It only takes a minute before I spot him. Some guy corners him, his back pressed against the wall. But a moment later the guy goes flying, and someone slings Merci over their shoulder.
“Fuck.”
I sprint after them, tackling the guy just as he steps outside. All three of us hit the ground, the impact rattling through my bones.
Merci lets out a yelp as we untangle ourselves, and the guy scrambles to his feet, eyes wide as he stares at me. “Knight?”
Henneman.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I lunge at him, grabbing his sweatshirt.
“I was trying to get him out of there.” Henneman’s eyes dart between me and Merci. “He was—”
My fist connects with his face, and he stumbles back.
“Zach, stop!” Merci shouts, his hands clawing at my shirt as he tries to pull me away. “Stop it, you psychopath!”
“Stay out of this!”
I hit Henneman again, but my teammate just covers up and defends himself, never returning a punch. Merci, on the other hand, yanks my hair and punches me in the back.
“Zach, stop! He was helping me.”
I land a hit to Henneman’s stomach, and he groans, curling up. Suddenly, there’s a lot of pressure on the area between my shoulder and neck, followed by a popping pierce and slight pain.
Henneman’s brows shoot up, his mouth agape, and then he shoves me back. I go flying, unprepared for the amount of strength he has, and slam onto the ground, Merci beneath me. I roll over and get to my feet.
“Are you insane!” Merci gets up in my face. “I said he was helping me.”
But it’s not his words I focus on. It's the blood coating his lips. I grab his chin, lifting it to get a better look. “Who hurt you?”
Merci blinks at me, confused. “What?”
“Who the fuck hurt you?” I repeat, my voice shaking. “I’ll kill them.”
“It’s your blood.” Henneman points to the area near my neck.
I stare at him, then back to Merci, who’s gone pale. I let go of his chin and reach up, running my fingers along the area. When I pull them away, they’re covered in blood.
“Zach?” Tears gather in the corners of Merci’s eyes. “I . . . I’m so—”
Eli stumbles out of the house, his face red and panicked. “Viktor and Alexei are still fighting! There’s like, five guys—”
I turn to Henneman. “Get these two back to their dorm.”
He nods, reaching down to help Merci to his feet. “Come on. Let’s go.”
They take off across the lawn while I head back into the house. My friends need me. And if my world is going to come crashing down—because surely after Merci bit me and I didn’t react to it, he and Henneman realize there’s something wrong, and fuck knows who they’ll tell—at least I can make sure to protect those who matter to me.
It might be the only worth I have left after tonight.
Chapter 16
Merci
Flopping onto my bed, I run my fingers through my damp hair. The shower helped clear my head a bit, and the haze from the alcohol is also lifting, but that only makes shit worse. It leaves me feeling raw, like someone took sandpaper to my soul and decided to call it modern art.
Eli’s in his room, probably sleeping off whatever he drank. Ryan—Henneman—or whatever they call him, had given Eli an ice pack before heading out. I can’t believe some fucking douche punched my roommate in the thigh.
