Chapter Four

Jonas stuffed a fry into his mouth, still snickering. “I’m sorry, but no.”

Kendrick pointed at him with one of his fries. “There’s nothing better on fries than mayo. You have to try it.”

“Ketchup all the way.”

Things had been easy between him and Kendrick. They didn’t have the ghost of Devon hanging above their heads anymore, and they’d been spending a lot of time together. If Jonas had had any doubts that Kendrick was his mate, he wouldn’t anymore. Kendrick was the perfect man for him, and he’d tell that to anyone who asked.

They had fun. There wasn’t much to do at the village, but thankfully, Whitedell wasn’t far. They drove there every time they had a date, which so far had been three. Jonas couldn’t wait to see how the next ones would go, but he already knew that by the end of it, he and Kendrick would be bonded.

They were taking things slow, but Jonas was fine with that. They had the rest of their very long lives to rush ahead, think about the future, and all of that. He was enjoying the dating, and he thought that Kendrick was, too. He seemed lighter, as if spending time with Jonas was helping him smile more, and Jonas hoped that was true.

Kendrick’s phone started ringing. For a moment he looked like he was thinking about not answering, but Jonas waved at him. He didn’t care if their date was interrupted. If Alexis or Caroline called him, he’d answer, and he didn’t expect Kendrick not to do the same with his friends.

Kendrick took out his phone and frowned at the screen. “I don’t recognize the number.”

“Maybe you should answer, then. It’s the only way to find out who it is.”

Kendrick rolled his eyes, but he did as Jonas said. “Yes?”

He was silent for a moment, and even though Jonas wanted nothing more than to find out what was happening and who it was, he forced himself to focus on his meal. He could easily listen into the conversation with his heightened senses, but his mate deserved his privacy. Whoever it was, it was none of Jonas’s business.

“Ryan?” Kendrick said, sounding like he couldn’t believe what was happening.

If it was Ryan, neither could Jonas, and it was Jonas’s business. He leaned over the table, curious. Kendrick didn’t seem to mind, because he mirrored Jonas’s position as if wanting him to hear, too.

“Yeah, of course I have time to talk. What’s up?”

Jonas was happy for his mate. He hadn’t expected Ryan to contact Kendrick so quickly. It hadn’t looked like Ryan’s social media was being used a lot, and Jonas hadn’t wanted his mate to be disappointed. He was glad Ryan was doing this, though. It was all Kendrick wanted.

Jonas would never get his siblings back. His family was gone, and while he had a found family, it wasn’t the same. He’d always miss his siblings and his parents, but at the same time, it didn’t mean he couldn’t be happy. He had Alexis and Caroline, and now, Kendrick. He was starting to feel like he actually belonged in the village, which wasn’t something he’d expected.

For a long time, Jonas had felt like he was drifting. That wasn’t the case anymore. Now, he felt like he was home.

“Yeah, wait a minute. I’ll put my mate on speaker so he can hear,” Kendrick said.

He did just that, placing his phone on the table between them and pressing the right button. For a moment, only silence came from the phone.

“You’re on speaker,” Kendrick said. “Ryan, my mate Jonas is here. Jonas, this is Ryan, my little brother.”

“I’m not so little anymore,” Ryan said with a snigger.

“You’ve always been my little brother. You are ten years younger than me, after all. A baby.”

“I’d be offended, but right now, I do feel like a child. I need your help, Kendrick.”

Jonas could already tell that Kendrick would do whatever Ryan needed, and he agreed. As far as he was concerned, Ryan was his brother, too. If there was anything he needed, Jonas would help. “Hi, Ryan,” he said.

“Hey, Jonas. I wish I could say we were meeting in better circumstances.”

“What’s going on?” Kendrick asked. He was frowning, which wasn’t what Jonas had wanted for him when he finally talked to his brother.

“I, well, I’m not sure what to do. You know I just turned eighteen, right?”

