I want you to know i’m pinning a gold star on your collar. id give you a reward if i had the money.

They are very much predators, but not apex predators. When it comes to predators that are vulnerable to being eaten themselves cats are very high up on that list. They are not classified as a prey animal, which is more reserved for obligatory herbivores. They are however very susceptible to predation. Their entire behavior schema is to conceal themselves not only because they are predators, but also they tend to be prey themselves in almost all bio systems they are in. I think op did not mean them to be mutually exclusive, but failed to properly define small cats role in a bio system