“Stop playing around and end it,” I say through our bond, using it for the first time since Resson. “Always so violent.” He thumbs a drop of blood off the split in his lower lip, his gaze flashing to mine, and I swear I see a hint of a smile before he turns on Jarrett. Jarrett swings once, then twice, missing Xaden both times. Then Xaden strikes with two quick punches, putting his full weight behind them unlike before, and sending Jarrett to his hands and knees in the dirt. Jarrett’s head hangs as he shakes it slowly, blood dripping from his mouth. “Damn,” the rider next to me says. “Exactly.”
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