Chapter Six

Staying in a hotel for one night hadn’t been a bad idea, and Jonas was glad they had time to rest, but it had also complicated things for Ryan. He’d wanted to stay with the hope that his mother would reach out and come with them, but they hadn’t heard from her. She hadn’t called Jonas, even though he’d written his phone number on her arm. She hadn’t called Ryan either, and since he was her son, Jonas believed it meant that she wasn’t coming.

He wasn’t surprised. He hadn’t expected her to come, not so soon, anyway. He didn’t know what was happening in that house and how Kendrick and Ryan’s father was abusing her, but he thought she was scared. It wasn’t something she could deal with over a few hours. Hopefully, she’d reach out to them in the next few weeks or months. If she did, they could come back to pick her up.

“He looks sad,” Kendrick whispered, leaning closer to Jonas.

They were having breakfast in the hotel dining room. The sun outside was rising and hurt Jonas’s eyes a bit, but he was glad for the warmth it provided. Ryan was staring out the window and poking at his breakfast. He’d only eaten half of what he’d put on his plate, although he’d finished two cups of coffee.

“That’s probably because he is sad,” Jonas whispered back.

“I wish I could do more. You think we should go back to the house?”

“That’s not going to change anything. The only thing it will do is make your father angrier. I don’t think that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Kendrick grimaced. “Definitely not. I just don’t want him to be so sad.”

“You do know I can hear you, right?” Ryan asked without looking at them. “I’m sitting at the table with you.”

Kendrick grinned sheepishly, and Ryan turned his way. He smiled back, and while it was a little sad, he looked better than he had yesterday.

“I’m sorry your mother hasn’t reached out,” Jonas said.

Ryan shrugged. “I’m sorry, too, but I’m not surprised. She doesn’t know how to live without my father. They’ve been together almost twenty years, and I’m pretty sure she thinks she can’t start again, even though she’s young enough to. Hell, even if she wasn’t young, she could still start again. She’s a shifter. She can live another hundred years for all we know.”

Jonas reached over the table to squeeze Ryan’s hand. “Exactly. She’s not coming with you now, but she has a long time. Hopefully, after she’s lived with your father on her own for a few weeks, she’ll realize what an asshole he is and decide to take a chance.”

Ryan nodded. “I hope so. We don’t have a great relationship, but I still want her to be safe and happy.”

Ryan was more gracious than his parents. If Jonas had been in his place, he would have sent everyone to hell and left without looking back. He’d always been a resentful person. When someone hurt him, he smiled and told them he forgave them, but in reality, he held grudges like a champion.

“I’ll be fine,” Ryan told Kendrick. “So you can stop hovering.”

“I don’t think that’s ever going to happen. You’re my baby brother.”

“Can you stop with that baby thing? What’s your obsession with it? First, you tell Jonas you want to be his sugar baby, and now, I’m the baby. What’s up with you? Are you ready to have kids?”

Jonas had been taking a sip of his coffee, and it went the wrong way. He coughed and grabbed his napkin, trying to cover his mouth. Ryan looked unrepentant and gave him a wide smile. If Jonas hadn’t been so happy to see him smiling, he would’ve told him to fuck off. As it was, he flipped him the bird before quickly looking around to check that no one had noticed.

Ryan laughed. “What? I want nieces and nephews.”

“We only met a few weeks ago,” Jonas said, his voice a little rough. “And you’re already saddling us with kids?”

“Think how cute they would be. You could have little Kendricks running around your house, or maybe you’d rather have little Jonases?”

“For now, you’re all the kids I can handle.”

Ryan scowled. “I’m not a child.”

“Then don’t act like one. Stop teasing your brother and finish your food.”

“Yes, Dad.”

Jonas rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat. He noticed Kendrick watching him, and when he turned to him, Kendrick beamed. It was startling but also pleasing. Jonas wasn’t sure what he’d done to make his mate happy, but he had to find out because he wanted to make it happen again. Maybe he had to make a fool of himself to make his mate smile. If that was the case, he’d buy clown makeup and a wig.

