Page 29 of Unmask
He stood like a shadow peeled from the corners of a nightmare, jaw locked, his light-green eyes darker than I’d ever seen them with rage. Maddox was beside him, even quieter, even deadlier.
“What the fuck—” Dawson began, but Maddox cut him off with a punch, crumpling him to the ground like a rag doll.
Mason was a blur of motion, his fists flying, slamming into Keenan’s stomach and then his jaw. Blood spattered the mirror. The boy dropped like dead weight, gasping and cursing as he crumpled onto the floor.
But Maddox was the storm.
He didn’t say a word. His expression was purely dangerous as he tackled Bodie with enough force to send them both into the far wall. His football teammate fought back, but he was no match. Maddox drove his fist into his face again and again, knuckles slick with blood, eyes glazed feral.
I couldn’t look away.
“Mad—Mad, stop!” Mason yelled, grabbing his brother’s shoulder, trying to haul him off. “He’s down, man, it’s over!”
But Maddox didn’t stop.
If these assholes thought Kreed gave them a beating before, they were about to die.
It took both of Mason’s arms to wrench his twin back, and even then, Maddox was snarling, trying to shake him off, eyes locked on the broken mess of the guy on the floor.
Mason, still hanging on to Maddox, glowered at his teammates. “Now you’ll think twice about touching what’s ours. The next person who thinks about putting their hands on her will leave in a fucking body bag. Spread that shit around.”
I didn’t even realize I was shaking until Mason turned to me, tempting fate by releasing Maddox to place his hands on my shoulders. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice brimming with concern.
Maddox clenched his fists like he wasn’t quite finished.
Blinking, I forced my eyes to focus on Mason’s face, my breath heaving and heart racing. The bathroom looked like a war zone now, groans escaping from the guys who’d dared to corner me.
Mason’s gaze scanned over me for damage. “Kitten, hey, look at me. Are you okay?” he asked again.
I nodded, but the truth was, I didn’t know. I was shaking too hard to feel anything, and my knees nearly gave out, but Mason was there to keep me from falling, his arms firm as he pulled me against him.
Maddox finally stilled, his chest heaving, eyes still wild. Mason was breathing hard too, one hand resting on his brother’s chest to keep him back. Maddox stepped closer, eyes still sharp, voice calm and low. “No one fucks with you. Not while we’re breathing.”
Somehow, even though I knew this whole thing was so messed up and terrifying and shouldn’t have happened at all…I believed him, believed them both, and despite being ridiculously mad at them, I never wanted Mason to let me go.
He must have sensed it, the way my body locked up, the tremble that stole into my limbs. Maybe he even said my name, but the ringing in my ears drowned everything out, a white noise hollowing me out from the inside.
Then arms were beneath me.
Mason dipped low, one strong sweep lifting me clean off the ground as if I weighed nothing at all. He carried me from the bathroom without a backward glance, leaving Maddox behindwith the bloodied assholes and the shattered remains of my composure.
Somewhere passing through the halls, I remembered that Carson was to pick me up. I glanced at the wall clock as we passed by, noticing he would be about ten minutes away from the academy, which gave me ten minutes to get Mason to put me down. I didn’t need Carson to see Mason carrying me outside on my first day back at Public.
“You can put me down now,” I said despite my arms remaining curled around his neck. He smelled so good. Not as good as Kreed, no one did, but still, Mason’s scent brought a wave of familiarity I wasn’t sure was a good thing.
“Not yet,” he murmured, smirking just enough to be insufferable. “I’m enjoying this too much. And let’s be honest, if Kreed were here, I wouldn’t get the chance.”
My lungs started to cooperate again. “Where is he?”
Mason gave me a cocky-as-fuck grin, pieces of his dark hair falling over his eyes. “So, you noticed.”
I didn’t dignify that with a response.
Footsteps thudded behind us. Maddox emerged at Mason’s side, his eyes sweeping over me. His jaw ticked. “We need to bounce. Now.”
Mason adjusted his hold, carrying me easily through the halls. “Why do you care where Kreed is?” he asked me.
“I don’t,” I replied coolly.
