Page 56 of The Wolf's Prince
He had never seen his strong and steadfast brother brought to his knees in any way. He looked so pale and soinnocentlying there, red blood soaking his collar.
“Is he okay?”
Nikolai glanced up at the sound of Anzu’s concerned voice as she sank down next to him. He shook his head.
“No. He’s bleeding too much.”
“Let me see,” she ordered, and Nikolai was gently pulled from Andrey’s side and deposited—to his surprise—into Soren’s arms.
They came around him at once, holding him steady and he shut my eyes, barely breathing while he waited for one of the people examining Andrey to say something.
“Humans take longer to heal,” someone whispered in a hushed voice—clearly hoping he wouldn’t overhear.
“Still, the bleeding is slowing.”
“Will he be okay?” Nikolai asked, tentatively.
“We need to patch the bite, then we will see.”
Nikolai finally found the strength to look over.
Andrey was just as he’d left him, only now, Anzu was the one holding his neck and looking positively green.
“I cannot believe Kamon would do such a thing,” she said when their eyes met.
Soren’s body was filled with tension, offering little comfort in the hard lines of muscles. Even his hug was almost too hard around Nikolai.
“He is jealous of you, Soren,” Anzu went on. “He said as much. That he deserved a human mate too, since it had worked for you.”
Nikolai felt sick.
“He will pay,” Soren promised. “A forced mark is a heinous crime. Alpha Jin will not accept such behavior.”
Another familiar wolf arrived—Soren’s friend Botan, Nikolai thought his name was.
He held a small box, filled with supplies.
Nikolai watched as his brother’s wound was washed clean and patched with ointment and a bandage. When the water washed the blood away and he saw the torn, hanging flesh, the bandages didn’t seem like they could possibly be enough. At the castle, Andrey would have his soft bed, their family near, and the best doctors in the country. At the castle, this never would have happened to him.
Guilt overwhelmed Nikolai.
“Please, can we take him out from under the sun, at least?” he asked when it was done.
The shifters exchanged a look.
“I don’t think we should move him,” Enkai said gently. “But we can make him more comfortable, at least.”
It didn't take long for a pillow to be placed carefully under Andrey's head. They even set up a shield for the sun as Nikolai had requested, which consisted of two wooden stands and a sheet draped over them.
Nikolai tugged Soren down next to him and sat at Andrey's side, unable to tear his gaze from his brother’s prone face while he waited for him to wake up.
At his side, Soren was sitting with his back tense, his gaze a million miles away.
“Do you thin he will be okay?” Nikolai asked, trying to draw him to the moment, seeking his comfort, but Soren only glanced down at Andrey and nodded distractedly.
Nikolai swallowed.
“Soren,” he whispered, hoping not to be heard. “My brother was attacked. He is unconscious. I'm worried about him.”
