Page 48 of In Prey We Trust

Chess has taken over the cooking, but my mischievous mate frequently joins him in the kitchen. I’m waiting for him to admit he’s Cordon Bleu trained, but getting personal details out of Renard is a slow process. I’ve had the benefit of centuries; the rest of them are just beginning to peel away the rock hard exterior that isn’t solely his shifted form.

Admitting to our relationship is a big step.

Bypassing the main room for a moment, I go into our room to change into more comfortable clothes. This is my big change, I suppose, and proof that even an ancient dragon can learn new tricks. Moving into this place we set up to be comfortable for all of us cemented the formation of a family—a clash— for me.

I don’t lounge around in my pressed work clothes; no, I wear sweats and tees like the rest of them. It was hard switching over because it made me feel more vulnerable and less distant from them. But it also felt like the right thing to do. I can’t expect our girl to be honest with us or the others to share their tales if I don’t start letting them in.

Shaking my head, I sit the papers and my tablet on the dresser so I can strip. I toss the dirty shirt and pants in the laundry bags and pull on my new home garb. Looking in the mirror, I pause for a moment to see the expression on my face. Amazingly, I look happy and not like I want to roast the entire campus on a spit. Of course, I do want to toast most of the fucking people here, especially those we know are gunning for our girl. But I don’t look like a thundercloud coming over the hill ready to burst and cause havoc.

A tiny mew startles me and I grin bigger, stooping to pick Jinx up and set her on my shoulder. Her small claws dig into my shirt for purchase and I walk over to get my stuff with the shoulder mounted kitten in place. Hopefully, the rest of them are arriving and we can distribute all of this shit so Dolly isn’t burning herself out trying to balance it all. She feels responsible and she’s going to be even more stubborn once she hears my news.

Fuck. I hate being the bearer of supremely bad news.

“Dollypop, I’m super jelly you have digs like this. They have me on the third year floor of the fucking dog house and let me tell you… floral scented bathrooms it is not,” Rufus says as he waves at the hallway. “Not to mention you have your own chef, you brat.”

Fitz glares at him, rumbling softly as he shoves my bestie into our sunken nest area. “You’re not moving into our MojoDojoCasa.”

“I told you letting him and Princess watch that Barbie movie on the tablets this summer was a bad idea.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose, sighing as I look at Felix. He’s conveniently forgetting we set that up so he wouldn’t drive down and do the exact thing he did the minute we weren’t watching—sneak into her house. “It’s done now, isn’t it, Raj?”

“Don’t be a hater, Prof,” Rufus says to the room at large. “You asked us here for a reason, right, Coco?”

The colorful polar bear nods, her curls bouncing as she hops into the big couch and sighs happily. “Yep. Ru-Ru’s correct—you wouldn’t have curtailed your sexcapades to have us over if it wasn’t important.”

“Guysssssss,” Dolly groans. “Stop. No sniping. That means you, Rufus, and all the rest of you testosterone-fueled a-holes. Cori, however, is perfect.”

“That’s what you get for liking dick, D. If you just swung the pendulum, I bet—”

Snack Size looks over at her, glaring as she puts her hands on her hips. “No longer my favorite. Behave. I have to go get this Predhub uniform off so I can join you.”

I arch a brow at her, eyeing the wilted hair and sheen on her skin. “You changed back into after Zhenga’s practice?”

An aggravated screech is my only answer and I chuckle as she stomps away. “What did I say?”

“They make us put it on between seven and five pm. Her practice ended before five so she had to re-dress for the walk home or risk demerits if someone tattletale saw her.” Cori sighs and looks down at herself. “That’s why I still have the damn thing on.”

“Amen, sis,” Rufus replies. “These tight asses really enforce that shit, too. I already got ten for venturing out for breakfast in PJs. The heads in the doggy kennel are real cocksuckers and not in a good way.”

“At least they stuck you with something remotely similar. They put bears in with cats, if you believe it. It’s ridiculous and they hate every single ursine in the building. Our head glares at me like she wants to use my ass to sharpen her claws.”

Dolly comes back wearing an oversized tee that belongs to Fitz—the Bloodstone security logo on it tells me that—and a pair of yoga pants. Her hair is tied back in braids and she’s got bare feet with sparkly toes. I smile at her cozy appearance, moving over so she can drop on the couch with her friends. “I’m sorry you guys got shafted coming here. If it wouldn’t get you in trouble, I’d find a better place for you.”

Felix looks thoughtful for a moment, but he shakes his head and walks over to the kitchen. “Chess, is this ready? I want to get whatever the big guy has to say before we eat.” I give him a surprised look and he shrugs. “You have that pensive look and you’re dancing. It means you found something and you don’t like it.”

He’s absolutely right and I’m a little stunned. Am I that predictable?

“I found a lot of bullshit, but one thing in particular concerns me the most. And I had Rennie call your friends, lunchable, because our boards are too full—which is also part of the problem.” I find a seat on the end, waiting for the gargoyle to curl in his usual fashion nearby. “Chester, you’ll want to come in here.”

The cheetah pauses, looking at me curiously before he fiddles with dials on the stove. Once he’s done, he comes in and very carefully sits next to Fitz.

Smart move.

“As everyone but your friends knows, my position at Capital Prep allows me more access to digital information than my position at Apex did. Between my access and Fitz’s skills, we’ve been compiling data, clues, background, and more on the players in our mysteries. Today, I did some peeping in staff accounts. I can actually see everything they do, including access to WiFi with their own devices.” I frown, still uncomfortable with that level of spyware in their system.

“Famous people and politicians,” Rufus says with a nod. “Not a shocker, honestly. Imagine what the paps would pay.”

“Indeed,” I agree. “But I was really looking at the worst offender so far…our Ms. Rockland. There’s an absolute fuckton of shit she’s up to that isn’t kosher but… The most pressing one is a contract with her agent for a new book. Her proposal is full of holes—whether it’s ignorance or purposeful, I don’t know—but it appears to be about… you, Nibblet.”

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