98

JUNIPER

A thunderous growl echoed through the air as Principal Clandestine flew through the air-only that growl didn't belong to the principal. Before he landed on me, another larger wolf grabbed the principal by the neck and flung him across the room, hitting the lamp next to the bed and shattering it in the process.

I had never seen that wolf before, but I had no doubt that it was Ethan. His eyes were the same ocean eyes I had come to love, and his scent was distinctly his. His presence filled the room, and I could feel it trying to suppress everyone around him-except my wolf. Ethan lunged at the wolf again, this time sinking his teeth into the principal's shoulder. A howl escaped his lips, and he stopped fighting against Ethan. Ethan snarled as a warning, and the principal whimpered in compliance. I could practically feel myself drooling at the sight. There was something about his dominance that made me want him all over again.

The principal shifted back into his human form, and Ethan followed suit. I shifted back to my human form after and quickly put on Ethan's shirt again. I hated the idea of being naked in front of the principal.

"You're going to regret this," the principal snapped. "When your father hears about this-"

"You're the one who's going to regret attacking my mate," Ethan snarled back. He extended his claws and then pressed them against the principal's neck hard enough to make an indent in his skin without actually piercing it. "M-mate?" The principal's eyes grew wide at the realization. He looked over at me. "She's your mate?"

Ethan dug his claws in a little deeper, this time drawing blood. "Don't even look at her. You don't deserve that."

"I'm the principal of this school! Who are you to make demands of me?" He looked pathetic as he fought back against Ethan.

"When I'm done, you and my father will be nothing," Ethan seethed. "Those who abuse their power don't deserve it, and I'll make sure you lose it one way or another." He looked over his shoulder at me. "There's rope in the hall closet. Can you grab it? I want to make sure to deliver the principal on a silver platter to Alpha Williams when we see him tomorrow."

I nodded and scurried out of the room. My heart was still racing from the attack, unsure of what would've happened if Ethan hadn't stepped in when he did. I hated feeling so helpless, and I made a note to ask Ethan or one of the other brothers to teach me self- defense moves when this was all over. I never wanted to feel unable to protect myself or anyone else ever again.

I opened the closet in the hallway, and it was filled with various weapons, armor, and other random items. I couldn't help but stare at everything in the closet. I knew Ethan as the TA who came to the school to investigate rumors. However, as the future beta, he would be in charge of the safety of all werewolves. It made sense he would be trained as a skilled warrior. It just hadn't clicked until I stared at all of the weapons in front of me.

I shook myself out of my stupor, knowing Ethan was waiting for me to return with the rope. I grabbed the thickest rope I could find and then shut the closet door. As I turned back to the bedroom, I felt a prick on my neck. My hand flew up to my neck, thinking a bug bit me, but then, out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a dark figure standing behind me.

"Eth-" I tried to call out, but a hand over my mouth stopped any sound from coming out. My vision started to grow blurry, and my legs quickly became like jello.

"Shh," a voice said in my ear as hands wrapped around my torso.

***

AXEL

Asher stopped the car in front of the abandoned warehouse where Nathan was being kept. There were no other cars in the parking lot, and all of the lights around the building were smashed to pieces. The hunter picked a strategic location where no one would hear anything that happened inside.

"Our goal is to get in there, get Nathan, and get out," Asher said, turning off the car. "Ideally, it would be nice to kill the bastard who took Nathan and tried to kill Juniper, but we can always do that another time. It's more important to make sure Nathan is safe." "Agreed," I said.

Asher reached behind him and grabbed the black bag he had taken from our house. He stopped by our father's personal armory and stocked up before we left. It was just one of the benefits of being the sons of the beta. We had unlimited access to weapons-not that I had ever needed them before.

"Our wolf form will be more powerful, but you never know what kind of tricks this hunter knows," Asher said. "It's important to be prepared for an attack at any point. We may not be able to transform."

I stared at him as he gave me instructions. Under different circumstances, I would have teased him about his serious face or how he sounded just like Ethan. In this situation, I was grateful my twin had gone through all of the trainings I dipped out on. He knew strategies and skills I never bothered to hone. I was excellent at street fighting, but I rarely thought about tactics.