“Yeah, I remember. Happy birthday, by the way.”

“Not so happy,” Ryan said with a snort. “As soon as I turned eighteen, Dad told me I needed to start paying rent. I wouldn’t mind that, but I just started at my job, and I don’t earn enough to pay him what he wants, and I still have to pay for food and the car. I told him that, but he didn’t seem to care. He said it was either paying him what he asked for or getting out, and I don’t know what to do.”

“Why do you need money for food?” Jonas asked.

“Because I need to pay for everything now that I’m eighteen. He won’t buy me anything anymore, food or clothes or anything like that. Again, I wouldn’t mind, but I don’t earn that much yet. I can’t give him what he wants, not if I want to eat, but if I don’t pay rent, I don’t have a home anymore.”

Jonas didn’t understand parents who did that. Maybe it was because he’d lost everyone and couldn’t imagine asking anyone in his family to pay rent, but he hated what Kendrick and Ryan’s father was doing. “We can come pick you up,” he offered.

“Really?”

Ryan sounded like he didn’t believe Jonas, which Jonas couldn’t blame him for. They didn’t know each other. The only thing Ryan knew about Jonas was that he was Kendrick’s mate.

“Yeah, really,” Kendrick said. “We live in a small village. We’re part of a clan, so if you want to stay here, you will be, too, but it shouldn’t be a problem. The clan leaders are nice people, and one of them is human.”

“And I’d be welcome?”

“Of course. You’re my brother, but more than that, Clay and Rowan like to help people. They also need more clan members, so that would be a plus.”

“But I’m not a shifter.”

“Neither am I, but they welcomed me anyway. I met Jonas, and I have a home and friends.” Kendrick hesitated. “I need to tell you that I’m a hunter, though.”

“Like, you hunt animals?”

“In a way. I hunt Kudlaks. They’re paranormal beings who usually aren’t nice people. I fell into it a few years after I left home, and some of the hunters have become my family. I realize this is scary, but you won’t have to be part of any of that. You can move here and find a job and settle down.”

“I think I’d like that. I want to spend time with you.”

Kendrick’s smile was blinding. If this was what getting his brother back did to him, then maybe Jonas should have helped sooner. Kendrick deserved to be happy, and clearly, having Ryan back would help with that.

“Can you come pick me up? I have a car, but it’s Dad’s. I can’t take it.”

Kendrick growled a little, which was impressive since he was human. “He’s making you pay for that, too?”

“He’s making me pay for everything. I’m surprised I haven’t been told to pay for the oxygen I breathe when I’m home.”

Jonas snorted. Something told him he was going to like Ryan.

“Jonas and I will pick you up,” Kendrick promised. “I’m going to have to talk to the clan leaders first, but it shouldn’t take me long. I just need to warn them that you’re coming. Then we can get you. Are you going to tell him that I’m coming?”

“I don’t know. He hasn’t talked about you for years. I asked him what happened to you a few times in the beginning, but he said you’d left and not to bother him. Now that I’m eighteen, I think I can imagine what happened.”

“Yeah. It wasn’t easy, but I really thought that it’d be different with you.”

Ryan scoffed. “The only person he’s ever truly cared about is himself. Who my mother is doesn’t matter. He dislikes both you and me the same way, and now that I’m eighteen, he doesn’t see a problem with what he’s doing. He probably doesn’t think I have an alternative.”

“But you do,” Jonas said.

“I do, thanks to the two of you. He’s going to be pissed when he finds out.”

“Do we care what he thinks?”

Jonas and Kendrick exchanged a glance. Something told Jonas that, no, they didn’t care what that asshole thought.

* * * *

When Kendrick got his hands on his father, he was going to strangle him. He’d thought things would be different with Ryan because he wasn’t associated with Kendrick’s mother, but it looked like he’d been wrong.

Ryan had said that his mother didn’t matter. Maybe when he’d been a child, it had made life better for him, but not anymore.

