Page 103 of In Prey We Trust

Chess walks over with three plates balanced on his arm like a fancy waiter. “Fruity Pebbles pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, and fruit. Felix is grabbing the coffee as we speak.”

“I am so fucking spoiled,” I mutter to myself as I take the plates for Fitz and me as he climbs in next to us. “Chessie, I know it seems like I love you for your cooking skills, but I promise other things matter, too.”

“Like his sexy speared dick!” Fitz grins and pops a piece of bacon in his mouth with a hum of approval. “Dude, did you candy this shit? Holy fuck.”

“I did, actually. It’s maple bourbon flavored,” the cheetah says as he flushes. “Do you like it?”

“Your dick or the bacon?” Aubrey snorts as he walks in. “You know what? Since the options have to do with maple bacon flavoring or Fitz’s preferences, don’t answer that.”

Giggling, I chomp a piece of the bacon with a groan of approval then cover my mouth. “I vote for both.”

“Both is good.” Fitz nods.

Chess turns redder as Felix and Rennie come in, obviously scenting the delicious eats from their rooms. Felix arches a brow at me, looking amused at our pile in the cushions. “Room for more, Princess?”

I nod as I munch on the delicious food Chessie made. “Uh-huh.”

To everyone’s surprise, he bends to pick up the cheetah, sitting on my side and placing him on his lap before kissing my jaw. “Excellent. I don’t want to miss your sexy food noises.”

Fitz gives his twin an incredulous look, pointing at him with a fork menacingly. “Watch it, bro. You’re edging in on my territory. But I agree about her food moans. They’re spank-worthy.”

“Chess’ food is spank-worthy,” I mumble around the sweet pancakes filled with Fitz’s favorite cereal. “How could I keep my food-gasms quiet?” That gets a laugh out of all the guys, and when Aubrey brings me a huge mug of my special brew, they watch until I sigh with pleasure.

Rennie comes over with his plate, a devilish sparkle in his eyes as he mimics Felix, placing Fitz on his lap. The tiger beams at him and Aubery plops down in front of me, settling in with my feet in his lap. “This is trés cozy, ma petite. How do you feel this morning?”

“Eating tasty ‘bad for me’ shit while you’re all snuggled in? Uh, fucking fantastic, thanks.” I snort and shove another mouthful of pancakes in my mouth. “Take that, César.”

“Well… about that…” Chess flushes again and ducks his head. “It’s not that bad for you. None of it is, really.”

I frown, looking at my half-empty plate, then back at him. “What?”

“Based on César's and Zhenga’s advice, I’ve changed how I cook. I use a lot of raw sugar versus processed, whole grain or homemade pasta not store bought. I add a lot of hidden veggies and fruit to everything, and I sneak protein powders and supplemental nutrients into most of the food. It’s tricky to get taste right at first, but I’ve been making sure it all works for your training requirements.”

Felix chews his pancakes, then his brows furrow. “But it tastes fucking great, bro. We wouldn’t have known if you didn’t say anything.”

Chess grins and his chest puffs a bit. “I watch a lot of YouTube videos and tutorials. I thought you’d all figure it out, but no one ever did. The cereal is garbage but Fitzy and my angel like it, so it’s a treat.”

“Damn, Chessie, you really are my knight in shining armor. You made healthier shit, not taste like ass.” I dart forward, kissing him softly before I pull back. “Thank you for taking care of me.”

“Aw, it’s cuddle-wovey time,” my dragon snarks playfully. “Everyone get it out of your system now before we have to walk into that ridiculous fucking party. You know it’s going to be filled with booby traps and assholes.”

“Maybe it won’t be? Maybe we’ll get to dance and drink and wear silly costumes?” Even Chess gives me a baleful expression, and I cross my arms over my chest as I pout. “Ugh, fine. It’s probably going to be a pain in the ass and everyone will ruin it, but let me have a sliver of hope. I won’t know how my exams with everyone but you guys went until Friday and I’m stressed enough. Plus, I’m sore as hell from fighting that nasty dog last night.”

“Which is why you got special pancakes,” Chess supplies helpfully. “And why we’re going to veg out here today and not talk about—”

The sound of a phone vibrating in someone’s pocket stops him and I roll my eyes at the ceiling in supplication. Aubrey fishes out his DiePhone, scrolling quietly. I watch the rainbow flicker through his eyes and the brief sensation of his dragon ripples over my legs as he fights back fury. When he’s finally done, we’re all watching him expectantly and he snarls.

“That was Aloysius at the Smithsonian texting. He’s warning me about the email he sent to me that was also CC’d to the Council, Apex admins, Cappie admins, and your lawyer. His tests on the samples from the prom, the clothing from her room, her body, and her equipment in the school labs confirm Kinsley was behind the poisoning at Apex. Samples taken at Cappie show she was working on something else they couldn’t identify as well. It had ingredients and DNA they don’t recognize, as well as some engineering techniques known to be used by humans.”

My voice is a whisper as I ask the question we’re all wondering. “What does that mean?”

“He doesn’t know. They’re going to continue testing and possibly loop in contacts in the human world without providing context. The Smithy is shared space, so they often rope in well-known human scientists for research under NDAs that keep them quiet. But if you’d never met the girl, the target at the prom was all the heirs, not you specifically, which means this wasn’t the Council. They wouldn’t kill their own heirs in such a ridiculously public way.” Aubrey pinches the bridge of his nose as he thinks for a moment.

“The heirs were supposed to die, which would weaken the Council. That didn’t work because the alcohol and drugs accidentally countermanded the poison.” Chess pauses, then frowns. “Which means they have several things we didn’t know about: families or students in the shifter community on their side, knowledge that simple things could thwart their poison, and some other lab created bullshit that may or may not be finished.”

“Fucking great,” Fitz groans. “So we have the Council and their cronies on one side, the magic people with shifters and humans on the other, and a gaggle of randos with vendettas against our girl all working at the same time? How the hell are we going to fight all of it, man? Maybe we should head for Tahiti—it’s a wonderful place, I hear.”

Leaning over, I look at my worried tiger, seeing the frustration in his gaze. He’d rather just kill everyone and be done with it, but he knows that won’t solve the problem forever. Whoever killed Kinsley did us and the Council a favor, but since none of this was known back then, her death must have served another purpose. There’s so many strings tying things together, binding us in a tight space that it’s feeling like a silken prison. And Fitz is not someone who does well in a cage.

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