Chapter 4. A Clue in the Wilderness

Aldrich’s POV

We have searched three packs in the south, and we haven’t had any clue about the whereabouts of the princess. Whether she was alive or dead, we had no idea.

It was just one pack left that we hadn’t searched in the south.

Since the Southern Pack has four packs, the last one was the Nightstalkers Pack.

We had followed our father’s direction because this was the mission he had before he passed. He had gone to the packs on the northern side of the country, and our pack was in the western part.

The Southern Pack was the only one left that had to be searched.

I was studying the Nightstalkers Pack so I could learn about their Alpha, Alpha Jenkins Johnson. Our departure for the pack was tomorrow, and it was already getting late, and Arsenio wasn’t at the hotel where we were staying for the night.

I turned off the light in the room because I needed to get some rest before our journey tomorrow. We had to leave early in the morning to get to the pack before nightfall.

“Beta, we are ready.” The few guards we had taken along bowed. They were already waiting outside the hotel in front of our cars.

“Where is my brother? We need to leave now.” I glanced at my wristwatch. It was past the time we had agreed to leave for the Nightstalkers Pack.

“No, Beta. He has not come out yet.”

I ran a finger through my hair and exhaled.

“Did he come back to the hotel last night?” I asked.

“He was at the bar in the hotel, Beta. That was where we saw him last night.”

I couldn’t believe Arsenio. This wasn’t the time for this.

I growled and marched back into the hotel. He must’ve gotten another room since he didn’t come back to the one we shared.

He was probably there with a woman.

“Where are you?” I mind-linked him.

There wasn’t any response from him. Was he sleeping?

Fuck, Arsenio!

I met with the receptionist and asked if there was a guy who looked like me and if he had booked another room last night.

She informed me he was here and gave me the room number.

I hurried to his room and broke the door with my fist. Arsenio woke up because of the sound, and a woman was beside him on the bed with her hands around his body.

I was irked by the sight.

“What the fuck are you doing, Arsenio?” I growled furiously.

“You went to the bar, and if that wasn’t enough, you took another girl to your room—a girl that isn’t your mate.”

Arsenio rolled his eyes and stood up from the bed. He picked up his pants and put them on.

I glared at the woman. She hastily picked up her dress. “Get out!” I yelled.

She ran out of the room, and I pushed my hair back with both hands aggressively.

“We should have been on our way to the Nightstalkers Pack by now, but because you failed to show up on time, we’ve been delayed.”

“So?” he replied nonchalantly.

“So?” I stepped forward into the room and got close to him. “That’s what you have to say?”

“What the fuck do you want me to say? We have been searching for her for weeks now, and I can’t get any rest. And you didn’t have to break the door.”

“You should have answered when I mind-linked you and found out you were with another woman.”

“Don’t chide me, Aldrich!” he shouted.

“This isn’t important!”

“What’s important?” He glared, using the same tone as I did. “Finding the lost princess?” He snorted. “Isn’t that what could have taken Dad’s life?”

“Dad had enemies in the council of elders’ court. It could have been anyone, and I won’t let you talk about Dad in that manner. We need to complete the mission and show the Alpha King how loyal we are. If we can get him to trust us when we bring his daughter back, we will be able to investigate Dad’s death properly and gain some power—not just in the pack but also in the werewolf country. Is that what you want to mess up?”

“What do you mean I’m messing it up?”

“Why would you sleep with someone who’s not our mate?” My voice rose again. The thought of seeing him in bed with another woman irritated me.

“Don’t make a big deal out of it.” He scoffed, took a shirt from the chair, and put it on.

“You’re disrespecting our future mate!” I raised my voice.

“I see nothing wrong with finding pleasure when I need it.”

“You never see anything wrong in anything!” I pointed out.

“And you should stop acting like you’re Dad. Just because you’re the older twin doesn’t give you the right to talk shit to me.” He walked out of the room, brushing his shoulder against mine, and stepped out of the hotel.

I took a deep breath and punched my fists against the wall, leaving a crack in it.

I waited a few minutes, managed to calm myself, and left the hotel. I met them beside the car.

“Let’s go,” I ordered, and we got into the car.

We drove for a while. Arsenio and I took separate cars and didn’t speak to each other.

We were driving when a truck appeared on our tail. I noticed and instructed the guard to drive faster.

They came after us at speed and hit our car from behind. The other truck had crashed into Arsenio’s car, and it had slammed into a tree.

Our car screeched to a sudden halt, and I was jerked forward. I came out of the car, and wolves immediately surrounded us, their scent masked.

The three guards that came with us were killed, and Arsenio and I were outnumbered, but I wasn’t going to let them hurt my twin.

I shifted into my wolf form and fought the wolves attacking Arsenio. I pushed one off him and got bitten on my arm instead. I slashed my claws across the wolf’s chest.

“We need to run, Aldrich. We can’t fight them—we need to run,” Arsenio mind-linked me.

“Aldrich, you’re wounded,” he insisted. He pulled me up, and we ran into the woods by the roadside.

They came after us, but we lost them in the woods. I leaned against a tree when they were gone and shifted back into my human form.

I groaned at the pain in my arm.

“You should have let me handle it,” Arsenio murmured when he saw the wound.

“They were royal wolves. Why else would they mask their scent? And how did they know where we were? They were sent from our pack,” Arsenio muttered. He tore a piece from his shirt and tied it around my arm.

“I will be fine.” I winced.

“You think the council of elders has something to do with this?” I asked.

“It might be some of them—or all of them. They don’t want us to find the princess. The Alpha King’s sickness is getting worse. If we don’t find the princess, there will be a usurper in our pack,” he answered.

“And they sent those wolves to stop us from finding her.”

We have to keep moving. We can’t stop here. We’ll find our way through the woods.

“Let’s go.” I tapped Arsenio’s shoulder.

“Can you walk? You’re limping.”

I hummed. It would start healing soon, and I didn’t want to see those guilty looks in his eyes.

Before we reached the pack house, we halted when we saw a group of male wolves chasing someone.

Arsenio and I exchanged glances and joined the pursuit, following them as fast as we could.

“What do you think is going on?” Arsenio mind-linked me.

“I don’t know. We have to find out,” I responded.

We hunkered down when they lost track of the person they were chasing. Then we saw a naked female wolf in the bushes. She was clutching a necklace identical to the one the king gave Arsenio. He took it out of his pocket, and we stared at it.

It was the same as the one the king had given us.

“The heirloom.”