“If you’re almost done, I’ll go get the car,” Kendrick said as he got to his feet. “Finish your breakfast. Here, I’ll grab your bag.” He reached out for Ryan’s backpack, which was hanging at the back of Ryan’s chair. Ryan let him, and Kendrick left them alone.

Jonas sighed. He’d be glad they’d be home soon, even though he and Kendrick had only been gone since yesterday. It was supposed to be a quick back and forth, but instead, they’d ended up spending the night. Jonas didn’t regret it, but he wanted his home.

He wasn’t even sure where that was anymore. Was he more at home in the house he shared with Caroline or in the house where Kendrick lived? He hadn’t officially moved in yet, but he suspected he would soon. The house where he lived didn’t matter, anyway. The village did, and even more so, the people who lived there and Jonas’s friends. They were where he belonged.

“I hadn’t realized that you and my brother haven’t been together long,” Ryan suddenly said. “When he talks about you, it’s like he’s known you forever.”

“It feels like it, thanks to our bond. We only met a few weeks ago, but it’s already everything, you know?”

Ryan shrugged. “Not really. I don’t have a mate.”

“I’m sure you do. I can’t guess when you’ll find them, but when you do, you’ll be happy.”

“It feels odd. I mean, I know my parents aren’t mates. My mother never found hers, so she settled for my father. It feels like something that might happen to me, you know? I can’t know for sure that there’s someone out there for me. I might have to settle for someone else, maybe even a human like my mother did.”

Jonas snickered. “I love how you say that. You make it sound like being human is the worst thing that could happen to you.”

“I don’t know about worst, but I’ve seen what it did to my mother.”

Jonas sighed. “Your father would be an asshole even if he were a shifter. You’re only eighteen, Ryan. Don’t start obsessing over this. There’s nothing you can do about it, and you won’t have to worry about dying alone for a long time.”

“I guess. I just want to be happy.”

“You will be.” It was a promise Jonas wasn’t making lightly.

Ryan wasn’t his brother, but he was Kendrick’s brother, and to Jonas, that meant he was family. Jonas would do what he could to help Ryan. He hoped he wouldn’t have to deal with Ryan’s father again, but if Ryan wanted Jonas to go and yell at the guy after giving him a good shake, that was what he’d do. Both Ryan and Kendrick deserved to be taken care of for a bit. They deserved not to have to worry about getting kicked out or being told they weren’t good enough.

God, Jonas hated Kendrick and Ryan’s father.

He and Ryan didn’t have a lot of time, so Jonas quickly finished his coffee and got to his feet. Ryan still didn’t look hungry, so they left.

As promised, Kendrick was waiting for them in the car. He gave Jonas a soft smile when Jonas climbed into the passenger seat, then checked in on Ryan in the back seat. “Ready to go?”

Jonas turned to look at Ryan. This was huge for him. This was the town where he’d been born and where he’d grown up. It was the only place he’d known his entire life. He might not be willing to let it go.

But Ryan nodded and grinned. “Ready.”

* * * *

Kendrick drove the first half-hour without saying anything. He didn’t need to because Jonas and Ryan were carrying on the conversation as if he wasn’t even in the car. He was their driver, but that was it.

He loved it. He’d have all the time in the world to get to know Ryan as an adult, and he couldn’t wait, but it was important to him that Jonas and Ryan got along. They were the most important people in his life, and he needed them to live well together.

It looked like they did. Jonas kept telling Ryan stories about his life and what he’d done after he’d fled what remained of his clan. He never went into details about what the Kudlaks had done or anything like that, but since he wasn’t a hunter, he had funny stories about his jobs at bars and cafés.

Ryan was soaking everything up. It was clear he’d been alone before Kendrick and Jonas appeared to take him away. It broke Kendrick’s heart to know that because he remembered Ryan as a sweet, gentle, and friendly boy. He hadn’t had a ton of friends, but he’d had a few close ones, and he’d seemed satisfied with that. He didn’t even have those now, and if Kendrick could get his hands on his father, he’d give him a good shake and would strangle him—in that order.

