8. Good sides of beasts

Precious's voice echoed in the room, but no one bothered to answer her question. Seeing this, she decided to focus on her food.

The strange creatures she lived with had made her forget her hunger, but now that she felt somewhat comfortable, her stomach began to ache.

It felt as if there were invisible particles stabbing her internally in her stomach, solely because she was hungry.

At first, she thought the cutlery was merely colored gold, but when she felt their unfamiliar texture, an odd thought crossed her mind.

"Are they real gold?" The cutlery was flashy yet retained the unique dull color of genuine gold, so she asked Chris to confirm her suspicion.

Chris, sitting close to her and already eating, shrugged and asked, "What do you think?"

Precious bit the spoon and giggled, "I really can't tell." She then whispered to Chris, curious to confirm her ridiculous thought, "Is it though?"

For one, Precious found it hard to believe that the cutlery was made of gold, considering it was too luxurious to use something that valuable for mere eating purposes.

"Well, I don't aim to shock you, little one, but yes, it is," Chris replied. "Edgar loves classy things, so everything he owns is worth thousands and millions of dollars. From his shoes to his outfits, even his cars—the one that drove you here two days ago..."

Chris went on, leaving Precious breathless. She was both fascinated and astonished. Using real gold for eating utensils seemed incredibly extravagant. It was the epitome of luxury!

However, Precious didn't want to delve further into the topic, so she interrupted Chris. When he glanced at her, she used her eyes to explain the reason for her action.

On the other side of the table, Lucas cleared his throat due to the intense eye contact between Precious and Chris, the beast sitting next to her.

"We should all eat," Precious said, looking away from Chris and focusing on her food. She said a short prayer before joining everyone.

"Do you all work?" Precious asked, breaking the silence that had threatened to engulf the entire dining hall.

"Like something you do for a living?" She asked again as she filled her mouth with pasta and planned to serve herself some sauce.

Veronica, who had been eating ahead of the others, watched as the cat that was initially situated at one end of the table made its way toward her.

Noticing that Veronica welcomed her cat warmly, Precious smirked and opened her mouth to address the other female in the dining hall. "He's one cute cat, right?"

Veronica took some time before answering Precious. "It wouldn't change anything if I agreed with you," she replied.

Lucas, on the other hand, could sense the hatred Veronica had for Precious.

While both females seemed to obviously dislike each other, Precious disliked Veronica's attitude, but Veronica hated Precious because she had a crush on Edgar. Veronica tended to associate with powerful creatures like Edgar, given her own beastly nature.

However, the situation was now different since Precious seemed to be an obstacle between Edgar and Veronica. Sensing the impending awkwardness and violence, Lucas took it upon himself to answer Precious's question.

"We all work for Edgar," Lucas said and added, "He's a successful businessman who has been living for decades, and as beasts, we always find our way."

Hearing Lucas's reply, Precious didn't fully understand his last words. "So, you mean you guys can steal from the bank without getting caught?" Precious asked.

"Yes, but... I doubt you'll understand, so let's drop the topic," Lucas concluded, indicating that he didn't want to discuss it further.

"Okay, but I want to share some things about myself," Precious stated, placing her palm on her chest as a gesture.

"We're not interested because we already know," Veronica immediately interjected in a slightly aggressive tone, staring at Precious. Precious was a little taken aback by her quick response.

"Speak for yourself, witch!" Chris barked, before turning to look at Precious.

"I want to know. Do share, little one." Chris stated as he showed interest in knowing.

"You already know?" Precious said, recalling Veronica's previous words. She disliked the idea of not having any secrets. "Can you hear my mind?" she asked aloud.

"No," Lucas calmly answered. For some reason, Precious seemed to believe everything Lucas said, so she instantly trusted that they couldn't read her mind.

"Okay, do you want to know about me as well, Lucas?" Precious asked.

"Sure." Lucas wasn't extremely interested, but strangely, he cared about Precious's feelings toward his answers, so he chose to respond positively.

"I'm Precious Gold. That's my name," Precious began, stating her full name with a giggle. "I'm nineteen and will be turning twenty on the 28th of December. I don't know if you all are aware, but I'll say it anyway: I'm starting college on Monday, which is my first time. I'll be studying art and crafts. Papa made me fall in love with the soil, so I want to be more creative and focus on pottery. There are other things to learn in art, but I just want to..."

"Yeah, no wonder Edgar removed Clint's house," Lucas interrupted after hearing Precious's reply. "He knew you'd be studying that, so he built you a small house for pottery. Lucky you," Lucas said.

"Why would he do that for me?" Precious asked, doubting Lucas's words for the first time, despite how honest they sounded.

"Does he like me?" she added, sounding slightly suspicious this time.

Veronica, already disliking Precious's presence alone, interjected when she heard the other party's words, "He doesn't. He's just keeping you around for his own purposes if you know what I mean."

As Precious disliked Veronica's presence as well, she cared less about her opinion and continued to tell Lucas and Chris about herself.

After dinner, Precious began to feel tired, so she carried her cat and watched the servants clean up the table. Initially, she wanted to help them, but Chris had warned her not to act without class.

Apparently, as Edgar's pet, she was considered a VIP.

After dinner, Chris decided to walk her back to her room, but Lucas insisted on joining them. He didn't want to leave them alone, and Veronica was not a reliable option for the job, so he took on the responsibility.

The three of them proceeded towards Precious's room in silence until Precious broke it. "I was scared of you guys, but it turns out you aren't that bad. Edgar, too, I suppose," she said with a small grin, sandwiched between the two men escorting her.

"You mean you trust us?" Lucas asked, his face barely showing any emotions.

"Not really, since it's possible for you guys to even eat me up now," Precious stated, turning to look at her cat. "I just mean that you guys are beasts but still have some good human parts in you."

Lucas and Chris glanced at each other, trying not to laugh. Her words were hilarious to them. She was truly naive.

"I see," Chris said. "So we've got some good sides?" He asked himself and glanced at Lucas. They shook their heads and chuckled again.

"So that means..." Precious then ran forward and turned around to face them. "Can you find a way... I mean, can you help me communicate with my father? I want to tell him how fine I am and about the new friends I made today. I want him to know that you guys aren't as cruel as we assumed you to be. Can I talk to him?" she asked.

Lucas wasn't surprised, but he looked surprised, while Chris wondered how he could bluntly tell her that they didn't possess such power.

"I know his number. May I borrow your phone?" Precious approached them, pleading with her eyes. "Please," she added. "I want to talk to Papa."