Page 28 of Hexmate (Widdershins Supernatural Academy #1)

Chapter 28

Caden

M y ass was still sore, in a good way, as I stepped onto the path behind the gymnasium with Atlas. The night air was cold, snow falling softly all around us. During the wrestling meet a fair amount had gathered on the path, making the world more quiet than normal. And, from what I could hear through the trees, most of the people who had attended the meet had already cleared out. The parking lot sounded mostly empty and as far as I could tell, nobody else was on the path with us.

I took a deep breath as we started to walk, my fingers laced through Atlas’s. Having my mate and familiar so close gave me a sense of security. Logically, I knew my power had grown exponentially and I was probably more powerful than Rowan, our intended target. However, if Rowan was being helped by someone, he could have an ace up his sleeve that I didn’t know about.

And that put me on edge. I sincerely hoped we weren’t biting off more than we could chew, but we didn’t have time to waste either. It had already been three days since Wild was attacked and over a week since Karrick had been cursed as well. We had to take the time to complete our bonding, but now the clock was ticking. Every moment that passed was another our friends moved closer to death thanks to Rowan’s curse. We couldn’t afford to wait any longer. I just hoped our plan worked and that our presence was too tempting for Rowan to pass up. He hated us both. I hoped it would be enough to draw him out.

“You ready?” I said, keeping my voice low as I glanced up at Atlas.

He nodded, his jaw clenched. “I don’t like putting you in danger like this, but we have no choice.” He looked down at me, affection blazing over our bond. “Just remember, I’ll be right behind you.”

“Keep your distance until he’s revealed himself. After that, we can take him down together.”

“Right.”

“Alright,” I said with a nod, picking up the pace. “Let’s get this fake argument started, shall we?”

Atlas squeezed my hand once before releasing it. His golden eyes glinted in the moonlight as he stepped away from me. We’d rehearsed this, but my heart still clenched as his expression transformed into something cold and hostile.

“I can’t believe you did that,” Atlas growled, loud enough to carry through the quiet night. “Making me look like a fool in front of my entire team.”

I matched his volume, injecting venom into my voice. “Maybe if you weren’t so obsessed with your precious reputation, you’d see what’s really important!”

We continued walking, maintaining a careful distance as we argued. I could feel Atlas’s presence through our bond—alert, protective, watching the shadows between the trees. The snow crunched beneath our feet as we moved deeper along the path.

“You witch,” Atlas spat. “My father was right about your kind. Always thinking you’re above everyone else.”

“And your kind is any better? Glorified dogs who can’t see past pack politics!”

I sensed something then—a shift in the energy around us. The hairs on my neck rose, and it wasn’t from the cold. Atlas felt it too; I could feel his awareness sharpening. We were being watched.

“Fine,” I shouted, knowing this was my cue. “I don’t want anything to do with a stupid dog like you anymore, anyway! Go take your tiny dick problems somewhere else! Maybe you can finally get it up for once!”

I saw the hurt in Atlas’s eyes as I turned away. That piece wasn’t planned but ad-libbed on the spot. I felt bad, but I knew he’d get over it. Out of everyone in the world to be self-conscious about their dick size, Alpha werewolves were the last to fall prey to that feeling.

Stomping off the path and through the crunchy snow, I headed into the woods, leaving the safety of campus behind. It only took ten steps or so before I’d passed through the barrier and into the forest filling the mountain valley. Suddenly everything was much quieter, but that niggling feeling on the back of my neck told me someone was still watching.

I walked for another fifty yards, making a show of angrily kicking at snow-covered branches, muttering curses under my breath. The forest was dark, but the full moon reflecting off the snow provided enough light to see by. Perfect for a werewolf—and for a witch with heightened senses thanks to his familiar bond.

The sensation of being watched intensified. I could feel Atlas at the edge of my consciousness, maintaining distance as planned but tracking my every move. His concern flowed across our bond, warm and protective despite the harsh words we’d exchanged.

“Trouble in paradise?”

The voice slithered from behind a cluster of pine trees. Rowan Hargrove stepped into view, his lean frame silhouetted against the moonlit snow. His smile was predatory, satisfied—exactly as we’d hoped. That deep scar across his face and the one milky eye served as a reminder of what Atlas had done to him when he and his friends had tried to assault me. I was glad to see none of it had improved.

“What do you want, Rowan?” I kept my voice weary, defeated. “Come to gloat?”

“Merely observing nature taking its course.” He moved closer, confidence radiating from him. “Witch and wolf—it never works. You were doomed from the start.”