Kendrick had never really hated his father. He despised him, and he didn’t like him, but hate would be too strong a word. He hadn’t really cared about the way his father treated him, but he did care about how he treated Ryan.

Ryan was just a kid. Kendrick had been a kid ten years ago, too, but he’d already known what would happen when he turned eighteen. He’d expected his father to kick him out, which was why he’d decided to leave before it could happen. He’d packed his things, had put away as much money as he could, and had left the minute the candle he’d stuck into a cupcake had been blown.

The first few years hadn’t been easy. The few years after that hadn’t been, either. He’d become a hunter by then, but he was still homeless, moving from abandoned warehouse to abandoned house, following the orders of a man he despised as much as his father. It was only recently that things had gotten better, but it had taken years.

Kendrick didn’t want his brother to go through that, especially not when there was a different option. He could give Ryan everything their father hadn’t given him. He’d never be Ryan’s father, but he didn’t need to be to care about him. Ryan was his baby brother, after all.

“We don’t care what he thinks,” Ryan confirmed. “I’ll be waiting, then.”

“We’ll be there as soon as we can,” Kendrick promised.

It was hard to say goodbye, and it took Kendrick way longer than it normally would to end the call. As soon as Ryan’s voice vanished, though, Kendrick was on his feet, digging into his pocket for money. He was already making a mental list of things he needed to do to get Ryan here. He could stay with him, of course, maybe help him with renovating the house. Kendrick would have to talk to Clay and Rowan first. They would have the last word when it came to this.

If they didn’t want Ryan in the clan, Kendrick would have to leave. After what their father had done to Ryan, Kendrick didn’t want to be another person who abandoned him. He’d go wherever Ryan was going, although he hoped he wouldn’t have to. He didn’t want to choose between his brother and his newfound family, and he didn’t want to give up his mate.

He looked at Jonas as Jonas reached for him.

Jonas wrapped his fingers around Kendrick’s wrist, gently squeezing. There was affection in his gaze, something that Kendrick wasn’t sure he’d earned.

“I’ll take care of it,” Jonas said.

“Do you think Clay and Rowan will agree to have Ryan stay here? Because if they don’t, I’ll have to leave with Ryan, and I don’t want to do that. I don’t want to leave you and the home we’re building.”

“Don’t start obsessing about everything that can go wrong before you even talk to them. They’re reasonable people, and they’re still looking for more clan members. I don’t see why they shouldn’t want him in the clan.”

“What if they don’t like him?”

“What if they do? Everything will be fine, Kendrick. And if Clay and Rowan reveal themselves to be very different people than I think they are, then we’ll both go. They won’t just lose one member of the clan. They’ll lose you and me, and probably Caroline and Alexis, too. And don’t you think that Boyd would come along? And maybe even Chris and Gary?”

It was a jolt to the system to realize that, yes, all these people would come along if Kendrick had to leave. “Yeah, okay. I need to relax.”

Jonas snickered. “I’d say so. Go outside and grab the car. I’ll pay our tab and join you.”

Kendrick obeyed, even though he should have insisted he be the one to pay. He was overwhelmed and working on his list, but he kept losing focus when he reached ten.

He had to talk to Clay and Rowan and convince them to allow his brother to move to the village. He had to check the house and ensure that at least one guest room was clean and livable. He had to go and buy stuff like bed sheets and whatever else Ryan would need. He doubted that their father would allow Ryan to leave with anything he deemed was his, which was probably anything that Ryan hadn’t bought himself.

Kendrick had always known that his father was an asshole, but he hadn’t expected this. He’d believed that his father disliked him because of his mother, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

He was in the car, ready to drive home, when Jonas got in a few minutes later. He climbed into the passenger seat, his phone in his hand.

“I’ve already started making a list. Obviously, talking to Clay and Rowan is the first thing to do. We also have to buy stuff for Ryan, right? It sounds like your father isn’t going to let him take anything from the home.”