It hadn’t been enough for Kendrick’s father to ruin him. He’d had to ruin Ryan, too. Kendrick was glad it was over and that Ryan would be allowed to have whatever life he wanted and enjoy it. It wouldn’t take him too long to get used to living with the clan, and once he did, Kendrick was ready to bet he’d blossom.

“Jonas was saying that he thinks I have a mate out there,” Ryan said, sounding worried about it.

“You don’t want that?”

“Oh, I want it. I’m just scared I’ll never find them. It seems too big, you know? I’m just one guy. How am I supposed to know which one of the millions of people in the world is my mate? Or maybe I don’t have one at all. Wouldn’t that make sense, too?”

“You have to remember that you’re about to move into a village that’s full of supernatural creatures,” Jonas pointed out. “That increases the chances of you finding your mate. Look at Kendrick and me. Kendrick was a hunter, and I’ve lived all over the place. We weren’t supposed to meet, but instead, we both ended up at the village, and the rest is history. I’m sure the same will happen to you. There just needs to be an event that will change the trajectory of your life and bring you into collision with your mate.”

“Moving to the village could be that for you,” Kendrick offered. “There are plenty of people there who aren’t in relationships, and more people are moving in. A lot of supernatural beings believe that mates meet when they most need it, and maybe there’s something in that theory, because I feel like I met Jonas when I most needed him. If he hadn’t been in my life, I probably wouldn’t have reached out to you and sent you my number. I would never have known that you were unhappy and that our father had kicked you out.”

“I can’t imagine what that would have been like,” Ryan murmured.

“I don’t want to imagine it. We don’t have to, because it didn’t happen. Don’t go borrowing trouble when there’s no need for you to, Ryan. Focus on the opportunities your new life is going to give you, including when it comes to mates.”

Ryan seemed slightly more relaxed when Kendrick peeked at him through the rearview mirror. He’d settled back in his seat and was looking out the window, and Kendrick decided to give him space. Whatever was going on in his mind, Ryan probably needed time to deal with it and accept that while everything was changing, it didn’t mean it was changing in a bad way.

“What’s the village like?” Ryan asked.

Kendrick smiled. Ryan was interested in his new home. He was asking questions, and if Kendrick had to guess, he’d say Ryan was excited to move. Perhaps a bit wary, too, but that was where Kendrick and Jonas came in.

“So far, it’s a bunch of hunters, vampires, humans, and Vila,” he explained. “When Rowan decided to have his own clan, a few of my friends and I decided to go with him. We didn’t know what to expect, but we’ve been settling in, and word has gotten out that the Harper clan was reborn from the ashes.”

“What does that mean?”

“Rowan is our leader,” Jonas explained. “He was part of a clan once, but like a lot of us, he lost everyone and everything he held dear. This ongoing war against Kudlaks is harsh, and it took many people way too soon. The Harper clan was destroyed, leaving only Rowan behind. He was on his own for a bit, but then he met his mate, who happened to be a Kudlak hunter. Clay is human, but he’s damn good at what he does, and he pulled Rowan back in. Neither of them was satisfied with the guy who led the hunters, so they decided to put together their own clan, and here we are.”

“You make it sound like you didn’t just describe something that sounds like it could come from a movie,” Ryan pointed out.

“It would be a damn good movie, since I’d be in it.” Jonas’s expression turned serious again. “Rowan’s story is one that most of us have lived. I lost my clan, too, and so did my best friends, Alexis and Caroline. We’ve been muddling through life since then because Krsnik aren’t meant to live alone. We stuck together for a long time, but it wasn’t the same, so we were happy when we found the village and the clan. I’ve always wanted to be part of another clan and feel protected and safe, but I didn’t think I could ever have that.”

“And now you do.”

“Now I do,” Jonas confirmed. “It takes some time to get used to, especially if you’ve been alone most of your life, but I like the village. I like being part of the clan even more. Rowan and Clay are good people, and what they’re building here is important. I want to be part of that. I might not be a fighter or a hunter, but I can’t wait to start rebuilding our world after the Kudlaks are gone.”

“I don’t know much about Kudlaks.” There was a hint of fear in Ryan’s tone of voice, which was a good thing.

