Chapter Five

        In the weeks after their marriage Edna Squirrel was to find that Harold Mole’s habits not only didn’t improve but actually seemed to worsen, it broke her heart and filled her with despair; although she wasn’t surprised. When she had told him about her idea that they should get married he had seemed positively petrified. If Mr. Owl hadn’t been so insistent upon coming over to perform the ceremony she would have just dropped the whole thing. While it made her glad to have gone ahead and done it, it was more difficult for her now than ever to go to Hope Mink’s. She prayed for the ability to turn off the lights, she only wanted to crawl away and sit in a corner. With every new evening she felt her life draining away. More desperate than ever she dreamt of freedom. Now, even though she took her body out for the use of other males almost every night, at least the creatures they knew were aware of where her heart resided. That was the one thing that she knew would never change. She still loved Harold Mole with everything inside her, though she often felt now more like a nurse than a wife. She still clung to the hope that one day they might have a normal life and soldiered on, though it took all the strength she could muster.  She found out about clinics that helped creatures with drug problems and continually told Harold Mole about them. Still he persisted with the story that he needed the drugs for his eyes, or that if he were to go to the clinic they would find out about his lack of papers and have him arrested and thrown into the notoriously cruel jails of Lusk.

        Her tolerance of Mole’s habits did not quiet her concerns over the money that was required to support his habit and she made a point of checking on what they owed Mr. Owl. As she did she discovered that what Floyd Rat had told her prior to their marriage was true, their debt was continually growing. She also asked Mr. Owl about the papers once again, when she did he had given her his thin smile and named the sum saying nothing about the debt Harold Mole was incurring. The amount required to purchase the papers was high, but not unheard of, considering the money she made at Hope Mink’s house. Still with the debt Harold Mole was piling up there was no way she could ever afford them. It had reached the point now where Harold Mole was making almost no money at all, as a matter of fact Edna Squirrel had become convinced that he was spending whatever money he made buying liquor for his friends under the bridge. When Edna Squirrel tried to talk to him about these things he would hang his head and not say a word. She could only guess what was going through his mind. She was fairly sure that if he could see he would just leave her, and it tore her heart to pieces.

        Through these weeks in the back of her mind the seed of an idea started to grow, and the more time passed with her witnessing Harold Mole’s decline and feeling how inescapable their situation was, the more that seed of an idea grew. While her obligations at Hope Mink’s house kept her very busy she felt she might find time to do some work on her own, namely trying to find a wealthy benefactor who might want her as his private female. If she could do that then it might be truly possible to raise the funds to pay off Mole’s debt and get their papers. She knew that her idea had certain dangers. If Mr. Owl were to find out what she was doing the results would not be pleasant. She was in no hurry to be on the receiving end of Floyd Rat’s occupation. Still the alternative was to be trapped in their current life, watching her dear Harold Mole slowly die from the drugs he was taking. Finally she would be left too old to earn the money she needed to pay off her debt, what would happen to her then? She would probably just wind up like those creatures Harold Mole visited under the bridge, living on the street.

        She inquired discreetly of Gracie Dog about the best areas of the city, where the true gentry lived. They even took a trip one day to a great park on the other side of the river. Gracie’s pups played and yelled while they sat on a bench and watched the creatures walk by. Some pushed their babies in carriages that probably cost more than all Gracie Dogs possessions put together. It was a nice day but Edna Squirrel noticed that the constables roaming the park did keep and eye on them, it was obvious they didn’t belong in this part of town. Still she carefully watched the mannerisms and clothes of the creatures they saw there. She also tried to pay careful attention to the lay of the streets but the city was an ancient one and the streets ran every which way without seeming rhyme or reason.

        Shortly after that trip, one evening when Edna Squirrel was scheduled to have a couple nights off, she went through her dresses as Harold Mole slept soundly on their tiny bed. After seeing the creatures on the other side of the river Edna Squirrel realized how much of a prostitute she appeared to be in the clothes she wore at Hope Mink’s. Until that moment she didn’t really realize what the other creatures in the neighborhood saw when they looked at her. She gazed into her mirror, where had the young female she’d been in Watersedge gone, it hadn’t been that long a time really, but now her face seemed so different. She turned back to the dresses, she pulled out a long black affair, sat down, and proceeded to remove colored sequins, checking the fabric to make sure it was still in good order. The process took her late into the night.