Kendrick stared. How had his mate had the same thoughts he had? How was he making a list when that was what Kendrick was trying to work on? “I’m falling in love with you,” Kendrick blurted out.

Jonas blinked at him. “I’m sorry?”

It was too late for Kendrick to take back his words, and he didn’t want to. He really was falling in love with his mate. He knew that would happen eventually, but it seemed that Jonas hadn’t realized it would be quite so soon. Neither had Kendrick. “I’m falling in love with you,” he repeated. “I was trying to make a list of things I need to do, but it’s overwhelming. You decided to do the same thing without even asking me what you could do. You just took charge, and I’m sure that if I ask you to take charge of the trip and everything else that needs to be done, you’ll do that, too.”

“Of course I would. You’re my mate.”

He said it as if it was a given, but to Kendrick, it wasn’t. It meant that his mate cared about him, bond or no bond. Kendrick leaned forward to kiss Jonas. Jonas made a surprised little sound that made Kendrick want to haul him into the back seat, but they didn’t have time.

Kendrick leaned back. “What’s the first thing on your list, then?”

Jonas blinked as if he was trying to reboot his brain. The sight made Kendrick smile, but especially so when Jonas smiled back.

“Talk to Clay and Rowan. They need to know that we’re going to grab your brother and that we’ll be bringing him home. That way, they won’t be surprised when they suddenly have a new clan member.”

“I’m still not a hundred percent sure they’ll be okay with him suddenly living here.”

“They will. Stop worrying too much. This is everything you could ever have wanted, isn’t it? You have a home in the village, you’ve met me, and now you’ll have your brother back. Don’t think about what might go wrong. Focus on the positives.”

Kendrick wished it was that easy, but he was used to thinking about just how wrong things could go. That way, when it happened, he wasn’t disappointed. But maybe Jonas was right. Maybe this time, Kendrick could allow himself to believe that everything would be all right and that by the end of this mess, both he and Ryan would live in the village, and the two would be closer than ever.

It felt too good to be true to have all of this almost at once, but Kendrick wanted to believe he’d earned it—and more than that, he wanted to believe he’d be able to keep it.

* * * *

Jonas wasn’t worried. He already knew Clay and Rowan would welcome Ryan with open arms. He wasn’t sure why Kendrick was so hesitant about this, but if he took the time to truly think about the situation, he’d realize it, too.

Clay and Rowan needed more people. They needed more Krsnik and Vila, but also more people in general. They needed them to open stores, maybe start a tiny school. They needed healers and everything else. Ryan might not be a healer, but it didn’t mean there was nothing he could do for the village.

So no, he wasn’t worried. He already knew Ryan would be welcome here, just like he and Kendrick had been. He didn’t have to be useful. He just had to come.

Kendrick was still very nervous as they parked the car in front of his house and walked the five minutes it took them to reach Clay and Rowan’s house. There was nothing that Jonas could say that would allow him to relax, so he didn’t try. Kendrick would only believe this once it was in front of him.

He was the one who knocked when Kendrick hesitated. He almost rolled his eyes, but Kendrick’s expression told Jonas just how apprehensive he was, and it didn’t feel like the moment to tease him.

Instead, Jonas leaned closer to him. “Remember that if something goes wrong and Ryan can’t move here, we’ll just move away to be with him,” he murmured.

That seemed to do the trick. Kendrick had just started loosening up when the door swung open. Clay had on jeans and a t-shirt. His feet were bare, and his hair was messy. It looked like Jonas and Kendrick might have interrupted some time alone with his mate, and in any other circumstance, Jonas would have been sorry, but not today.

“Kendrick and I need to talk to you,” he said.

Clay blinked and stepped aside to let them in. Kendrick was nervous all over again, so Jonas took his hand and linked their fingers together. Of course, Clay noticed. He smiled.

“Another couple?” he asked as he closed the door.

