Chapter 22 · The First Bite

Ryan's mouth moved but the voice wasn't his.

I jerked back. The crescent mark on his neck pulsed dark red, veins spreading from it like roots digging into his skin. Kade's hand clamped on my wrist and yanked me behind him before I could even process what I was seeing.

"Get out of him." Kade's voice dropped so low it barely sounded human.

Ryan—Theron—smiled. "She cut herself for this one. Sweet. Didn't know humans still did that."

Kade's shoulders hunched forward. I could see the shift starting under his skin, muscles bunching, bones ready to crack and reform. I grabbed his arm. Not to stop him. To keep myself from shaking.

"The bond goes both ways now," Theron said through Ryan's mouth. "I can ride any mark she gives. You should've told her that before she played nurse."

The chapel door slammed open. Kade shoved me toward it. "Go."

"I'm not leaving you—"

"Go!"

I went.

I ran through the east corridor, my boots slipping on the old tile, and I didn't stop until I hit the archive room. I slammed the door and locked it. My hands were still shaking.