Chapter Thirty-Four: Old Habits Die Hard

Two Weeks Later:

It had worked.

Demeter had been the one to pour the antidote down Macavity's throat. He had spent a few days sleeping more than anything else, but when he was able, he escaped the Junkyard in the middle of the night to return to the Warehouse. Nothing was left for him there. His hench-cats and guards stole what possessions he had, and the building itself was in shambles.

Munkustrap invited him to become part of the tribe and the crimson tom accepted the offer, wondering if he would be able to adjust. He mostly kept to himself. He was angry at everything – he didn't have a plan, he didn't have power, and he didn't have Demeter.

He was livid at her more than anything else. He felt betrayed and heartbroken at the same time. He wanted to make her feel that way, he wanted revenge, and he wanted it now. He couldn't do anything yet though, she was never alone to begin with. He settled for giving her menacing looks and shooting daggers with his eyes, gazing out at her with a down-turned head. When she walked from one side of the clearing to the other, his eyes followed her like a magnet, and to Demeter he always looked like he was about to pounce at her and shred her to pieces.

Naturally, Demeter had been on edge since Macavity was resurrected. She knows more than anybody what he's capable of, and that it's only going to be a matter of time before he strikes either at her or at the tribe. She can tell his experience with death hasn't changed him, if anything it's only made him worse than he was before – something she wouldn't have thought possible.

One morning, a note is found on the door to Demeter's den, and when Demeter sees it her heart sinks and her stomach flips:

Dearest Demeter and Jellicle Tribe Members:

I am leaving to re-build the Warehouse. New staff will be hired, new plans will be plotted, and I will have the revenge I deserve. My dungeon shall be filled with prisoners, a bevy of women will be at my side, I will drink, gamble, have my fun, and I will make each of you kiss my paws before I sentence you to death. Enjoy the short time you have left. You will all be ruined, once and for all.

Best wishes,

The Napoleon of Crime