Jonas realized they hadn’t yet told their leaders about their bond. They’d been too focused on each other, which was how things should be. “Kendrick’s my mate. We’re not bonded yet, but we’ve been dating. That’s not why we’re here, though.”

“Oh? Do I have to worry?”

“I don’t think so. We’re together, and Kendrick’s brother is coming to live with us as long as you agree.”

Clay gestured in the direction of the kitchen. Jonas dragged Kendrick forward, ignoring Clay’s snicker. He could still feel how tense Kendrick was, which was why he’d decided to take the lead. He didn’t want Kendrick to have to muddle through this when he could barely think. He was worried about his brother, and frankly, so was Jonas.

It would be easy for Kendrick and Ryan’s father to kick Ryan out since he couldn’t afford the outrageous rent the man was asking for. Jonas wondered if he was asking for so much money because he knew that Ryan couldn’t afford it. Maybe this was his way to get Ryan to leave. He could feel righteous about it because he wouldn’t be the one to kick Ryan out, but Ryan still couldn’t afford to continue living in the house where he’d grown up.

“Please tell me you’re not bringing me more trouble,” Rowan groaned when he saw them walking into the kitchen.

He was wearing jeans, like Clay, but he looked better put together. It was almost as if Clay hadn’t cared that whoever was knocking on his door would know what he and Rowan had been up to—or maybe Rowan had time to fix his hair while Clay had been opening the door and talking to Jonas and Kendrick.

“It shouldn’t be trouble,” Kendrick quickly said. “My brother’s been kicked out of his childhood home. He has a job, but he doesn’t have a lot of money, and he can’t afford rent anywhere. I was wondering if he could move here. He could live with me, so you won’t have to give him a new place, and he can find a job.”

Kendrick was talking fast, as if he expected Rowan or Clay to stop him and tell him it wouldn’t work. Jonas squeezed his hand, trying to tell him that everything would be okay, even though he couldn’t know if that would be the case.

He wanted everything to be okay. He needed everything to be okay. It was in Clay and Rowan’s hands, though, and he hoped they’d do the right thing.

“Tell us about him,” Rowan said.

Kendrick didn’t know a lot about his brother, but he told Rowan everything he and Jonas knew. Apparently that was enough to satisfy their clan leader, because once Kendrick was done talking, he nodded. “I don’t see any problems with him becoming a clan member if that’s what he wants. We’ll want to talk to him when he arrives, but as far as I’m concerned, he’s welcome here.”

Kendrick slumped sideways, and Jonas was glad to be there to hold him up. He wrapped an arm around Kendrick’s waist, hugging him close.

“I don’t know how to thank you,” Kendrick murmured.

“You don’t have to thank us. Just go out there and grab your brother. Bring him home.”

“Jonas and I are planning to leave as soon as possible, so we will.”

It still took them another five minutes to leave the house. As soon as they did, they had to separate. They both had to pack for a few days, since Kendrick had decided to drive. Ryan had said he had a car, but he couldn’t take it, and hopefully, he’d have enough bags to fill the trunk. It would be incredibly sad if his father didn’t allow him to take anything.

Jonas headed home with the promise that he’d be in front of Kendrick’s house in fifteen minutes tops. He was pretty sure Kendrick would leave without him if he wasn’t, so he had every intention of being on time, but he hadn’t counted on Caroline and Alexis.

They were both on the couch when Jonas arrived. It was good to see Alexis there, even though he didn’t live in the house anymore. There were no signs of Boyd, so he probably hadn’t come.

As much as Jonas wanted to flop onto the couch with them, he made a beeline for the stairs and climbed them two by two. Luckily he didn’t have to pack much if they were only going to be gone for two days. He put together a pair of clean jeans, a few t-shirts, and two sweaters. He packed underwear and toiletries, and by the time he was done, Alexis was at his door.

“What are you doing?” he asked, staring at the bag on Jonas’s bed.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m packing.”