Kendrick wanted him to be afraid of Kudlaks. He wanted him to be afraid to go on hunts and get hurt, because that would mean he’d never go. Kendrick understood how ironic that was since he’d been a hunter for almost a decade, but he wanted a better life for his brother. Ryan had the kind of support Kendrick hadn’t had until after he met the hunters. He could be happy without running around stabbing Kudlaks.

Kendrick idly listened to the conversation between Jonas and Ryan. They jumped from topic to topic, sometimes so quickly that Kendrick had a hard time keeping up. He stopped listening to them around the time Jonas started describing the way some guys hit on him when he worked at the bar. There were stories Kendrick didn’t want to hear.

He didn’t care what Jonas’s life had been like before they met. He didn’t care how many partners Jonas had been with, either. Jonas was decades older than Kendrick, and Kendrick hadn’t expected him to be celibate until he met his mate. He might never have met him, and Jonas had too much love to keep to himself.

Something flashed in the corner of Kendrick’s eye. He slammed on the brakes, but a figure had appeared in the middle of the road, effectively cutting them off—or rather, effectively putting themselves into the path of the car. Kendrick tried to steer, but the man didn’t move. Instead, he stared right at Kendrick as the car barreled toward him.

* * * *

Jonas slammed forward, briefly thankful that he was wearing his seatbelt. If he hadn’t been, he would’ve been thrown through the windshield, which wouldn’t be a great experience.

Not that whatever was happening was a great experience, either. He’d been talking with Ryan and having fun, and he hadn’t expected to almost die in the process. He certainly hadn’t expected someone to step onto the road in front of the car like an idiot. Who the fuck did that?

Clearly, the man standing in front of the car. Kendrick managed to stop it, and as soon as it wasn’t moving, he turned to check on Ryan. Jonas did the same, relieved to see that while Ryan was wide-eyed and pale, the seatbelt had worked on him, too, and he was safe. Ryan quickly unhooked it and leaned forward to stick his head between his knees.

“Everyone okay?” Kendrick asked.

“I am, but this asshole won’t be soon,” Jonas said with a growl. “What the fuck was he thinking?”

He unhooked his seatbelt and reached for the door, but Kendrick grabbed his arm. “Don’t you think it’s a little strange?”

“What’s strange?”

“The guy is still standing there. It’s like he’s waiting for something.”

“He’s waiting for my fist on his nose,” Jonas grumbled.

Kendrick was right, though. The guy had stepped in the middle of the road and hadn’t moved or freaked out, not even when Kendrick had almost hit him. No one in their right mind did that, and if they did, they certainly didn’t stick around to see what would happen next. The guy was still there, though, and when Jonas took a better look at him, he felt the hair all over his body rise.

It was still fairly early in the morning, and since it was December, the sun wasn’t that strong. They’d been driving on a road that was framed in tall trees, making the light even softer.

The light didn’t really matter anyway, not for older Kudlaks. They got used to the feeling of the sun, and eventually they could attack during the day, too. It was rare to see, because most Kudlaks died young, but Jonas couldn’t deny what was right in front of him.

“That’s a Kudlak,” he declared.

Kendrick sucked in a breath. “You’re sure?”

“Pretty sure. It’s my job to identify them, remember?”

“You’re not a hunter.”

“It doesn’t mean I don’t know how to hunt. When I have to, I do, and right now, I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to.”

The back door on Ryan’s side suddenly flew open. Ryan screamed as someone grabbed him and dragged him out. Jonas had been hesitant because he didn’t want to have to fight, but there was no hesitation as he pushed open his door and stepped out, rushing toward Ryan. A second Kudlak had a hand around his throat and was pressing him against a tree. Ryan’s feet weren’t touching the ground, and his face was already turning purple. The Kudlak didn’t seem to care. He was tall and broad-shouldered, and Jonas looked tiny next to him, but that wouldn’t stop him.

Before he could reach Ryan, the Kudlak leaned forward and buried his face against Ryan’s neck. Ryan screamed again, and this time, the sound was so raw and full of fear that Jonas didn’t have to guess to know what was happening.

