Chapter Eighteen

I was becoming more tired with each defensive lunge I sent towards them. Two of them looked as tired as I felt while the leader watched me relentlessly with blood-thirsty eyes, waiting for me to make the smallest mistake.

I was covered in cuts, ranging from deep gashes that bled freely and openly to small nicks that would heal themselves within a few hours. Along with my new injuries, my neck throbbed to a painful beat. I was sure it had opened itself sometime during the last few hours.

They were covered in their own wounds, too. While they didn't have as many as I did, they held the more serious wounds. One of the natural wolves was limping because my teeth had met bone, and I was sure its paw was at least fractured. Their injuries may be worse than my own, but there were still three of them against one of me.

Kendall had wisely remained quiet during the exchange, only calling out when they caught ahold of me. I was glad he hadn't done something stupid, such as accidentally distracting me or trying to intervene between us.

What screwed me over was the rustling noise I heard towards my right. I made the mistake of taking a quick glance in that direction before a wolf's body made impact with my own.

The air quickly left my lungs as I slammed into the harsh ground, my vision fading for a few moments. But I was cruelly brought back as a pair of teeth slashed into my neck, directly where my old wounds were. I didn't realize how loud the cry of a wolf could be until that day when I nearly pierced my own eardrums.

"Stop," Kendall shouted, his voice direct and laced with warning. The wolf only ignored him, but the other two growled threateningly.

The wolf made the mistake of loosening his grip on my neck. I took the opportunity, bucking him off of me with all my strength as I shoved off the ground.

My vision wasn't doing so well at this point. But I did hear the wolf's sharp yelp as his body met with a nearby tree. However, I didn't turn to find him as I was sure I would lose what remaining vision I had at the sudden movement.

I tried to take a step towards the other wolves, but my legs buckled and my body almost gave in. That's when Kendall no longer remained wise in my eyes.

I watched as one of the wolves raised its hackles, preparing to attack. But Kendall ran in front of me, halting the wolf. He now seemed unsure, not knowing if he would be correct in attacking the human in front of him.

"Leave!" Kendall snapped, trying his hand at authority. The wolves began growling at him, their ears up and alert, conveying that they didn't take him seriously. In fact, they seemed to be leaning closer and closer to attacking him.

I growled weakly and attempted to walk once again only to fall straight to the ground. I stayed there, trying to regain more energy and strength before I gave standing another try.

You're an idiot, I thought towards Kendall, wishing I could voice my opinion to him. He deserved a rant just about now. Maybe it would knock the stupidity back and allow common sense to take its rightful place in the front of the line.

Who the hell decides to try protecting a werewolf from natural wolves? A man who'd allowed his brain to become dense, that's who. There was no other explanation as to why Kendall would do something so senseless.

He was what a mouse was to a cat: a play toy that became dinner when boredom finally struck. And it would strike, sooner or later. He would have been better off running wildly through the woods compared to now. Kendall was a fragile human whose fate depended on whether the natural wolves' Master had taught them to attack humans.

I waited for the wolves to lunge, but fortunately, they never did. Their attention drifted away from us as a sharp voice cracked through the night air.

"Enough!"

The simple word caused the wolves to relax, their ears flattening against their skulls submissively. They no longer looked menacing. In fact, one might mistake them for large dogs if they didn't catch sight of their gruesome teeth.

The other wolf, the leader, joined them with a slight limp. The sight gave me satisfaction and just enough energy to stand up. But the action itself was harder than I thought.

I started wobbling, and Kendall was instantly there, kneeling beside me. He stroked my fur before whispering, "Lean against me, Snowflake."

Kendall rose, and slow claps erupted from our right. I gave a low growl against Kendall, the fur on my back standing in place. Kendall placed a hand on my back before straightening further.

"Come out and reveal yourself," Kendall commanded, his voice strong and firm. He didn't give away any sign of fear, although we were clearly outnumbered.

"It was pretty bravado of you, stepping out in front of my wolves. Fortunately for you, I haven't trained them to attack humans quite yet," a male voice commented, his body emerging from the darkness and into our view.

He was incredibly short, shorter than me. But underestimating him because of his height would only cause me trouble. Even with his height, he had three natural wolves submitting to him. That said more about him as a person than mere height did.

The wolves had walked over to him and stood closely behind him, watching our movement. They each had to be tired, but they refused to show any signs of weakness when their Master stood nearby.

"Your wolves are fine, therefore you have no reason to keep us. Let us be on our way," Kendall tried, but the man only grinned, his teeth glistening in the dark.

"Do you realize how much they cost? Your werewolf did some fine damage to them," he replied, eyeing me. The jealousy and swirl of anger in his eyes were clear, unhappy that he himself didn't own a true werewolf. All he had was the cheap, rip-off version.

"You will receive no compensation. They caused equal damage to my werewolf," Kendall said, his hand running through my fur. I had a feeling the movement wasn't only calming me.

"You don't have much room to bargain," the man countered, looking pointedly at Kendall and me.

I growled lowly, baring my large canines in his direction. He stiffened but other than that, gave no reaction to me.

"Do you realize whose land you are trespassing on?" Kendall asked, his voice slick with ice as he used his last resort. Maybe the man would think it through and decide it was best to just leave us be.

But he merely laughed, his cackling rough sounding. He gave us a sly smile before asking, "Do you realize whose land you're trespassing on?"

Given Kendall's current disheveled appearance, he wouldn't pass for a Prince. However, he might pass as a beggar since it was exactly what he looked like with the soaked and muddied clothes. So Kendall couldn't very well claim he was the Prince himself. It would only give the man more to humor himself with.

"I'll take your silence as a yes. I don't think Prince Kendall would be too pleased to find you among his land, especially with a werewolf," the man drawled, his grin proof he was finding pleasure in the conversation.

"Prince Gordon would also hate seeing a scrounger such as yourself hunting on his land," Kendall spat, his patience wearing thin. He didn't enjoy listening to another man speak for him.

The man's eyes flashed, revealing his anger. But he hid it just as quickly before saying, "Then you speak for the Prince?" placing Kendall on thin ground.

If Kendall said yes and couldn't prove he was himself, then he would be sent to his immediate death. If he said yes and had proof, he would be given a sincere apology before he was sent along his way. So I prayed Kendall would drop his pride in this one moment and reply with a simple no.

"Yes, I speak for Prince Gordon," Kendall started, pointlessly straightening his soaked shirt. "In fact, I can provide proof that I am indeed one of the three Gordon boys."

We were both screwed, royally and non-royally. Kendall had just put our heads on a silver platter, metaphorically speaking. How in the world was he going to prove he was a Gordon boy? He could go to his palace, but those who resided in the lower level weren't aware of what their precious Prince looked like. They had only been surrounded by rumors.

"I'd take you to the palace, but I wouldn't want to bother Prince Kendall and his servants with such trifling matters," the man mused, amused by Kendall's sudden declaration. He was pressing Kendall's buttons, not believing a single word he let out.

"However, I know just the solution. You claim to be one of the Gordon boys, yes?" The man asked, a sickening grin on his face as he slowly began circling us, the wolves following close behind.

"I do not claim. I am a Gordon boy," Kendall stated, his teeth clenching and unclenching. I rubbed my nose against his leg in response, hoping to calm him down. While he didn't look down, his hand grazed my fur, circling my skin before it rested lightly on my neck.

"Well, Gordon boy, what better way to check your claim than to ask a Gordon himself? If you are wrong, that lovely werewolf by your side is mine."