Page 131 of Let Us Prey
Unless they’re not strangers… and they live here.
Holy shit! What if they know about the prey tunnels?
A shiver runs through me. I’ve been using those tunnels all semester to get around safely—that is, until Rennie requested I have a chaperone at all times. I haven’t shared my knowledge of these routes with Rufus and Cori, because I promised the prey staff that I wouldn’t tell any students about them. But if someone has gotten their hands on the secret map app, or if they’reprey themselves, they would have full access to all points on campus, from any direction.
This is very, very bad. I have to tell the guys after rehearsal, but I don’t know what they can do. We can’t seal the tunnels off, because the prey staff need them to get around safely.
I slip one hand into each of my friends’ as the realization hits that, little by little, the mysterious killer—or killers—has managed to make it so nowhere on campus is safe. That’s fairly impressive at a school full of the biggest, meanest predators on the planet. What kind of person has the skill and reach to do this? It can’t simply be some run-of-mill sociopath—the body on the Tower balcony proved that.
Oh, shit!Does the dead kid in our Tower mean the killer has wings? I can’t imagine them dragging the damn thing up eight flights of steep stone stairs.
Theories whir in my head as Rufus focuses on huffing at the Heathers bumbling across the stage. If a potentially dangerous shadowy figure wasn’t lurking in the wings, I’d be grateful for the distraction, but right now, all I can think about is who could have managed to place the corpse on our balcony. The victim was a medium sized shifter, so smaller avians probably couldn’t have achieved it, unless they had help.
That leaves bigger avians. I don’t think I’ve met any climbing shifters here, so that’s an unlikely option.
“Rufus!” I squeeze his hand. “Do we have shifters that climb at Apex? Like ones that could climb the Tower.”
“Some of the big cats are excellent climbers, but I’m not sure about something as high as the Tower, especially since it’s made out of stone. If there was enough erosion to create claw holds, maybe, but I doubt it. It’s really more likely someone would get in from the stairs or by flying. Why? Are you worried? I assumed your gargoyle has that place locked down.”
His question makes me squirm. The guys asked me not to tell anyone—even my friends—that someone breached Renard’s defenses. Aubrey was the one who eventually brought me around on keeping the secret, because he insisted that ifonlywe knew, someone might reveal themselves by mentioning the body at the Tower. Since the other buildings on campus have been left alone, one slip in phrasing would give us a new lead on the killer.
I don’t like keeping things from my friends, but I understand the strategy. It makes me feel like a jerk, though, and once this is over, I’m going to apologize immediately.
“Because I’m thinking about how the creeper watching us up there got in. The doors to the upper levels have codes when the theater isn’t open, and we didn’t open the balconies for this rehearsal yet.”
“That’s brilliant, Dolly,” Cori whispers. “It could all be connected.”
I nod resolutely. “Once the Heathers finally stop, we should break for dinner. I guarantee by the time we get up there, the asshole is gone, but maybe we can find clues to who—or what—it was.”
“Like the Scoobies!” Rufus chortles. “Jinkies, Dolly, a clue!”
I roll my eyes and elbow him in the ribs. “Yeah, and most TV shows prove no one gets away without leavingsomeevidence. It couldn’t hurt to snoop around in case they did.”
Cori snickers, muttering, “That’s it, no more true crime for you. You’re not Sherlock Bones.”
That sends us all into giggles and my tension evaporates again. At least now I have some actionable steps for when rehearsal is over. I’ll need to talk to my boyfriends too. If we’re going to survive the rest of the semester, we need an offensive plan—traveling in pairs isn’t going to cut it. I sigh as I turn my attention back to the screeching piranhas on stage, resigned to watching them flop about like a school of fish out of water until Rufus calls dinner.
And that’s when the body drops from a rope, bouncing in the air in the middle of the stage like the motherfucking Panther of the Opera.
SIXTY-EIGHT
I Hate Everything About You
Sebastian
What the fuck am I looking at?
It’s the night of the big whoop-de-doo talent show at Apex—an annual event I usually avoid at all costs. I may be conditioned since birth to withstand a ridiculous amount of pain, but there’s never been a reason to torture myself by watching a bunch of underclassmen tap dancing in top hats. The reality is so much worse, as my eyes are currently burning out of my skull at the sight of D’s enemies gyrating and high-kicking in barely there lingerie.
I guess the latest dead body isn’t the only expired meat flapping around on stage nowadays…
At the thought of the corpse from last night, my wolf paces all over again. Delores was understandably panicking when we arrived, so it wasn’t until hours later that I finally got my girl to tell me a stranger had also been lurking on the balcony while they practiced. Of course, the creeper disappeared without a trace by the time Cash and I investigated, but it didn’t take a fucking rocket scientist to determine it was all related.
Which is a good thing, since I’m only a glorified gym teacher.
“See anything suspicious?” Renard’s silky voice is suddenly in my ear, startling me. He’s probably the only pred who stands a chance of sneaking up on me, but right now, I’m gonna blame my slow reaction time on the godsawful sing-a-long murdering my eardrums.
Henny wanted to call off the talent show completely, but the scary dance parents pitched a fit. Apparently, some bigwig Clawway producers are in the audience, looking to scout for next season, so the horrible show must go on.
