Chapter 30: At Least I’m Not In Trouble

I told him everything. It all came pouring out, from Rufus taking the pendant, Roanna and Harte, Yvette, Ruddy, Jamison, Tobin and the undead invertebrates, the fight with Mister Gentry in the laboratory, the League of Demon Lords, falling into the Purrberus nightmare world, the cursed cab ride, becoming a dog, the gloves and the marble, and the evil pudding.

Addison tossed the letter onto the desk and rubbed his temples. “It was definitely not pudding. Mister Gentry was always mad about that scarf. Just be happy you are you again. He could’ve just let you loose in the city and you’d be spending the rest of your life running from the dog catcher.”

I stared. “You aren’t going to have another heart attack over this?”

“I’m sturdier than you think,” he said without a trace of humor.

I hugged my knees. “I’m so sorry it happened. I will never touch anything magical ever again.”

Addison raised his eyebrows comically high. “While I don’t completely believe you and don’t look at me like that, I look forward to you proving me wrong. You know that’s next to impossible, right?”

My face crumpled. “I know. Can you...fix it?” I already knew the answer.

“Not without it being another traumatic event to you and to me,” he said.

“Is there anybody that can fix it?”

“I know this is hard to digest, pardon the pun. But this could be permanent. Old demon magic. You could be hurt.” His expression matched his tone: grim.

I groaned and buried my face in my hands. Just when I thought I was finally safe. Why was I even the tiniest bit surprised? Mister Gentry was determined to ruin my life forever.

“But he put a Purrberus hair in it, and a bunch of other poisonous looking stuff. What’s going to happen to me?”

“We will both have to wait and see. I think you might be surprised,” he said.

How could he be so calm about this? I pressed my palms into my eye sockets.“It’s already been a terrible surprise. Can’t wait for tomorrow for something worse to happen.”

“Coralie, do you know what it means to look for the silver lining in something?”

“Isn’t it something stupid to do with clouds?” I scowled.

“Yes,” he sighed. “It means finding the good in a bad situation. Like seeing the bright edges of a dark cloud in the moonlight.”

Maybe it was meant to sound poetic but I ate the evil pudding and then did worse. “I’m sorry for giving him the gloves and the marble. I know they were both irreplaceable.”

Addison gave me a half smile. “That marble is not of Ransaran origin and will ultimately leave Mister Gentry and his cat.”

I had more questions than I knew what to do with. “Where is it from?”

“Like many things around here, it is much more than it appears,” he said, “and as such, the marble is from its own place because it’s a world.”

“A world?”

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He nodded. “Now do you understand why I said it would eventually leave Mister Gentry?”

“Is it...alive?”

He nodded again. “It’s as alive as a world disguised as a sentient marble can be.”

“What about the ice cube part?” I said.

“It works,” he said. “I’ve tried it myself. I don’t recommend you do though.”

“What about the gloves?”

He waved his hand. “Let him have them. I’m sure Edwina would understand.”

That was a relief. I hoped she didn’t hate me from somewhere in the afterlife.

“All of this explains why I couldn’t get a clear vision of this place,” Addison said. “Any time I tried to focus it would feel scrambled or go fuzzy on me or I’d get whisked away to another test. I assumed it was because of my ticker.”

I nodded and yawned so wide it blocked my hearing for a moment.

“You should be upstairs recuperating from this ordeal,” he said in a tone that was almost scolding.

“You should be recuperating from yours. Can I file a complaint against the lady who yelled at me when I used the Chimbrelises?”

“I will contact someone as soon as possible. We will talk more later. Go take a nap!”

Instead of falling asleep right away, I tossed and turned, obsessing over my new demon-ness. What would happen to me? Could I die? Would I go to a hell realm?

Hours later I awoke with a ravenous appetite. I heard a loud PSST as I passed by Gus on my way to the kitchen. Thinking it was his leaves rustling as I went by, I kept going.

PSSST! came the sound again.

I turned and looked up but didn’t see anyone, not that anyone should have been there, so I started walking away again.

“Do you plan on giving me a meal anytime soon?” said a raspy voice. “I’m alive you know, not some inanimate object for you to ignore when you get sick of me.”

I wish I could say I hadn’t jumped out of my skin. Out of all the possible abilities to have manifested, understanding giant carnivorous plant speech was not on my list.

Gus bent way down on his stalk way so we were face to face, except he didn’t have a face, just a ghostly white, lily-like bloom. I got a faint whiff of rotting meat.

Every week, Addison would drop a baby pink mouse down inside Gus’s bloom. The petals would close. If you stuck around to watch, you’d see it still moving. Gus would perk right up after feeding day. His odor became extra pungent. It’s why he lived close to the back door.

“What?” I said, my eyes on his mottled green vines uncoiling to the floor like snakes.

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