Time slows. I see his jaws open. I see the hatred burning in his eyes. I try to dodge, but my wounded flank betrays me. My leg buckles, and I stumble.
Patrick moves faster than I’ve ever seen anyone move.
He releases Jonas and shifts in the same heartbeat. His wolf slams into Bastian mid-leap, and they crash to the groundin a tangle of fur and teeth and claws. I scramble backward as they roll past me.
Bastian is bigger and stronger, and his jaws snap inches from Patrick’s throat. But Patrick fights like a wolf with everything to lose.
Because he is.
I watch Patrick clamp his jaws around Bastian’s throat. Bastian thrashes, and his claws rake bloody furrows down Patrick’s sides. The grip holds as seconds stretch into eternity.
A horn blasts from somewhere in the camp. Three short bursts. Retreat.
Bastian uses the distraction to wrench free of Patrick’s grip. Blood pours from his throat, but the wound isn’t deep enough to kill. He scrambles backward and shifts to human form long enough to spit blood at Patrick’s feet.
“This isn’t over,” he rasps. Then he turns and flees into the trees with the other retreating Thornridge wolves.
Patrick doesn’t chase him. He’s too wounded, and I can feel his exhaustion bleeding through the bond. He staggers toward me instead, and we both shift back to human form as I meet him halfway.
“Are you hurt?” his voice is raw as he cups my face in his bloodied hands.
I hold on to his wrists and reply, “I’m okay. “You?”
“I’ll live.”
Movement catches my attention. Jonas is still on the ground. He’s not fighting anymore. He’s staring at his brother in disbelief.
“You almost died for her,” Jonas comments as he curls his upper lip. “You would have let him kill you.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because she’s my mate. Because some things are worth dying for.” Patrick releases me and extends his hand toward his brother. “Come with us, Jonas. Please. I can’t force you. I won’t try. But I’m asking.”
The battle is over. Thornridge wolves have scattered into the trees, following the retreat signal back toward wherever Mordaunt is hiding. The ones who remain are the ones who don’t want to run anymore.
Jonas stares at Patrick’s outstretched hand. Then he looks at me. Then, at the smoking remnants of the only home he’s ever known.
He reaches up and lets Patrick pull him to his feet.
More Thornridge wolves emerge from the trees with their hands raised. Twelve of them. All young. All wearing that same shellshocked expression.
Reeyan approaches with the prisoners as he looks around the scene. “We need to move. We need to get Trenton to the healer.”
Patrick nods. “Anyone who wants out of Thornridge, follow us. You’ll be treated fairly. But if you stay, there won’t be mercy next time.”
All twelve follow us into the trees.
The journey back passes in a blur. Patrick wraps his jacket around my shoulders at some point, and his hand finds mine in the darkness.
We won. The prisoners are safe. Jonas is alive. A dozen wolves have defected.
But Mordaunt is still out there. Bastian is still breathing. And somewhere among our allies, a traitor helped make this battle bloodier than it needed to be.
Chapter 24 - Patrick
The healer won’t meet my eyes when I ask about Trenton.
