Page 35 of Kendrick

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 youmyblood, 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.”

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