“I can see that, but why are you packing? Are things going badly with Kendrick?”

Of course that was where Alexis’s thoughts went. “Things are going great between us, so don’t worry about that. We’re going to pick up Kendrick’s brother and bring him here. And yes, we talked to Clay and Rowan, and they’re okay with it.”

“Look at you, all responsible. You’ve grown so much,” Alexis said as he dried away imaginary tears from his cheeks.

Jonas threw a pair of socks at his head. Alexis ducked, and they sailed over his head. Jonas didn’t waste time picking them up. He had plenty of socks, anyway. “He needs help,” he explained.

“Then it’s good that you’re going to help him.”

“I’m a bit nervous. What if he doesn’t like me?”

“It’s impossible not to like you.”

“I’m sure plenty of people don’t like me. I don’t need to impress them, but I do need to impress Ryan. What do I do?”

“Be yourself. There’s no reason for you to panic. Even if Ryan doesn’t like you, Kendrick is your mate, and he knows how important your bond is to you. He won’t let you down.”

Jonas hoped that was true. He didn’t want Kendrick to have to choose between him and his brother, so he prayed Ryan was as nice a person as he seemed on the phone. Even if he disliked Jonas, he should be able to tolerate him enough that they could be in each other’s lives.

There was only one way to find out.

Jonas needed to go, and he needed to go before Kendrick left his ass here.

* * * *

Kendrick was already in the car when Jonas arrived. Kendrick was relieved to see that his mate had only brought a small backpack, although he was also holding a second bag. He kept that one with him when he climbed into the passenger seat after dropping the backpack into the trunk.

“I brought snacks,” he announced, raising the bag as if Kendrick hadn’t seen it.

“Thank you. I didn’t think of it.”

Jonas’s smile was gentle. “I didn’t expect you to. I know you’re overwhelmed, so the more I can take off your hands, the better.” He set down the bag and settled in his seat. “So, where are we going?”

Kendrick wasn’t eager to see his father again. He disliked both his parents, and he wasn’t planning on having conversations with them. He hadn’t talked to either of them since he was eighteen, and they hadn’t tried to reach him. His life was perfectly fine without them, and he hoped things would continue that way.

“It’s not very far, just over an hour of driving,” he explained. “We probably could have asked a Nix to shimmer us there, but I don’t know how much stuff Ryan is bringing along, and I feel he’s going to need the time of the drive back to decompress and wrap his mind around what’s happening.” There was also the fact that Kendrick liked driving, so he didn’t mind.

“So the snacks weren’t needed,” Jonas said, sounding a bit sad.

“It doesn’t mean we can’t eat them. Besides, I don’t know when Ryan last ate. He said that our father doesn’t want him to eat the food in the house if he doesn’t pay for it, so there’s a good chance he’ll be hungry, especially at his age.” Ryan was still growing, and Kendrick felt humbled by the fact that he’d be there to watch him do so.

He’d missed so much over the past ten years. He hadn’t been there for the transition that Ryan had made from being a child to a teenager and now an adult. He was glad this was it, though. Whatever happened in the future, he’d be with Ryan, and he could watch him become a man he would be proud of.

He couldn’t deny he was a bit scared. The village was vulnerable, and there was a good chance it would eventually be attacked. He also didn’t want to drag his brother into the hunters’ mess. He hoped Ryan wouldn’t be drawn to it. He wanted his brother to have a different job, something that wouldn’t put him in danger. He wouldn’t try to stop him if he wanted to be a hunter, but he would try to talk him out of it if he could. No one should live that life. If Kendrick could turn back time, he wouldn’t choose it for himself.

Kendrick had been a hunter for the past eight, almost nine years now. He knew what the job was like. He knew how it felt to kill someone, to see their blood on his hands, to see their eyes grow glassy. He knew what it felt like to be stabbed and bitten. Like all hunters, he bore the scars of what he did. He was one of the lucky ones because he was still alive and in one piece, but many hunters he’d worked with over the years were gone. He couldn’t even think about finally getting his brother back after ten years, only to lose him to a Kudlak.

