Page 42 of Monster. Me.

That will get the message across.

It’s not the first time someone's started shit with me, but I've always managed to get myself out of trouble. Wilhelm stumbles backward into the wall, while Reed watches with a strange expression. He clearly has no interest in fighting, though. He just catches Wilhelm before he slides all the way to the floor.

"Wow. You're such a caveman," he says with contempt. "We were just talking, and you're already throwing punches."

I turn around without a word and walk down the hallway. What a pair of idiots. And what kind of pathetic innuendos were those? To be fair, I get that they're probably a little starved for action. They work in the middle of nowhere, and most of the staff are alphas and betas, with the sour exception of the boss of all bosses, Dr. Lomax. But he seems unlikely to inspire any uncontrollable sexual urges. Unless, of course, someone has a thing for funeral directors.

When I return to the promenade, I head straight toward the cafeteria. I need to show my face, or people may start asking questions. When I walk in, Rupert is chatting with Juan like nothing happened, and the best part is that Caspian is sitting with them too.

Well, the staff definitely don't seem to have any issue getting friendly with the program participants.

Great.

I really don't feel like dealing with any of them, but what other choice do I have? Everything is completely fucked, and I'm exhausted. The only thing stopping me from running back home, is one small detail: I want to get to know Fenn Drax better.

Give him a little more time.

Give… myself a little more time.

For what? No idea.

"So, how'd it go?" Caspian asks casually as soon as I sit down. Apparently Rupert already filled him in.

"How do you think it went?" I reply with a bitter grimace. "They give him local anesthesia and then put him through painful procedures like bone marrow extraction. Sorry, but it's disgusting how Welrun treats this man."

"He's not a human," Juan says firmly. "He's a monster. And a rapist."

"He's not a rapist! He had consent forms signed by every beta involved. "

"Sure, sure. A nice little show he put on for the public. He never actually cared."

"If he didn't care, he wouldn't have recorded that conversation with his boss where he asked whether everything was actually legal. Dig around online and you'll find more balanced articles about what happened on Calsing Island instead of all the sensationalized garbage." I scoff.

"I know enough," Juan says, his tone filled with smugness.

That’s it, I snap, "You know shit! My brother-in-law is Blue Lowen, Fenn Drax’s former employer, so I would say I know quite a bit more than you from the source itself."

A stunned silence falls over the table. Oh, how dare I speak to Juan like that, the man everyone adores and respects without question, especially at this table. Rupert, Timmy, and Caspian stare at me. Even Pedro and Vasyl have stopped eating.

But do I care? My feline nature is an inseparable part of who I am. I walk my own path, and I’m an individualist. I’ve never had the mindset of a follower.

Juan opens his mouth to say something, but unexpectedly his bootlicker, Rupert, interjects.

"I doubt Blue Lowen would be unbiased here. He had scientific oversight over the facility on Calsing Island."

I narrow my eyes.

"If you want to compare the ethical standards of medical care there and here at Welrun, well… good luck. I personally saw Fenn being beaten with a baton to the head, his wounds left untreated, unsterilized, his pain ignored. This is a barbaric place, and I have a bad feeling about the results of the program if the people in charge here allow this abuse."

A gloomy silence settles over the table.

This is by far the longest rant I’ve ever made here, and I’m definitely not going to win any new fans with it.

Juan looks to the side, Timmy at his plate. Caspian stares at his fingers.

After all, he works for Welrun, and my opinion of the company employing him has to sting, but his easygoing personality won't let him push back.

Rupert seems to notice.