I let my shoulders slump, feigning vulnerability. “Just… leave me alone.”

Suddenly he was right next to me, his arm wrapped painfully around my bicep, squeezing harder with every passing moment. “Not this time, Caden,” he growled deep in his chest. “I’m not going fucking anywhere.”

I tried weakly to pull away. “W-What do you want, Rowan?”

“Revenge,” he snarled, his face only inches from mine. “And what you owe me from that night when your little mutt stepped in to save you.”

His breath was hot against my face, carrying the unmistakable metallic scent of blood magic. So, I had been right—he was using forbidden spells.

“I don’t owe you anything,” I said, injecting a tremor into my voice while secretly gathering my power. I could feel the energy of the forest around me—every dormant plant beneath the snow, every creature nestled in winter hideaways. My connection to nature had always been there, but since bonding with Atlas, it felt like a roaring river instead of a trickle.

Rowan’s fingers dug deeper into my arm. “You cost me everything,” he hissed. His milky eye seemed to glow in the moonlight. “My standing in my family, my friends, and my fucking face.” He yanked me closer, his other hand producing a curved ritual knife from inside his jacket. “This is the only way I can get it all back.”

“The curses,” I whispered, no longer needing to fake my horror. “Wild and Karrick. That was you.”

His scarred face split into a grin. “Just the beginning. Simple test runs, really.” The knife gleamed as he pressed it against my throat. “And once they kick all those beasts out of the school, I’ll finally get my life back. He’s going to fix it all when I pull this off.”

“He?” I murmured, faking a shudder. “What do you mean?”

Rowan’s eyes gleamed with fanatical pride. “Someone who understands the natural order. Someone who knows that filthy animals like your precious Atlas shouldn’t be allowed to walk among us. He showed me how to harness real power.”

I let my fear show, which wasn’t difficult considering the knife at my throat. The cold metal bit against my skin as Rowan pressed harder.

“You’re working with someone,” I said, trying to keep him talking while I continued gathering my power. The energy of the forest pulsed around me, flowing up through my feet and into my core. “Another witch?”

Rowan laughed, a harsh sound that echoed through the trees. “So much more than just a witch. When he’s done, this school will be purged of every last werewolf, beast, and monster. Starting with your boyfriend’s little pack of meatheads.”

I could feel Atlas through our bond, his rage building as he crept closer. Not yet, I pushed through our connection. Need more information.

“Wild and Karrick were just practice,” I said, making my voice shake. “What are you planning to do to me?”

His scarred face twisted into something ugly. “Your blood is going to fuel the biggest curse this campus has ever witnessed. Once I spill that precious Cromwell blood, every single monster at Widdershins Academy will fall under my curse. You will be the catalyst that purifies the school at last. Nobody but a witch will dare to step foot here for centuries.”

I felt my heart pound against my ribs, but not from fear—from rage. Wild and Karrick were suffering because of Rowan’s twisted vendetta. And now he planned to use me to hurt everyone I cared about.

“Who’s helping you?” I demanded, dropping the frightened act slightly. “Who taught you forbidden blood magic?”

Rowan’s grip tightened painfully. “Someone who recognizes your true potential, Caden. Someone who knows what the Cromwell name really means.” His voice lowered to a reverent whisper. “He says you’re wasting your birthright by rutting with that animal.”

A chill ran down my spine that had nothing to do with the snow soaking through my shoes. “My father,” I breathed. “You’re working with Damien Cromwell.”

The flash of surprise in Rowan’s eyes confirmed it before he could mask it.

“Your daddy dearest has been quite generous with his knowledge,” Rowan sneered, recovering quickly. “He’s been watching you for years, waiting for you to embrace your true nature. Instead, you chose to defile yourself with a beast. And now you’ve hidden yourself from him somehow.” He clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “That was a bad decision.”

The knife pressed harder against my throat, and I felt a warm trickle of blood run down my neck. The moment it touched the snow beneath us, I felt a surge of power—my blood connecting with the earth, strengthening me.

“He can’t find you anymore,” Rowan continued, his voice taking on a fanatical edge. “But he promised me that if I delivered you to him—after using your blood for the purge, of course—he’d teach me everything. Make me his apprentice. Give me the power I deserve.”

“And you believed him?” I asked, letting a small, pitying smile play across my lips. “Damien Cromwell doesn’t share power. He uses people and discards them.”

