Page 121 of Prey It By Ear

“That was a strategic decision, and I stand by it,” I say with a grin. “It paid off, if you’re wondering.”

Felix snorts and says, “If you eat like a rabbit, you will have the strength of one, Princess.” He looks pointedly at Fitz, who gives him a sheepish look. “Don’t play ‘Let’s Make a Deal’ with my twin. Chess has you on a very precise diet so you stay upright under all this stress.”

My crazy clears his throat to retort, but stops when his phone beeps. He glances at it and turns to us with a frown. “There was a major incident on the quad last night. The campus is in lockdown from eight to noon, so if you have classes before then, expect extra security in the buildings. They’re not saying what it was, but the staff rumor mill is already working overtime.”

That does a lot to kill the mood. Even Felix stops fussing as he scoots closer to his brother to see. “Any fatalities?” he asks. “That should give us an idea of what the fuck happened.”

“Just injuries, so far. But the lockdown covers the Shirdal building. If you’re headed to ballet, you will definitely want to stay with the escorts all the way to class and then only leave when the next person comes at the end.” Fitz wrinkles his nose and looks at me sternly. “Take it seriously, Baby Girl. We have no idea what the fuck this shit is.”

“Banjo and Bowser offered to run me through the staff tunnels if I needed to at some point. If it feels sketchy after ballet, we’ll start using them,” I say, with more confidence than I feel. “Does that make you feel better?”

Fitz grins. “Yes, it would. Big bro is taking you to ballet, but if you even get a whiff of lips from the guard dogs or anything else, ask the prey folks to hide you underground for the rest of the day. No traveling on the surface if there’s still problems, got it?”

My cheetah mate smiles sheepishly as he murmurs, “I kind of agree, Angel. I don’t see a reason to risk it, you know?”

The breakfast chatter stops there as the others throw in their two cents, and I sigh in resignation. “Okay, I promise. Now let me finish eating.”

Rennie resumes annotating, and the twins bicker about what the problem might have been. Aubrey is quiet as he goes back to his paper. It’s warm and safe and almost normal, which makes me wonder when the next shoe is going to drop.

I don’t have to wait long because Felix breaks the spell despite Fitz’s protests. “I tried calling Taka again on Friday.” The exiled Raj shrugs when the room goes silent, staring at his mug as if it holds answers. “I got nothing. No reply, not even the usual ‘I’m busy’ text.”

“The last time we heard from him, he was—” Aubrey breaks off as he looks at me, but the implication is clear. The last time we saw the head of the Khan line, he was on Lucille’s yacht, surrounded by nubile women and men, grinning like he had all the aces.

I press my lips together because I don’t want to say the obvious. But I know, and Felix knows, and Fitz probably assumes what’s going on.

Rennie’s gaze lands on me, soft and full of some emotion I don’t have a name for. “You do not have to say it, cherie. Taka has chosen a side, and it is unpleasant for us to imagine.”

No one says anything for a long time. I make a show of picking at my fruit because I don’t want to see the looks in their eyes.

“Maybe he’s just sailing around with her being a lech and spending money. It might not be some scary, evil threat that they’re together and unreachable,” Fitz says as he leans back on the counter. “Our dear dad is lazy as fuck and doesn’t do his own dirty work ever. It’s probably just a coincidence.”

Chess gives him a wry look. “Are we ever that lucky, love?”

Grumbling, Fitz says, “It could happen.”

Felix finishes his coffee and sets the mug down. He looks at me, and then at Fitz, and then away. “Just be careful today—all of you.” He makes it sound like an order, which it probably is.

Aubrey stands, checks his watch, and grabs his bag. “I’ll see you all later. I have books to catalogue. Snack-size, I’ll meet you at the library after your last class. Raj, you and the others can watch the annex just in case.”

Felix nods and then glances at me. “I’ll walk you to the Shird.”

The rest of the breakfast is a scramble of last-minute packing, water bottles, and the usual argument over who gets to use the good umbrella. I win because I have pretty hair and Fitz pretends to pout. As we get ready to go, I square my shoulders and head out to meet the day.

It’s going to be okay, Dolly. You’re overreacting.

We don’t even make it to the door before all six of our phones go off at once again. The sound is a dissonant chord that would make even the most tone-deaf predator pause. It’s a campus-wide alert—but only for our system. I’m halfway through shoving my foot into a shoe when I see the red banner, and before anyone can even tap ‘view details,’ there’s a thudding at the back door so loud and insistent it sets off the house’s vibration sensors.

That is not good, and I am definitely not happy.

Felix is moving before anyone else. Aubrey’s at his side, phone in hand, with his free arm ready to block intruders. Fitz, true to form, goes for the laptop on the table and starts swiping through camera feeds. The pounding comes again, harder, and that’s when Rennie moves to join Aubrey at the front of the pack.

A voice, filtered through the security comm, says: “Council business. Open this door immediately.”

What the fuck does that mean? Did that fucker call the goddamn Council over a fight between me and the Heathers?

Felix yanks the door open, hard, his snarl in place as he prepares to roar at the people there. However, when we see the intruders, he stops in his tracks, turning to look at me with wide eyes.

Standing in front of our door is Lucille, dressed in a tailored black suit, sunglasses, an enormous hat, and a face that could freeze the campus lakes. She’s flanked by Taka Khan, whose eyes are like glass marbles set into a stony mask. Behind them are six more preds—four obvious ‘playmates’ and two who have both the muscle and attitude of professional enforcers. I take a second to register the rest—the three enormous suitcases, two trunks, and a stack of garment bags, all branded with the Rostoff logo and banded in Drew family blue.