Page 125 of In Prey We Trust

TigerWoody: Show him the map and say it’s from a MMORPG I’m designing. He’ll believe you because that’s all the douche thinks about. Ask him to find the holes and calculate how to close the net with finite resources.

TigerKing: Can we trust him?

TigerWoody: Fuck, no. That’s what the ruse is for, big bro. Do that and I bet he gives you enough bullshit to either fix it or know what we need to fix it. The kid’s a savant with this shit.

LustyLibrarian: Good call, Fitzgerald. Rennie, I’m on my way to your classroom.

EmoBatman: I’ll be waiting.

TigerWoody: Over and out, Snowman.

Hopefully, Chess is having better luck wrangling all the ordering the Princess’ friends demanded.

After all, it wouldn’t be a ball if we showed up wearing sweatpants and hoodies.

“Did you get it fixed?”

The second I walk through the arch to the spacious living area, Fitz yells over his shoulder. He’s been mainlining so much shit to stay focused and awake that Chess is right—he’s almost vibrating. Heading to the sideboard, I pour myself a bourbon and join him in the plush cushions. “You were right. The kid finished his exam in a blink and snatched the paper like a golem with a ring. It was fucking hysterical.”

“What did he come up with?”

My brother isn’t even turning his head as he watches lines of move on several black windows on his screen. I’d worry about him, but Fitz does his best work when he’s utterly obsessed with things. Dolly is the deepest obsession I’ve ever seen him juggle, and figuring out how to keep her safe is fueling this marathon of hacking. I don’t think I could pull him away if I wanted to. Perhaps the Princess could, but she’s probably shuttered in her room with her friends hoping she won’t get flunked in her classes. They only have three days of exams left before the weekend, so it’s crunch time.

“He said we need five more people, or it’s a bust.” I sigh, rolling my head back to look at the ceiling. “Z’s tapped out because of the holidays. You’ve already conscripted César. The winged fuckers don’t have other friends besides the crew, and Dolly’s friends don’t want to reveal the magic secrets yet. The badger is afraid his cagey old grandmother will try to take advantage of it. Where are we going to get the five we need?”

A throat clears and I look over my head to see Aubrey standing at the edge of the sofa. “Perhaps we’re not thinking broadly enough, Raj. Every person we place doesn’t have to be a fighter; they need to defend. Correct?”

I nod. “Yeah. But…”

“If our friends in the armory were to ‘borrow’ some distance weaponry that would at least slow down the invaders, we could use less beefy sentinels in some of the less likely target areas.” The dragon scratches his chin, then gives me a mischievous smile that’s very unlike him. “Some of my research friends spend quite a bit of time in dangerous war zones and climates. They are not built for hand-to-hand combat, but they can definitely throw grenades or shoot bows like Raina’s.”

Ohhhhh.

“Are these the same people being prevented from leaving the country for their projects?” He nods and I chuckle. “And they’re pretty pissed, I assume.”

“Cornelius Bathwaite is one angry goddamn walrus at the moment. He’s huge when not shifted and lethal in the water. It would be a perfect fit for one end of the river. Plus, his sister Amelia is twice his size, and the restriction has kept her from studying Antarctic migration during the high season. If they have the right equipment, they’ll hold up both ends.”

“I could move two of the stronger preds from those positions…” I pull out the map that the greasy vulpine helped me configure, snapping my fingers when I don’t have a pen. Fitz throws one at me from his nest, once again not taking his eyes off the display. “Yes, that could work. Who else do you have?”

“Who else does he have for what?”

My eyes connect with Dolly’s the minute she stumbles into the room. Her hair is secured away from her face in two adorable ponytails and she’s wearing an enormous pair of sweatpants that must be the dragon’s. Her shirt is torn and ripped to make a crop top, but I recognize it as one of Fitz’s league shirts. She looks tired, but absolutely adorable. “We’re strategizing, Princess. You don’t have to worry about anything besides exams and primping for the ball at the moment.”

“Ugh, that damn thing,” she grumbles as she throws herself over the back of the sofa. “I can’t believe I have to be dressed to impress my parents and a bunch of pretentious jackwads, plus I have to be ready for something bad to happen. It feels very unfair, and I’d like to register a complaint.”

Rufus and Cori appear in the doorway, skirting around Aubrey to hop into the spots they’ve been claiming on the other side of our sunken nest. The badger wraps his arm around the bear, laughing as she yawns big enough to swallow the Captain whole. Dolly reaches into her pocket and tosses a wrapped candy at her, snickering when it bonks her friend in the forehead.

“Easy, children,” I scold, pretending to frown. “It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt. None of you look as if you’ve slept in days. You’re as bad as my brother.”

Fitz finally looks up from the computer, his eyes bloodshot and his expression petulant. “Fuck off, Felix, I’m gonna make sure our girl is safe if it kills me.”

“For fuck’s sake, baby.” Princess crawls over me, narrowly missing the soft bits, as she clambers to steal the laptop from his lap. He yells in protest, but she puts her fingers to his lips. “You’re recording the logs. We can review it tomorrow. For now, you’re going to eat actual food and put this aside.”

“But…”

“We’re about studied out for History,” Cori says with another yawn. “I think everyone needs a break. What do you say, Ru-Ru?”

He nods, catching yawn and releasing one of his own. “Agreed. Mexican? I could seriously ravage some tacos.”

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