        The next morning she woke very late and discovered Harold Mole had already left. She spent the afternoon at Gracie Dog’s talking and watching her pups play. When late afternoon arrived she decided it was time to put her plan into action. She went up to her apartment and got the box from beneath the bed where she kept what money she had been able to save. There wasn’t much there, but she figured it would be enough. She got dressed and looked at herself in the mirror, if she had to say so herself she was a pretty creature. Then she had a problem, she wanted to go to the other side of the river, but how she could get out of the neighborhood without attracting undue attention was something she hadn’t really thought out. The danger of traveling the streets past dark wasn’t lost on her, yet that wasn’t her foremost worry, since being associated with Mr. Owl made that problem negligible. What did concern her though was that since all the toughs in the neighborhood knew who she was, word might get back to Mr. Owl about what she was up to. She decided to go see Gracie Dog, though she really didn’t want her friend involved in her plans.

        She knocked quietly on Gracie’s door. The dog answered and a look of surprise lit her face.

        “Why, Edna, I didn’t think you had to work tonight.” She said looking at Edna Squirrel’s dress.

        “I don’t, Gracie. Gracie can I borrow that old coat of yours, and one of your hats that you don’t need anymore? Better yet can I buy them from you?”

        “Edna what do you need those old things for?”

        “Gracie, please, don’t ask. Just believe me when I tell you it’s important.”

        Gracie Dog looked thoughtfully at Edna. “Do you know what you doing? Because I think I know what you’re up to, and you’re scaring me. Anyways, you know that coat wont even cover that tail of yours.”

        Edna Squirrel pulled out some bills and handed a few to Gracie Dog. “It will be o.k., just remember that you never saw me o.k.?”

        “Keep your money. Here let me get them for you.” Gracie returned with her coat and hat. “You know everyone likes you, Edna, but no one is safe when they cross Mr. Owl.”

        “Thanks, Gracie. You’re an angel.” Edna Squirrel said heading back upstairs.

        “Are you coming back?” Asked Gracie Dog looking after her.

Edna, her arms full, turned on the steps and smiled at Gracie Dog. “Of course, I’ll be back tomorrow.”

        She turned and went up the stairs, she heard Gracie Dog’s door close slowly behind her. Her lips were set in a determined line, this time she wouldn’t hurt those around her when she tried to improve her life. She was smarter now, not a foolish young female who was going to let circumstance control what happened to her.

        When she reached her reached her apartment she had to spend a little time pinning up Gracie Dog’s coat so it would fit her. Then she wrapped her tail around her body and put the coat on, her tail beneath the large coat fattened her appearance, which she thought was good. She put on the hat and felt the impression was perfect, in Gracie Dog’s sad clothes no one would recognize her on the dark street. She also appeared old enough that the toughs probably wouldn’t harass her. She set off for the train station, and found to her delight that she was right, making it there without incident.

The train arrived at the stop in just minutes after Edna Squirrel got there. She boarded it and it rattled out of her neighborhood, running along, nearly empty. As it crossed the river she took off Gracie Dog’s coat and hat and shook out her tail. She sat back down and looked earnestly out the windows of the train, through the gloom at the twinkling lights of the city. The train had just crossed the bridge and she looked back at it thinking to herself of her dear Harold Mole. Soon, Mole, soon, we will be back in our beautiful land by the sea, and I will nurse you back to health and all will be well.

        As the train pulled to it’s various stops she took note of the passengers that entered and exited. She saw their appearance improve. In her dress she felt like she was someone who belonged here, even though she knew that without official traveling papers she was in more danger here than she had been on the other side of the river. Finally she saw some nice cafes next to a train stop and she hurried off, purposefully leaving behind Gracie Dog’s coat and hat. She looked up and down the street, suddenly feeling very alone. She knew she needed to act naturally, move naturally, like the small groups of creatures that passed her on the street and she tried to shake off her uncertainty.

She starting walking, acting as though she was headed somewhere. As she went along she looked into the restaurants and cafes that lined the streets. Now that she had managed to get here she had no idea what to do. At Hope Mink’s house the males arrived knowing what they wanted, there was no need to do anything except make some small talk and appear receptive. Here she was aware of how out of place she was. She looked at the couples on the street and knew that she was here as their enemy, an outside invader into their secure little environment. Eventually she decided that no matter how she was going to go about her task first she needed a drink to calm her nerves. She found a quiet looking restaurant and entered.

        After she walked through the door she was asked if she wanted a table. She managed to get past that creature, painfully aware of her accent and poor knowledge of the language, excusing herself to the bar. When she got there, she found that the few tables inside were occupied by males, there were a couple of dogs, and some small groups of mixed creatures. She got a seat at the bar and felt a wave of relief from just sitting down, she hoped to have just a few minutes to collect herself. She could feel a clammy layer of perspiration under the fur of her forehead, which she attributed to nerves. She was aware, once again, that she appeared too alone. She glanced back at the door as if expecting someone. Just get a grip, she thought, get a drink in yourself and you’ll feel better. She asked the bar keep for a glass of wine, and concentrated on appearing normal. Then she thought back to that fateful evening at the estate, she realized that her nervousness was like a shadow cast from the terrible event. She could remember Baron Fox’s wild eyes and smell his burning fur.

