"Dan, I said please. I tried to be nice."

"Matt," Dan said, almost choking on his name. "Matt, Coach. Get Coach. Oh my god."

Matt left as fast as he could.

"You can't say things like that," Jean said.

Neil wouldn't have looked at him, except Jean sounded more horrified than angry. "Then he shouldn't have asked me to join the conversation. I was happy sitting here saying nothing."

Jean turned on Kevin and spoke in quick, furious French. "What the hell is this?"

"His antagonism is a personality flaw we're learning to live with," Kevin said.

"Live with," Jean echoed, like the very idea offended him. "No! You should have dealt with him two weeks ago when he first stepped out of line. We trusted you to discipline him. Why doesn't he know his place yet?"

"Neil has no place in Riko's games," Kevin said. "He is a Fox."

"He is not a Fox!"

"Funny," Neil said in French. Jean wasn't expecting him to understand them and shot Neil a startled look. "I'm pretty sure the contract I signed said Palmetto State University."

"A contract does not change facts," Jean said. "Did you forget who bought you?"

"Bought me," Neil repeated. "Nobody bought me."

Kevin frowned, lost. "Jean, what are you talking about?"

Jean looked like he swallowed a stone. "You don't know." It was supposed to be an accusation, but it fell flat. Jean shot an incredulous look between them. "How can you not know? Why else would you have recruited him, Kevin?"

"He has potential," Kevin said.

Jean's laughter sounded more than a little hysterical. "God save you both, you useless fools. No one else can. How either of you have lived this long when you're so miserably stupid is beyond my capacity to understand."

Wymack's voice nearly startled Neil out of his skin. "What the hell is going on over here?"

Neil looked up to see Wymack standing right behind him. Matt went back to his chair but didn't sit down again. Jean ignored Wymack but turned in his chair and said something in a flurry of Japanese. Whatever it was wiped the icy look off Riko's face at last. Riko sent an intent look between Neil and Kevin before answering. Jean gestured helplessly. Kevin looked from one to the other before saying something in cautious Japanese.

Wymack interrupted before Kevin could finish and motioned to his Foxes. "On your feet. Abby is talking to the event coordinators about finding us a new table."

Neil didn't need to be told twice, but he didn't get far. Jean turned back on him before Neil had finished pushing in his chair and beckoned for him to listen. His French was almost too fast for Neil to follow, but Neil understood more than he wanted to.

"Riko will have a few minutes of your time later," Jean said. "I suggest you speak with him if you do not want everyone to know you are the Butcher's son."

Hearing his father's name aloud was a kick in the chest. The noise Kevin made at his side was worse. Neil reacted without thinking, clapping a hand to Kevin's chest and shoving him as far back from the table as he could. Kevin stumbled back so fast he almost fell. Neil didn't look back at him, but he couldn't tune out Kevin's hoarse denial.