“You’re still worried,” Jonas said.

“I don’t want him to become a hunter.”

“He doesn’t have to be. There are plenty of things to do in the village. I’m not a hunter, even though I’m a Krsnik. Why should he be one?”

“He shouldn’t be one, but he might choose to be.”

Jonas reached over and squeezed Kendrick’s thigh. “And if he does, he’ll be surrounded by people who will keep him safe. We both know that it’s a dangerous job, but your brother is an adult. He can make his own decisions, including what job he wants. I wouldn’t worry too much if I were you, though. Being a hunter would be horrifying to a lot of people. It takes a special kind of person to be able to do that, especially for as long as you’ve been doing it.”

“You always know what to say to make me feel better,” Kendrick said as he reached down and quickly squeezed Jonas’s hand.

Jonas grinned. “That would be because I’m your mate.”

“Or maybe it’s just how you are.”

“I don’t know. I’m convinced that we’ll manage to defeat the Kudlaks, though. I have no idea how long it will take, but we will, and once that happens, we’ll be safe, and we’ll finally be able to live our lives. We just have to believe and keep faith.”

Kendrick wished he could have as much faith as Jonas, but he’d seen too much too many times. He wanted to hope, though.

For more than eight years, he’d lived in abandoned buildings, killed Kudlaks, and fought to survive. The only thing that mattered back then was to put one foot in front of the other and to get through another day. Now he actually had things to live for, and he wanted to enjoy his life. He wanted to watch Jonas grow old, sit on the porch with him and watch the sunset, and wake up for thousands of mornings with him in his arms. He wanted to have fun, to finally start living instead of merely surviving, and he wanted the same for his brother.

Maybe Jonas was better placed than Kendrick to predict what would happen with the Kudlaks. He was a Krsnik, and he’d been born into this life. He was decades older than Kendrick, and he’d been surviving almost entirely on his own for most of them. He’d seen much more than Kendrick could ever dream of, and Kendrick wanted to think he was right.

“Let’s focus on the now, all right?” Jonas asked. “It’s no use to obsess over what will happen with the Kudlaks. It’s especially no use to wonder what will happen to you and your brother. Whatever happens happens, and in the meantime, we’d better live life to the fullest. I want to believe that we’ll defeat the Kudlaks and that everyone I care about will be alive when we do, but I know there’s a strong chance that I’ll lose someone. If that happens, I want to be able to say that I made the most out of the time I had with them.”

Maybe that was the way to go about this. There was nothing Kendrick could do to stop the future from happening. If the Kudlaks wanted to attack the village, they would. If one of them could hurt or even kill Kendrick during a hunt, they wouldn’t hesitate. Kendrick would always try his best to come home and defend the village and the people he loved, but there were no guarantees.

The only thing they could do was to move forward, protect the village and their people as best as they could, and hope. Having more people living in the village would make it stronger, and even though Kendrick didn’t want his brother to be anywhere near a Kudlak, he’d make sure to teach Ryan how to defend himself. If anything ever happened, Ryan would need it.

Kendrick couldn’t live with the obsession of the Kudlaks. He’d seen what it could do, and he didn’t want that for himself. Being a hunter was an important job, and he’d continue doing it, but once he was home, he’d focus on his personal life and the people he loved. He didn’t want to live for the hunt. He wanted to be a hunter to protect people and to be able to live a peaceful life once they were defeated.

He was sure that between his brother and his mate, he’d be able to do that like his friends had done. Boyd had retired, and while Chris was still a hunter, he’d obviously changed. Clay and Rowan didn’t live for the hunt anymore, either. Instead, they lived for each other.

“Everything will be all right,” Jonas promised.

Kendrick believed him.