Page 20 of Nope, No Regrets
I scratched my chin thoughtfully. It could be either. Rei was going to need as many tails as she could get. Most everyone hated Kudan, but there would still be people who viewed her as an outsider because she didn’t grow up here. She was still young, so it was pretty impressive that she already had three tails. If she earned a fourth, it would give her an edge.
“I’m sure you’ve figured out you gain a new ability with each new tail. It’s random, and every Kitsune gains something different each time. The rest of your tails will come through your deeds. It could have been the riot, or possibly the breakout that caused the third. I have to say, I was pretty fucking proud of the way you handled the warden. You didn’t give her much of a choice about releasing your friends. That level of manipulation could certainly earn you another tail.”
Rei set down her chopsticks and looked me deep in the eyes.
“I couldn’t have done that without you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that. I get you didn’t have any say in this either, and have known about it longer than I have, but I’m going to try to make it work.”
The wolf was sulking. The gargoyle and the sphinx looked like they were still grateful to be out, and understood I came with that. This might have been the witch’s first experience with sushi, but she was a total convert now. She was the only one at the table still eating.
Rei’s eyes were drooping, and she yawned. It had been a long day, and she needed to rest, because her parents wanted to meet her first thing in the morning.
“Get some sleep, Rei. There are people to meet in the morning. I won’t be sleeping in here until we are wed. The futon was intended for two people, and there’s not enough room for everyone. I’ve arranged rooms for us all.”
Faust’s eyes flashed amber, and his canines elongated.
“I’m sleeping with my mate tonight, the rest of you can fuck off to another bed! I accept that I’m going to have to share a bed with you assholes sooner or later, but since I have the option to hog Rei tonight, I’m taking it!”
Dakarys and Rajack probably wanted to sleep next to her just as much as Faust did, but they understood this whole mate dynamic. They knew, just as well as all of us, what we were asking of Faust. I needed to introduce him to Skoll, and Faust needed to meet another wolf that shared his mate. I’d do that when I left.
“The stench of testosterone in here is overpowering, and I just ate,” Wren said.
“You ate more than I did, and I’m a shifter!” Faust growled. “It was gross, and you have zero table manners.”
“Faust,” Rei warned. “Rajack has been to Japan, so he’s seen chopsticks before. Wren got arrested before Japanese culture made its way to the US. It’s not like they served anything like this in prison. You had to learn to use chopsticks once, too. You didn’t eat it, but we did. The food at Silverhold was awful. It either plugged you up, or made you live in the damn bathroom. Wren didn’t get to have your wonderful cooking for lunch… she didn’t get lunch at all. How about you let her enjoy herself?”
“Fine! But I’m sleeping in here tonight. Wren can learn table manners tomorrow.”
“No one is saying you can’t, asshole. You don’t have to piss on her leg to claim her.”
I really wanted to get to know Rei better, but I needed to get to know these people, too. It wasn’t just because Rei claimed them and wanted them here. Wren was an assassin, she’d told me as much. I had killed for my emperor plenty of times, and I’d do it for Rei, too.
I knew when I was in the presence of a killer. Rajack and Dakarys had killed before. I knew why Rajack was in jail. Those two had been in Scorchwood. It wasn’t a giant leap to assume that Dakarys had killed to survive at least once.
Faust was supposed to be a prison guard, responsible for the inmates, though Faust was also a killer, and I got the feeling every person here knew that. I wasn’t judging him for it, but the little witch seemed to really enjoy pressing his buttons… like Rei could keep her safe from him!
These people were complicated, and I needed to know how to navigate this complex tangle of relationships, since I was just stumbling into the middle of them all. No one was stopping Faust from having his night, and I wasn’t even going to go there because I was a stranger to her.
I showed everyone to their bedrooms. I knew exactly what Faust and Rei intended to get up to, especially if her fox bit him. I just hoped they got at least a little sleep. I knew Rei’s parents, I knew how much they missed her, and I know they were going to be a little overbearing now that she was back.
They weren’t going to judge her for bringing people back with her, but they were undoubtedly going to grill them to make sure they were strong enough to be worthy partners to a Kitsune.
If they all thought prison was brutal, well… they hadn’t met Rei’s parents yet.
