Hayes cast Albert a quiet sidelong glance and unconsciously lowered his voice. Half to change the subject, half out of genuine curiosity, he asked, "Black market? Draining blood?"
The big cat frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"…"
LQ kept drinking his soup without answering.
It was the honey badger who clicked his tongue in surprise. "So you really don't know."
Albert and Karl both looked over as well, confusion written plainly on their faces.
Lyee—the honey badger—thought for a moment. "Makes sense. After the apocalypse, information travels slowly. You're all in southern cities. You probably haven't heard what's been happening up north."
LQ drained half a bowl of soup in one go, ate a mushroom, and waved a hand. "You explain."
Lyee nodded. "Then let's start with our mission."
He paused and glanced at Albert. "Uh… brother whose name I don't know—could you call off your spiders first? They're pretty terrifying."
Hayes and Albert exchanged another look.
