Four Of A Kind-Chapter 163: [3.65] Cat Ears and Frame Data

I stood on the tennis court watching Cassidy disappear into the manor, my phone heavy in my pocket. The Uber notification from fifteen minutes ago said Iris had arrived.

So where was she?

The manor was big but not that big. Mrs. Tanaka would’ve directed her somewhere. Probably the main salon where guests usually waited.

Probably.

I pulled out my phone and called Iris.

Straight to voicemail.

"Hey, this is Iris! Leave a message or don’t, I’m probably drawing anyway!"

That cheerful recorded voice didn’t help the way my stomach just dropped.

I tried again.

Same result.

The automated voice lady told me to leave a message after the tone like I didn’t already know that.

Okay. Don’t panic. Iris was fine. She was somewhere in the house with four responsible adults who happened to be teenage billionaires with questionable judgment.

Actually that was worse.

I dialed Harlow next because she was the one who arranged the Uber and probably knew where Iris ended up.

Three rings.

Four.

Five.

Come on, Harlow. Pick up the—

"Isaiah?" Her voice came through barely above a whisper.

"Where’s Iris?"

"Shhh!" The sound crackled through the speaker. "You have to find us!"

"What?"

"We’re hiding! It’s very serious!"

I could hear giggling in the background. Multiple voices. One of them was definitely Iris.

"Hiding from what?"

"Can’t say! The walls have ears!" Harlow’s whisper somehow got louder. "But we’re in the place with the thing and you have to hurry before—oh no she’s coming! Gotta go!"

The line went dead.

I stared at my phone.

The place with the thing.

Harlow had just described approximately forty-seven locations in this manor.

I pocketed my phone and jogged toward the house. Mrs. Tanaka materialized in the kitchen doorway like she’d been waiting.

"Looking for someone?"

"My sister. About this tall, dark hair, probably questioning all her life choices right now?"

Mrs. Tanaka’s expression didn’t change. "The young miss arrived twenty minutes ago."

"And?"

"Miss Harlow collected her immediately."

"Where?"

"That would ruin the game." She turned back into the kitchen. "I’m sure you’ll figure it out."

I was starting to think everyone in this house was conspiring against me.

The main salon was empty. So was the library, the sitting room, and the ridiculous aquarium hallway.

I texted Harlow.

where are you

cant text! hiding!!! 🤫

from what

YOU silly! its hide and seek!

Of course it was.

I tried Iris next.

where are you

No response. She probably got recruited into whatever game Harlow invented.

A noise echoed from upstairs. Faint. Could be nothing. Could be two teenagers and my little sister doing god knows what.

I took the stairs two at a time.

The second floor was a maze of identical doors and portraits that all looked the same. I checked the music room. Empty. The formal sitting room. Also empty. The weird room with just mirrors that I still didn’t understand the purpose of.

"Iris?"

My voice echoed down the hallway.

A giggle. Definitely Iris. Coming from somewhere left.

I followed the sound past three more doors until I reached the east wing. Harlow’s room sat at the end of the hall with its ridiculous pink door covered in anime stickers and K-pop idol photos.

The door was cracked open.

I pushed it wider.

"Iris, I swear if you’re—"

I stopped.

My brain needed approximately three seconds to process the scene.

Iris sat cross-legged on Harlow’s bed wearing a pink headband with cat ears. She held what looked like a Nintendo Switch controller. On Harlow’s massive television screen, some anime character fought another anime character in spectacular fashion.

Harlow sat next to Iris, also with cat ears, also with a controller, screaming about combos and ultimate attacks.

Sabrina occupied the floor in front of the TV, legs crossed, wearing a third set of cat ears. She read a manga volume but her eyes kept flicking to the screen.

All three of them turned to look at me.

"Found us!" Harlow threw her arms up. Her character died on screen. "Oh no! Iris you have to avenge me!"

"I’m trying!" Iris mashed buttons frantically. "This boss has like seventeen health bars!"

I leaned against the doorframe. "What is happening."

"Gaming tournament!" Harlow bounced. "Iris is really good! She’s beating me!"

"You keep blocking wrong," Iris said without looking away from the screen. "You have to time it with the audio cue, not the visual."

"That’s what I said!" Harlow pointed at Sabrina. "Tell her!"

Sabrina turned a page in her manga. "You did not say that."

"I was thinking it very loudly!"

I watched my fourteen-year-old sister execute some kind of spinning attack combo that depleted three health bars simultaneously. The boss exploded in a shower of pixels and dramatic music.