He wasn’t sure how, but Kendrick got to his brother first. He slammed into the Kudlak’s back, then pulled him off Ryan, who fell to the ground. Jonas started to move toward him, but a voice stopped him in his tracks.

“So, you’re one of the new Harpers.”

Jonas sucked in a breath. He was terrified, but he wouldn’t let the Kudlak see it. He couldn’t help but wonder how many more there were hiding between the trees, but he hoped never to find out because if he did, it would mean he was in trouble.

“Who are you?”

The vampire seemed amused. “Should I be offended that Rowan hasn’t told you about me? I’ve been hunting his clan for decades, and I’m only missing two members. I thought maybe Rowan would be in the car, but unfortunately, I was wrong. Can you tell me which clan you belonged to before? Maybe I can still finish one of my sets.”

It was hard for Jonas to make sense of his words. The man was talking as if he was collecting Krsnik like Pokémons or something. “Is this what we are to you? A game?”

The Kudlak grinned, exposing his fangs. “Why not? It’s fun. Well, it was fun until I killed almost everyone. I thought I would have fun with you today, but you’re actually boring me. Can we stop talking and get straight to the fighting? Oh, and you’ll have to tell Rowan about this. I’m sure that if you tell him my name, he’ll recognize me. I’m Parrish.”

Parrish added a little flourish of his hand when he said his name as if he expected Jonas to react. Jonas had heard that name before, and he knew what Parrish had done. He’d been hunting Krsniks for almost as long as Krsniks had been hunting him. He was a monster, and Jonas wished he’d never had to deal with him.

He glanced at Kendrick, who was fighting the second Kudlak. Kendrick was good, but this Kudlak was massive. He looked like he could bench press both Kendrick and Ryan and not break a sweat, then go and run a half marathon. Every time he hit Kendrick, Kendrick stumbled back. His expression was pinched, and he was clearly in pain.

Jonas wanted to go help Kendrick, but he wouldn’t be able to until he dealt with Parrish.

He eyed the Kudlak. There was no denying that he was old as fuck, which probably meant that he was powerful, too. The thought of fighting him was scary, and Jonas was almost a hundred percent sure he wouldn’t survive the fight, but hopefully, he’d last long enough to give Kendrick and Ryan a fighting chance. Jonas wanted to protect them, and he wouldn’t be able to if he was dead, but he still had to do this. It would give them the best chance to make it out alive.

“Well?” Parrish asked. “Will you tell Rowan about me?”

“Rowan doesn’t care about you.”

“He should, because once I’m done with you, I’ll find your little village. It’s well hidden, but it won’t stay hidden forever. When I do find it, I’ll have a little fun. It’s a new village and a new clan, so there’s not really a lot of people to kill right now. Maybe I should wait until there are more?”

Jonas didn’t answer. He shifted instead, turning into his white wolf. For some reason, that made Parrish appear even more amused. Jonas hated Parish’s face, especially when he smiled, so he growled and threw himself at Parrish’s legs. He managed to wrap his teeth around one and bite before Parrish shook him off.

The taste of blood was strong in Jonas’s mouth. He snarled, moving forward again, threatening Parrish without saying a word.

Parrish laughed. “That’s how you want to play this? I thought you’d try to run, but I should’ve known better. You Krsnik are always ridiculously emotional. You think of everyone but yourself, and it leads to your death. Do you know how many times I’ve encountered this situation? How many times I’ve killed entire families because they didn’t flee while I was torturing some of their members? Krsnik are idiots.”

Jonas kind of wanted to tell him that while they might be idiots, they at least weren’t monsters, but he doubted the man would care. He was here to torture Jonas, Kendrick, and Ryan, and that wasn’t something Jonas could allow.

He launched himself forward, using the power of his back legs to hit high. He slammed against Parrish’s chest, sending both of them down.

Parrish shifted as they landed. Jonas scrambled off the black lion’s body, knowing he was in trouble. He’d hoped Parrish would be smaller in his shifted form because Jonas was a wolf, but of course he had to be a fucking lion.

