Page 108 of Let Us Prey
Oh, shit.
Zhenga rolls her eyes and mutters something about idiocy running in the family before she points to an open armchair, blessedly across the room from me. “Thank you for the information, Miss Romulus. Unless you have something else you’d like to dramatically declare, I suggest you sit down and start taking notes. Being late to my class doesn’t mean you won’t have to catch up with the information you missed.”
Ducking my head, I scribble notes through the rest of class, but I can feel the new Heather’s eyes on me. I’ll have to find out why she’s here, and how she’s related to my guys—and why her name is freakin’ Heather.Something about this feels like a set-up, and I’ve got enough enemies at Apex as it is.
But with a name like that, you know she’s going to be trouble.
The last thing I need is some fucking Romulus helping my ex-besties with their campaign of terror, but I have enough on my plate as it is. Shaking my head, I continue watching the video, marking down different aspects of mating and hunting that seem important. Zhenga’s right—which Ihateto admit—but I do need to know how things work with my guys. The surprise appearance of my periodtwicethis semester probably means I need to make time tomorrow to visit with the nurses in the infirmary. According to Google, that means my implant needs to be replaced; after all, Lucille had it put in when I was thirteen and the internet says they have a shelf life of five years.
Another detail it might have been helpful to have before I got naughty with two brand new boyfriends recently—thanks, Lucille.
I’m still bitterly griping in my head when the voice on the screen starts describing sex with wolves in detail, which makes my face turn bright red. Curiously, it doesn’t say a fuckingthingabout dicks gettingstuckat all, and I frown. Did that happen because I’m prey? Bash was such a player; he had to have fucked another prey animal at some point. Maybe it’s because I’m a rabbit?
Fuck, I don’t know, but it wigged him out big time.
Chewing on my fingernail, I warily eye the lioness texting on her phone, knowing there’s only one way to find out for sure. I’m going to have totalkto her at the end of class and hope it doesn’t result in a literal cat fight with a teacher.
Hera help me, because if I get kicked out of this school for taking on a Leonidas, I don’t know if Lucille will be angry or proud.
* * *
That might bethe most uncomfortable conversation I’ve had in a long time.
Talking with Zhenga about the ‘difficulty’ I experienced during sex, without disclosing which breed of shifter I was with, was a dance unto itself. The lioness is sharp as hell, and I could see the suspicion in her expression as she listened to my description. I doubt I was able to keep as much concealed as I wanted to, because when she promised to do some ‘research,’ I saw the almost gleeful look in her eyes.
But I can’t worry about that now. My life is a ridiculous mess of secrets and threats, and I promised Rufus I’d call them about this letter as soon as I got out of class.
“Helloooooooo, Dolly!” he sings at the top of his lungs.
I wrinkle my nose, glaring at the phone as if he can see me. “IhateBadgers & Hammershark, Ru-Ru.”
A scuffle ensues, and finally, Cori takes the phone and turns it on speaker. “He’s being an ass, Dolly. Tell us about this letter. I’m really worried, not gonna lie.”
I quickly glance around to make sure no one’s close enough to overhear, especially given what I’m about to tell them. “Well, like I said, I found it on my dorm room floor when I was leaving for class. Someone must have shoved it underneath my door early this morning. The postmark is recent, but the fisher cat’s been dead since Halloween. Maybe he had someone send it on his behalf if something happened to him? I don’t know. The whole thing is super weird. I barely knew him.”
“We need to see what it says ASAP, Dollypop. Meet us at my dorm after your last class so we can comb through it and try to analyze what that sneaky little shit’s game was.”
I nod, even though he can’t see me, although I’m still worried about the fact I haven’t told the guys yet. I know they’ll be twice as concerned about me than they already are, and I don’t want to be treated like a ceramic vase. “Okay, Ru-Ru. I’ll see you both after classes and we’ll figure out how to puzzle through this mystery without raising any alarms.”
Why can’t I be a normal girl, and spend my time drooling over my five hot professor boyfriends?
* * *
“This part is pretty ominous…‘you can’t trust the people closest to you; they want to see you dead.’It gives me the willies,” Cori says as she rubs her arms.
“I know. The Heathers and their groupies didn’t make a secret of hating me last semester, but after I fought E. in class, they’ve been more of a nuisance than an actual threat. So he must be talking about someone whoisn’tmaking their venom known.”
As soon as the words leave my mouth, I realize Idon’tsee the Heathers as a threat anymore. Maybe it’s a part of growing up, or finding my own way, or the fact actualdeathsare happening on campus, but I just can’t be bothered with their schoolyard antics. I’ve even taken to leaving my ‘Fuck ‘Em Up, Sis’ list in my dorm room, instead of carrying it around with me everywhere.
One less thing to carry, for sure.
Rufus squints at the paper again. “Why do people do shit like this? If this was to be sent after he died, why not call out the motherfucker in question? It’s not like they could kill him again.‘Dear Dolly, this specific asshole is trying to kill you. Sincerely, cowardly weasel.’ That would be a lot more helpful.”
Sighing, I fold the paper and tuck it into my bag. “I don’t know, Rufus, but it sure as hell makes me feel like I’m in danger. Maybe that’s all it was supposed to accomplish—to throw me off my game.”
My friends and I exchange worried looks as I pack my things to head to the townhouse.
Maybe I should call one of the guys before I leave…