Iris pumped her fist. "Yes!"

"THAT WAS SO COOL!" Harlow tackled Iris in a hug. Both sets of cat ears went flying. "You have to teach me!"

My phone buzzed.

Cassidy’s name appeared.

is iris there? harlow kidnapped her didnt she

yeah. they’re playing video games

wearing cat ears?

I looked at the evidence. how did you know

because harlow owns like 40 pairs and makes everyone wear them 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

your sister is weird

tell me something i dont know scholarship boy

I typed back without thinking. you got 15 problems right on that test

The typing bubble appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again.

how do u know

because I know how you work. and you finished 22 problems in 40 minutes. 15 minimum were correct

u cant know that

want to bet?

The bubble appeared for a long time.

...no

thought so

i hate u

liar

I pocketed my phone and leaned against Harlow’s doorframe while Iris started explaining frame data and parry windows to someone who thought aesthetic value mattered more than actual combat effectiveness.

Sabrina looked up from her manga. Our eyes met.

She patted the floor next to her.

I shouldn’t. I really, really shouldn’t.

I sat down anyway.

"Your sister is good," Sabrina said quietly.

"She wastes too much time on games."

"Says the person who plays poker chip math with Cassidy."

Fair point.

On screen, Iris navigated through some kind of castle level while Harlow provided completely unhelpful directions from the bed.

"No wait go left! The treasure is left!"

"The objective marker says right."

"But the treasure!"

"I don’t need treasure, I need to progress!"

Sabrina’s lips curved slightly. "They sound like you and Cassidy."

"We don’t sound like that."

"You do. Cassidy wants to explore everything. You want to finish quickly and move on."

"That’s called being goal-oriented."

"That’s called missing the point." She closed her manga. "Sometimes the adventure matters more than the objective."

I looked at her. At those purple eyes that saw too much.

"You’re talking about something else."

"Am I?"

"Sabrina."

"Isaiah."

We had a staring contest.

I lost when Harlow screamed about a jump scare and launched herself at Iris, who remained completely calm and parried the enemy attack with perfect timing.

"How did you do that?" Harlow had Iris’s arm in both hands now, squeezing like the answer might come out through pressure alone. "Please, you have to teach me!"

"I did. Like, thirty seconds ago." Iris didn’t even look away from the screen. "I jumped, dodged left, then countered during the recovery window."

"But how though?"

"That... that was how."

"Show me again!"

My phone vibrated against my thigh. I pulled it out.

Vivienne. Of course.

Where are you?

I glanced at the timestamp. Then at Harlow’s room, at the game still running on the TV, at Iris calmly explaining iframes to an increasingly confused Harlow.

We have the evening briefing in 2 minutes, Vivienne’s second message added before I could respond.

I typed back with one thumb.

harlow’s room. iris arrived

I know. Why are you in Harlow’s room?

long story

Make it short. My office. 1 minute.

I stood. "I have to go."

"But you just got here!" Harlow pouted from the bed. "We were gonna do a four-player run!"

"I have a briefing with your sister."

"Vivi can wait. This is important!"

Sabrina rose with that ghost-quiet movement she did. "He has work. Unlike some people."

"Are you calling me lazy?"

"I’m calling you employed differently."

I backed toward the door while they started bickering. Iris looked up from the game.

"Zay?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for letting me come."

Something warm spread through my chest. "No problem."

"And Zay?"

"Yeah?"

She grinned. "Harlow’s really cool. You should marry her."

Harlow stopped mid-argument with Sabrina. Her entire face went red.

Sabrina smiled into her manga.

I was already halfway down the hall before anyone could say anything else.

My ears were burning.

Definitely burning.

I checked my phone while walking.

18 minutes had become 16 minutes and Vivienne had added a second message.

Don’t be late or I’m deducting it from your pay.

you can’t do that

Watch me.

I picked up my pace. The west wing study was three hallways and two staircases away.

Vivienne’s door was already open when I arrived with forty seconds to spare.

She sat behind her glass desk wearing her school blazer despite being home for hours. Her wine-red hair was pulled back in that severe ponytail that meant business.

"Sit."

I sat.

She slid a leather folder across the desk. "Tomorrow’s timeline. Memorize it."

I opened the folder. Six pages of color-coded schedules with times down to the minute. Arrival, photos, cocktail hour, dinner, speeches, departure.

"You’ll be with me the entire night."

"As your accessory?"

"Would that be so bad?" Her purple eyes narrowed slightly.