Page 38 of Marked By the Alpha

“Yeah.” Julius went to walk with Logan and I followed.

“Why can’t I hear?”

They stopped walking and looked at me.

“Um, here’s the thing.” He cringed. “We lost Nolan.”

My eyebrows rose to my hairline, and my voice raised with it. “What do you mean you lost Nolan?”

“Um, he was in the locker room and some girls came in after class along with some of the Everclaw pride.” He took a step backward.

“And?” Julius motioned for him to continue.

“Well, they were kinda ganging up on Nolan, so we stepped in and he dashed out.” He cringed again and took another step back.

My stomach dropped to my feet. “He’s alone?”

Logan nodded. “We did some damage to the Everclaws, but not before Jonah terrorized Nolan.”

I took off at a dead run and heard Julius and Logan following me. I apologized to everyone I bumped into as I made my way down to the ground floor and out the doors.

Lifting my head, I caught a slight whiff of apples and I took off in the direction. I slid my backpack fully on and went on instinct. Concern filled me and I stopped apologizing as I ran past or into people.

My wolf ached to get out, and I shared the worry that something might happen to our mate.

The closer I got to the arts building, the stronger his scent became, and I pushed myself to run harder. I went around the building and through the campus grounds that opened up into the woods.

I shifted and heard my clothing tear from my body. There wasn’t time to worry about that. I heard Julius yell after me and I gave a bark over my shoulder and ran faster.

The further I traveled, the stronger his scent grew. He hadn’t run to my parents. His scent took me around towards the omega apartments.

Slivers of light cut through the trees as my paws pounded the ground, trampling leaves and twigs. Usually a run like this brought me peace, but the closer I got to the apartments, the greater my anxiety.

When I left the woods, I noticed there weren’t many cars in front of the building.

Hopefully, he’s safe.

My nose dropped to the ground, sniffing and following his scent to the main door, which had been propped open.

I pushed it open with my muzzle and confusion overwhelmed me. I could tell he went downstairs, as well as up to the next floor. And I smelled Simon.

Making my decision to go up. I skipped stairs, hopping up them as fast as I could and both scents grew stronger. I followed it to one door and hopped up on my back paws to try pushing it open.

When it didn’t open, I shifted and grabbed the knob, turning it in my hand. Thankfully, it wasn’t locked, and I pushed it open slowly. Apples, fear, and blood all slammed into me.

I felt the snarl on my lips as I entered. My eyes scanned the room, seeing a broken kitchen table, two broken chairs and in the living room they had shattered the glass table along with various knick-knacks.

Blood covered the walls, the floor, and a trail led down the hall.

I followed the trail and heard Simon’s voice. “That’s my sweet omega. Suck that dick.” He groaned. “Show me how sorry you are for last night.”

I tip-toed down the hall and into the bedroom. More blood pooled on the floor in here, and I could see that Simon had a gash on his thigh. Pride filled me, seeing the evidence that my mate fought back.

The closer I crept, the more I could see. And seeing tears rolling down my mate’s beautiful face pissed me off.

I made my way behind Simon and heard him purr. “Look up at me, slut.”

Nolan’s face lifted, and I saw he had a black eye. His eyes were closed and Simon slapped his cheek. “Open them up.”

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