"What?" Asher asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he caught me staring.

I shrugged. "I was just thinking that you make a good leader."

"You're the only one who seems to think so," Asher said, turning his gaze away from me.

"Ethan seems to also think so. Why do you think he made sure you came with Juniper and me when we went to find that witch?" Even though I hated Ethan making Asher go with us initially, in the end, I was grateful for it. By the end of the trip, it felt like I had my brother back-not the jealous monster he had been beforehand.

Ethan was the type who would've known that a trip like that would give us a chance to talk through our issues over Juniper, but I also knew it was because Asher was excellent at planning and executing.

"He just wanted an extra bodyguard," Asher said, brushing off the comment. He opened the car door and stepped outside, grabbing the box of evidence on his way out. Clearly, he was done with the conversation.

I followed him, with several weapons strapped to my side. I knew I was better at fighting with my fists than weapons, but I would rather have them and not need them than need them and not have them.

"You don't honestly think Ethan sees you that way, do you?" I followed Asher towards the entrance of the warehouse. "Ethan has always gone to you when he needed someone to get the job done. He trusts you the most out of the rest of us, and rightfully so. I bet Ethan will even want to make you his head warrior once he becomes the new beta."

"If he becomes the new beta," Asher corrected. "I'm sure our father won't let any of us live once he knows we know the truth and want to get rid of him."

"We'll take him down," I said confidently. I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but after knowing he put my brothers in danger just to hide his crimes, I was determined to see our father crumble.

Asher put his hand up suddenly and froze. Looking around, I didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but I also trusted Asher's instincts.

Someone is following us, Asher said. Keep an eye on my back. We're going in.

I nodded, glancing behind us. I didn't sense what Asher did, but I knew his senses were sharper than mine after the years of training I suddenly wished I hadn't ditched. Even if I couldn't sense them, if they tried to attack, I was ready to defend Asher's back. Asher opened the door to the warehouse, and it swung open easily. The warehouse was completely dark, except for a single light in the middle of the room, illuminating someone tied to a chair. He had the same build as Nathan, but his head was covered with a burlap sack, hiding his face from us.

I immediately started moving towards him, but Asher placed a hand on my chest to stop me.

This is likely a trap, he reminded me.

I knew he was right, but seeing Nathan tied up like that in front of me made it hard not to just run to him. I wanted to protect my younger brother and keep him safe from all of this madness, but Asher was right. We had to play their game to get him back. "We brought your documents," Asher announced, holding up the box of papers to show them we were serious. He slowly took steps forward. I followed his lead, keeping an eye behind him, in case they tried to surprise us from behind.

The door to the warehouse slammed shut from the outside. I rushed over to it and discovered it was locked. Asher didn't even seem phased when I linked him that information.

"Set the box down and take several steps back away from it," a voice echoed around the room, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact location it came from. I didn't recognize that voice, which made me uncomfortable. I had been expecting to face the hunter, not this random person.

"Let our brother go, and we'll do as you say," Asher returned. The confidence in his voice was impressive. It held the command of a leader.

"You're not the one in charge here," the voice said. Footsteps filled the air, and then a slender figure emerged from the shadows. She was tall, and her muddy hair was pulled into a tight bun.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm the one they send in to clean up everyone else's messes," she declared. "Your father is absolutely careless. He has left countless loose ends, risking our chances to take over and lead the werewolves."

Asher tossed the box down in front of him. "Here's what you wanted. Untie Nathan and let us go. You can still go through with whatever your plan is."

She clicked her tongue. "Do you honestly think I'm that foolish?" she said with venom dripping off her tongue. "After you learned the truth about your poor, dead brother, I do not believe you would just let this all go. Beta Burrell thinks he can convince you all to join his side, but I don't think that's true, now is it? It's such a shame. The kind of power you could gain if you just put your morals aside would be astronomical."

"We would never-" Asher started to say.

"What kind of power can you offer us?" I asked. I felt Asher's eyes dig into me in horror. I wanted to explain what I was doing, but if I linked him, the woman might pick up on the subtle communication. If I was going to succeed with this plan, I needed the woman and Asher to believe I was willing to betray my brothers.