C41: Lancelot

"I'd like to buy the Maine coon, the female one," I told the cat café staff and she asked me which between the orange, black, and the one with three colors – gray, black, and white. "I'll go for that one." I pointed the cat and the staff carried it, placing it on the table. I knelt and took a closer look at the cat and patted its head. The staff placed the cat in a cage and as I hold the cage, my phone from my pocket rang. I let go of the cage and answered the phone call, leaving my credit card for them to swipe.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Lance, my parents are now in jail, you see." I couldn't figure the emotion behind Nate's voice – but I'm certain that it includes relief and guilt. Relief, because the injustice would now end, and guilt because even if we're going to look at all the sides of the problem, Nate would still be Lilith and Than's son.

And I have nothing to do with them.

I hear him gulp from the other side of the line, and coughed. "I'll take care of this, just like what I told you before. Surprisingly, when the raid in their house happened, they weren't answering the questions of the officers. They were asked who are working for them, who the consumers of drugs are, and everything else. I don't know why they're not defending themselves, but …"

"But?"

Nate faked a laugh, but his usual tough voice became soft and gentle. "I can't believe I did those to my parents. Loving justice made me surrender their lives to the authorities. Let's be real. They deserve it. It's the right thing to do. But you can't blame me for being slightly upset. I couldn't face them, and I want to believe that they have no idea that I'm the one who arranged this. I don't know if they care for you since they don't seem to have any plans of saying who else are involved. I can't guarantee your safety against the laws but … worse comes to worst, you might get caught, too."

"I'm already to face that fate if that's the only way to pay for my sins. Nate, I killed lots of people. Lifetime imprisonment isn't enough. There's no even such thing as the death penalty in our laws," I admitted, and the memory of Eve telling me that people deserve second chances still felt too good to be true.

"I don't know what to say about that. But whatever the case, be ready for anything. They're under investigation, but what makes it harder is that they don't speak. Who else are involved?"

"I don't have any list or anything like that if that's what you're thinking. Just try to find what you can trace. The mayor is involved here, and I'm going to gather facts about that myself."

"We'll see where this goes then. Hope for the best." With that, Nate hanged up, not even letting me say anything else.

I faced the cat café staff as I insert my phone into my pocket.

"Thank you, sir. Somehow I'm curious. What will you name her?" the staff asked.

"This cat will be a gift. She'll name her Catherine. I know because I asked earlier," I replied, trying to flash a friendly smile.

"Her? It's a gift for a woman? She must be someone important. The cat is quite expensive so … is she your girlfriend? This gift is truly valuable," the staff giggled as she asked,

and the guy next to her who's also a staff elbowed her as if to remind her that she's crossing the line and is already invading my privacy.

"No, she isn't my girlfriend, but she's the most important person in my life. Very well, I should go. Thanks for the cat."

I placed the cat's cage on the passenger's seat and headed to the driver's seat to start leaving. I looked at the cat who's sitting comfortably, her eyes fixed on me as if waiting for me to drive her home.

I couldn't help but smile.

"You'll meet your new owner later. Don't you feel bad that your friends in the café won't be with you anymore?" now that I thought about it, I guess I should've bought her some toys. Maybe that can follow.

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An hour later when I arrived at Eve's place, I found no sign of her when I entered the house. I don't remember her saying that she'll go somewhere, but I don't want to make her feel like she can no longer have her personal space just because she's being watched. All I can do is pray for her safety.

I put down the cage and let go of the cat who ran out of the cage, as if eager to explore her new home. I took her bowl and placed some cat food, and when she saw that I'm pouring her food, she immediately ran back towards me to eat. She ate happily, and the next thing that should be prepared is her litter box.

Meanwhile, as I prepare her litter box, the main door creaked open, revealing Evangeline who's pale, and each step feels like she's only dragging her body along. She slowly raised her head, her eyes are filled with worry and hopelessness, and she looks like she'll cry any minute from now.

What's going on? Was there something that happened?

"Eve, you don't look so good. You –" I walked closer to her, but she stepped back when I stood in front of her.

"Let me ask you this question," she paused as she looked away for a while, squeezing her eyes shut. Our eyes met again when she opened it, and the way she looked at me felt like daggers into my soul.

"Is there something that I should know? Something you're not telling me?" I gulped as I hear her question, part of me hoping that she isn't talking about what I fear the most.

Something that can make me lose her.