Parrish smiled, exposing his teeth. This was going to hurt, and Jonas wasn’t looking forward to it. He needed it to be quick, though. He had to help Kendrick.

With one last glance toward his mate, Jonas growled and jumped forward.

* * * *

Kendrick had faced plenty of Kudlaks during the years he’d been a hunter. They came in all shapes and forms, just like Krsnik. It never changed how ruthless and cruel they were—and how adept they were at fighting. He’d only ever met a few Kudlaks who weren’t bloodthirsty, but the guy he was fighting was.

His lips were still dirty with Ryan’s blood. Part of Kendrick was panicking because he needed to check in on his brother, but another part of him knew that if he didn’t focus on the fight, they would both die. This massive asshole wouldn’t let them get away. It would be either him or Kendrick, and Kendrick wasn’t going to be the one to die today.

Or at least, he hoped not.

He had to be smart. The guy currently punching him in the side was massive, which meant he was slower. If Kendrick managed to get away from him, it would give him space to use his speed to his advantage.

He folded from the pain in his side, but he kept his mind on the goal. As soon as the Kudlak pulled his fist back to hit him again, Kendrick rushed to the side. The Kudlak blinked, and Kendrick took the opportunity to throw himself at him. He punched the Kudlak in the face, sending him stumbling back. It wasn’t enough to put him down, but Kendrick hadn’t expected it to be.

He fought with knives. That meant he always had them on him because he never knew when he might stumble onto a Kudlak who needed to be dispatched. He slid his knives out of their sheaths, raising them and grinning at the Kudlak. He was sure he looked crazed, but the dickhead just blinked at him.

Kendrick moved forward, feinted to the left, and stabbed the Kudlak in the side on the right. The Kudlak howled and backhanded Kendrick, sending him flying. He hit a tree, and for a moment, he couldn’t breathe. The air was punched out of his lungs, leaving him feeling lightheaded. He dropped his knives, and as he scrambled to his knees to face the Kudlak again, he could only find one of them.

It would have to do.

He ducked as the Kudlak tried to punch him, slid closer, and stabbed him again. The Kudlak screamed, but Kendrick wasn’t done. He leaned down and slashed behind the Kudlak’s ankle.

The Kudlak punched him again. Kendrick wasn’t sure how many times he could get up after getting pushed back, but he was going to find out because he wasn’t staying down.

The Kudlak loomed over him. Kendrick swallowed and struggled back to his feet, his eyes widening when he saw Ryan jump onto the Kudlak’s back. There was a streak of blood on Ryan’s cheek, the dark red a stark contrast with his pale skin, but his expression was both determined and terrified. He clung to the Kudlak’s back like a spider monkey, and at first, when he slid a hand in front of the Kudlak’s throat, Kendrick didn’t think much of it.

That changed when the Kudlak’s blood hit him in the face. Ryan was struggling to slit the Kudlak’s throat, but he’d managed to wound him, and blood was starting to stream down the Kudlak’s front.

The Kudlak tried to reach behind himself to get Ryan off his back, but there wasn’t much he could do because he couldn’t reach him. Ryan clung harder to him, his legs wrapped around the Kudlak’s waist, the knife still in his hand and growing bloodier by the second. He stabbed the knife in, and the Kudlak made a gurgling sound before slowly falling to his knees.

Ryan stumbled back. He hit a tree, but he never looked away from the Kudlak, who’d fallen on his face. Kendrick had to glance away from Ryan long enough to ensure that the Kudlak was down.

The way his vacant eyes were staring at Kendrick was a big indication that he was.

Ryan slid down the tree and dropped at its base. He let go of the knife and clapped his non-bloody hand against his mouth. He was turning a little green, which wasn’t a surprise. Kendrick had puked after killing his first Kudlak, too.

A howl made both of them jump. They turned toward Jonas and the other Kudlak, who were circling each other. Jonas’s white fur was tinted red, and he was limping. The Kudlak’s animal form was a massive black lion, and while Jonas was strong, his wolf form was much smaller.

“Go help him,” Ryan said.