Doubt flickered across Rowan’s face before hardening into resolve. “Shut up. You don’t know anything. My family is almost just as powerful as yours. With our bloodlines finally joined, we’ll take over this school and then whatever else we want. We’ll never have to barter or ask for anything ever again!”

“Joined?” I scoffed. “Is my father having a baby with you or something?”

Rowan sneered. “Do you think you’re the only Cromwell child? You have several siblings you know nothing about. But something about you got Damien’s attention,” he whispered. “He says you have more potential than the rest. I don’t see it though. You’re just as powerless and pathetic as you’ve always been.”

Through our bond, I could feel Atlas circling closer, his rage building with every drop of my blood that fell to the snow. Not yet, I sent to him. Just a little longer.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” I said, my voice growing stronger as I felt the forest’s energy coursing through me. The drops of my blood on the snow began to glow faintly, unnoticed by Rowan in his fanatical state.

“You think you’re special now because you’ve got a wolf’s dick in you?” Rowan spat, his breath hot against my face. “Damien says that’s just a phase. Once we cleanse you, you’ll understand your true purpose.”

I almost laughed. “Cleanse me? Is that what my father told you?”

“Your blood will purge this campus,” Rowan continued, pressing the knife harder against my throat. “Then we’ll cleanse you of that animal’s influence. The ritual requires a full moon and a witch of pure bloodline. Tonight is perfect.”

As he spoke, I felt something shift in the energy around us. Tiny tendrils of green were emerging from where my blood had touched the snow, invisible to normal sight but glowing like emerald fire to my enhanced senses. The forest was responding to me, to my blood, to my power.

I felt a surge of confidence as the forest responded to my call. The energy coursing through me was different now—stronger, more primal. Since bonding with Atlas, my connection to nature had deepened in ways I was only beginning to understand.

“You know what’s funny, Rowan?” I said, my voice steady despite the knife at my throat. “You talk about pure bloodlines and all the power they contain, but you have no idea what real power even smells like.”

His scarred face twisted with rage. “Shut up! You’re a powerless witch! Everyone knows that! And I’m the one with the knife!”

“And I’m the one with the forest.”

I released the power I’d been gathering, directing it through the blood I’d spilled onto the snow. The tiny green tendrils erupted upward, wrapping around Rowan’s ankles like vines. He yelped in surprise, the knife faltering against my skin.

“What the?—”

I took advantage of his momentary distraction, grabbing his wrist and twisting. The knife clattered to the snow as the vines surged higher, wrapping around his legs. Panic flashed in his eyes, the milky one rolling wildly as he struggled against his living restraints.

“You think I’m powerless?” I said, stepping back as the vines tightened around him. “You think I’m weak because I love Atlas?”

Rowan’s face contorted in fear and rage as he struggled against the plants that now snaked up to his waist. “This isn’t possible! You’re a nature witch—minor talents at best!”

“I was,” I agreed, feeling the forest’s energy humming through my body. “But things change.”

The vines continued their relentless climb, wrapping around his torso now. I felt Atlas approaching from behind, his presence a comforting warmth at my back.

“You’re too late,” Rowan spat, panic edging into his voice as he thrashed against his restraints. “The curse has already begun. Your friends will die, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.”

I moved closer, my confidence growing with each step. “Tell me how to break the curse on Wild and Karrick.”

Rowan’s laugh was high and strained. “You can’t. Only the caster can lift it, and I never will.”

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” I asked quietly. “If the caster dies… the curse ends.”

“You… You wouldn’t,” Rowan stammered. “You’d be hunted down by the Elder Council and executed for killing another witch! Both you and your stray!”

I just smiled at that, my blood turning icy as I lifted my hands, the vines thickening and growing tighter around Rowan. He cried out in pain, his joints starting to dislodge as the vines constricted, pulling his limbs outward. “Not if they don’t find your body,” I growled.

Atlas stepped up beside me, tossing a palm sized crystal ball in his hand nonchalantly. “I got it all recorded,” he said, tucking the crystal in his pocket. “Just leave him here and we’ll send security out to get him.”

But I didn’t move, the vines still tightening around Rowan. Atlas looked over at me, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Caden,” he said softly, his voice full of concern. “Let him go.”

“No,” another replied.

Both Atlas and I looked up as a dark figure stepped into the small clearing. A long black robe brushed the snow as he stepped into the light, his cold blue eyes glimmering in the moonlight.

“Kill him,” my father said, a cruel grin on his face. “Kill him and become the Cromwell witch you were meant to be.”