“Don’t worry about the cat,” he says.
But I do worry.
I sneak out after he’s asleep. I don’t like Veronica, but I don’t want her to be hurt as a cat. I don’t know how much human mind she got to keep inside her head. She won’t know where she is. She won’t know what to do. Is she going to be able to hunt? She could scavenge, I guess. But that’s not very nice.
I wear a long coat over my pajamas as I walk the streets, calling for Veronica by her name. There aren’t many people out at this time, and the ones that are out are either walking their dogs, or planning shady things, or going to get laid, or also looking for their cats.
I can’t find her. I told myself I’d just look for a few minutes and then go inside, but I can’t just leave her out here. I do see another cat, a big black one, but that one doesn’t answer me when I call either.
Time gets away from me as I circle a few city blocks, dropping into the late-night stores to ask if they’ve seen a cat answering to Veronica’s description. They haven’t.
The one thing that does make me feel good is that I don’t see any sign of an injured animal anywhere. If she had the sense to avoidtraffic and dogs, she might be okay. She could even be hiding somewhere, watching me freak out. I bet she’d enjoy that.
Eventually I give up and go home. The clock on the oven when I let myself in says 3:14 a.m. I yawn as I take my coat off, and think about a shower. I don’t want to get into bed covered in city stuff.
“Nice of you to turn up.”
I turn the light on and find Simon sitting on my couch. He makes it look small, cute, and very domestic. Meanwhile, he looks big, wild, and mad.
He gets up, rising above me as he closes the distance between us and takes firm hold of me.
“You told me you speak English,” he says. “But I’m starting to think that’s not the case. If you spoke English, you’d have understood when I told you to stay home because you are grounded.”
“Ow!” I complain as he propels me into a corner after smacking my ass.
“Stand there,” he says.
What the hell is he playing at? This seems so silly and pointless. Standing in a corner like a naughty student isn’t going to suddenly make me manageable. What might make me easier for him to handle is knowing that something is being done about Veronica.
“I’m tired,” I say. “I want to go to bed.”
“And you will. You’ll go and get cleaned up and go to bed soon enough, once I’ve determined it’s time.”
“You’re so controlling.”
“You’re so disobedient,” he says.
“I don’t have to obey you. This isn’t 1840.”
“You do have to obey me,” he says. “Because I intend to make you. Haven’t you figured it out yet? You’ve stepped out of normality. The old rules don’t apply to you anymore. You’ve seen things nobody else has seen, and you’ve done things you should never have done. You’re not protected by normality anymore.”
He raises a good point, one that I hadn’t considered before. The way he’s acting is kind of crazy, but this whole situation is super crazy, and beyond natural. Supernatural, even. If I was to complain to someone about it, what would I even say? How would I make a police complaint? They could say I gave Veronica some kind of poison tea and that’s why she’s missing. Oh, my god, I could end up being the only one who was actually in trouble with the law. I have played all of these cards incredibly wrong.
“How long do I have to stand here, then? Am I supposed to be learning something?”
“That would be too much to ask,” he shoots back.
“Salty,” I note.
He is back, leaning over me, using his height to full advantage. My face is still in the corner, but I feel his presence very close, his lips right next to my ear as he murmurs soft threats of a terrible, carnal nature.
“Do you really want to provoke me right now? Do you want to see what I will do with you when you displease me?”
“I know what you do. You growl and you spank and you threaten me, and none of it makes any difference really, but it seems tomake you happy… ow!” I squeal as the inevitable slap lands on my ass. It’s good to know he is predictable that way.
“It should make a difference,” he says. “And if it doesn’t, maybe I’m not punishing you hard enough.”
“Maybe not,” I sass back. I don’t know why. It’s late, and I’m pissed at him for losing Veronica. That was a shitty thing for him to do. Oh. Okay. Maybe I do know.