Kendrick was torn. He wanted to help Jonas, but his brother needed him, too.

He moved toward Ryan, knowing that this was what Jonas would want. He gently tilted Ryan’s face to the side so he could take a better look at the bite in his neck, but before he could do anything about it, Ryan pushed him away.

He was still pale, but his eyes blazed. “Go help your mate before he dies,” Ryan snapped. “I’m fine. I’m just freaking out, and I’ve lost a little blood, but I’m not going to die. Your mate might if you don’t do anything. I don’t—I would never forgive myself if he did. I should have shifted and helped you, but I panicked, and everything hurts, and I don’t know if I can shift now. Help Jonas, Ken. Please.”

He was right. Kendrick desperately wished he could be with both of them at once, but it wasn’t possible, which meant he needed to prioritize. Since Ryan was safe and there weren’t any other Kudlaks in the area, Kendrick’s priority had to be Jonas.

Kendrick picked up the second knife from where it had fallen from Ryan’s hand. It was slick with blood, but that didn’t scare or disgust Kendrick. Instead, it made him smile, because he was about to stab a Kudlak and avenge his wounded mate.

He rushed toward the two still circling each other. He took a page out of Ryan’s game and jumped onto the lion’s back, securing his legs and arms around him and clinging on.

The lion roared and tried to get him to jump down, but Kendrick wasn’t going anywhere. He was going to protect his mate and his brother, dammit.

Jonas darted forward. Kendrick had no idea what he was planning, but he watched in awe as his mate bit the lion’s shoulder. Blood spurted, soiling Jonas’s fur even more, but Jonas didn’t look like he cared.

The Kudlak did. One second, he was a lion, and the next, he was a human under Kendrick’s body.

He’d managed to startle Kendrick, so it was easy for him to push Kendrick away and get to his feet.

The man had been elegantly dressed before, but now his suit was torn on the shoulder and blood dripped down his arm. There was a scratch on the man’s cheek, and unless Kendrick was wrong, he was limping, too.

The man didn’t have time to say anything before Jonas shifted. He was in bad shape, cradling one of his arms to his chest, but he kept his head high and grinned. “Well? I thought you were going to kill me.”

The Kudlak snarled. He looked around, possibly wondering where his friend was. For a moment, he stared at the body on the ground. Then, he shrugged and took a step back. “I can admit when I’m wrong. Today, you win, but remember. I know where your village is. I know where you hide at night when you think you’re safe. You’re never safe, Krsnik. As long as there are Kudlaks in the world, your people will die painful and torturous deaths.”

Kendrick took a step forward, but the Kudlak ran. Kendrick almost went after him. He might have if Jonas hadn’t suddenly slumped forward.

Kendrick cried out and grabbed his mate. There was blood coming from a cut on Jonas’s throat, enough to scare Kendrick. Jonas was always pale, but right now, he was almost deathly so.

Kendrick gently lowered his mate to the ground and cradled him against his chest. “What can I do?”

“You should give him your blood,” Ryan piped up from where he was still sitting. He was staring at the dead Kudlak, almost like he expected the man to jump back to his feet.

“Don’t,” Jonas quickly said. “If you do, you’ll kickstart our bond.”

That was what he was afraid of? “Why? Don’t you want us to bond?”

“I do, but I don’t want to rush you.”

“I’ll give you my blood, then,” Ryan said as he got to his feet. He had to lean against a tree so his knees wouldn’t buckle.

“No,” Kendrick declared, glaring at his mate and his brother in turn. “I’ll give Jonas my blood, and I don’t care if it kickstarts our bond. I want to be bonded to you, Jonas.”

“You do?” Jonas’s voice was small and careful. He clearly expected Kendrick to reject him.

Kendrick kissed him, not caring one bit about the taste of blood. “Of course I do. I can’t imagine a life without you, so what do you think I’m going to do? Tell you I don’t want to bond? Come on, Jonas. Bite me.”

Kendrick tilted his head to the side. Jonas stared at him for a moment, and Kendrick gave him time.

Then, Jonas did as Kendrick had ordered him and bit him.