Page 49 of Hexmate

“Atlas,” I whispered urgently, “I saw something-”

“I know,” he cut me off, his grip on me tightening. “Just run.”

Suddenly the dark shape sped toward us at an alarming speed. Atlas grabbed my arm and threw my backward into the snow, placing his body between me and our pursuer. I watched as his features sharpened, claws extending from his fingertips. He let out a low, but terrifying growl.

The figure skidded to a halt in front of us, breathless with eyes wide. It took a moment for the red hair and green eyes to jog my memory.

“W-Wild?” I gasped, sitting up in the snow.

“There you two are!” he cried, pushing his way past Atlas without so much as a trace of fear. “I’ve been looking for you for the past hour! I was worried you might’ve been attacked!”

“Attacked?” I asked, taking his hand to help me up. “Why would we have been attacked?”

“What’s going on?” Atlas added, still checking our surroundings nervously. “Why does everything smell so strange?”

Wild stood there for a moment, his jaw hanging open. “You… You don’t know…”

“Know what?!” Atlas growled. “Will you please just tell us what’s going on?”

Wild’s brows furrowed and he looked like he was about to yell at Atlas for raising his voice. But I grabbed his hand, forcing him to stay focused on me. “What happened, Wild?”

“One of the students was attacked,” he said, his eyes darting between me and Atlas. “A Beastkin. They don’t know who attacked him, only that he’s lucky to be alive. Someone found him bleeding in the snow in front of the gymnasium.”

I saw the fear in Atlas’s eyes. If he’d been in wolf form, all his fur would’ve been standing on end.

“What’s his name?!” he asked, grabbing Wild’s arm. “The Beastkin.”

“Karrick, I think.”

A shiver went through my body. Even I recognized that name. It was one of Atlas’s friends, a fellow wrestler on the team. I’d met him once. He seemed like a nice guy. So, who would want to attack him?

“Is he alright?!” Atlas asked, fear filling his features.

“He’s alive,” Wild nodded. “But other than that, I don’t know. They took him to the infirmary.”

Atlas’s grip on Wild’s arm tightened, his claws digging into the fabric of his jacket. “Take us there. Now.”

Without waiting for a response, Atlas began striding towards the infirmary, practically dragging Wild along with him. I hurried to keep up, my heart pounding in my chest. The oppressive feeling in the air seemed to grow heavier with each step.

As we approached the infirmary building, I could see a crowd gathered outside. Students from all factions huddled together in small groups, whispering urgently to one another. The scent of fear and anxiety was palpable, even to my witch nose.

Atlas pushed his way through the crowd, his imposing presence causing people to part before him. I followed in his wake, trying to ignore the curious and sometimes hostile glancesthrown my way. It was a moment before I realized all of them were monster races. There wasn’t a single witch among the crowd.

Just as we reached the entrance, a stern-looking woman in a white coat stepped out, blocking our path. “No visitors allowed,” she said firmly, her eyes narrowing as she took in Atlas’s agitated state.

“I’m not a visitor, I’m his teammate,” Atlas growled. “I just saw him this afternoon.”

She gave him a long hard look. “Fine. But keep it down. Security will want to ask you a few questions.”

“Of course,” Atlas nodded, pushing his way through. He still had a hold of my hand, pulling my inside along with him before the nurse could stop us.

The infirmary was eerily quiet as we entered, the glaring white walls and antiseptic smell a stark contrast to the snowy night outside. Atlas’s grip on my hand tightened as we made our way down the hallway, following the sound of hushed voices.

We turned a corner and found ourselves face to face with two burly security guards standing outside a closed door. Both of them were Beastkin too. Their eyes narrowed as they took in Atlas’s imposing form, then flickered to me with suspicion.

“What are you doing here?” one of them growled, stepping forward to block our path.

Atlas drew himself up to his full height, his golden eyes flashing with barely contained anger. “I’m here to see Karrick. I’m his teammate and friend.”

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