        Her wine arrived and she forced herself to sip some even though she had a knot in her throat. She started to feel that the whole excursion to this part of town was absurd, she wondered what would she even say if a male approached her, ‘heh can I be your mistress?’ What if he was like the Baron? She tried to remain rational but she only felt stupid for having come. She realized that if Mr. Owl disciplined them for her indiscretion it wouldn’t be her that was punished, he would take it out on Harold Mole, knowing full well how much she loved him. It would be just another way of controlling her through her male. Why at that very moment it was possible they were doing something horrible to him, beating him, or making him beg for his drugs. She started to feel afraid, and she still had to make it back to her apartment. At that moment she just wished she were there, next to her sleeping Mole, feeling his warm breath, and the closeness of their fur as they lay together.

        She got through her first glass of wine and was waiting for another, her nerves calming a little, when a male from one of the groups sitting at a table behind her came up next to her at the bar. He was a young badger, heavy set, and well dressed.

        “It looks like your date is late.” He said taking a seat next to her. He had obviously been drinking for awhile, and he smelled of cigars.

        Edna Squirrel had been so absorbed in her musings that she hardly knew what to say. “Oh, yes.” She looked back at the door.

        “Oh a tourist?!” The badger said, “Long way from Watersedge! How do you like it here?”

        She realized with a start that she hadn’t thought out any story to go along with the fact that her accent obviously marked her as a foreigner. These males probably came here all the time and here was this strange female without any story to back up her sudden appearance.

        “Yes, indeed. Lovely city.”

        “So how long are you in town for?”

        “Uhm, I am not sure.” She said, smiling, trying to appear nonchalant, even though her heart was racing.           

        “Not sure? You do have a visa right?”

        “Oh yes, of course.”

        “So how long is it for?” He asked laughing and glancing back at his table of friends.

        “Three weeks.” Edna Squirrel said, feeling cornered. She wished this badger hadn’t approached her, she had just started to relax a little. All she wanted to do was get her footing, so she could reason out if her plan was worth pursuing or not, but now she had this drunken male accosting her with all sorts of questions that she wasn’t prepared to answer. She glanced back at the badger’s table two other males, a water rat and a crow, were sitting there leering and laughing.

        “Can I buy you a drink?”

        As her gaze swept from the table back to the Badger Edna Squirrel became aware that a Constable Skunk had entered the bar. He walked over and stopped by the Badger’s table, talking for a moment with the two creatures there. “Not now thank you, so you live near here?” She said panic rising in her.

        The Constable looked over at the Badger and the Badger raised his paw in greeting. “My name is Klaus, Klaus Badger.” He said lowering his paw and extending it toward Edna Squirrel.

        “Edna Squirrel.” She said, giving his paw a quick cursory shake, realizing with horror that her paw was damp with sweat. The Constable Skunk was walking up to Klaus Badger.

        “Pleased to meet you!” Klaus Badger said.

        “Same.” She said looking down at the bar, not daring to look toward the arriving Constable.

        He walked up the far side of Klaus Badger. He asked the bar keep for a glass of water. “How are you doing tonight, Klaus?”

        “Fine, Martin, and you?”

        “Very well thank you, who is your lovely guest here?” The Constable Skunk looked across Klaus at her, she darted a quick glance at the Skunk, and then quickly looked back at the bar.

        “Why this is Edna Squirrel, a visitor from Greendale .”

        “Oh how nice! How long are you visiting us for?”

        In her panic Edna Squirrel couldn’t remember what she had told Klaus Badger. “I-I think I need to get going, I don’t feel too well.”

        “Yes, you look rather pale.” Klaus said.

        “Well, let me walk you back to your hotel.” Said the Constable.

        “No, no!” Edna Squirrel fairly shouted and pushed away from the bar almost knocking Klaus Badger off his seat. “Here’s for my wine. Pleased to meet you.” She said throwing a handful of money onto the bar. She hurried out of the bar aware that the Constable was following her. Once outside she quickly looked up and down the street and then hurried toward where the street turned darker. The Constable Skunk stepped out of the bar and shouted, “Miss, Miss!” but she was gone, disappearing into the crowd.

        Edna Squirrel walked and walked along the city streets, fighting back tears, talking to herself. She had come to feel that all the misfortunes that had chased her to this point were deserved. That she probably would die lonely and living on the street, and that was what she had coming to her. She wasn’t the good creature everyone thought her to be, she was a schemer, constantly trying to work the world for more than she deserved. Once a motorcar with a couple Constables saw her and slowed down. But why wouldn’t they? She had run from the restaurant like a lunatic, when the creatures there were just trying to be nice. When she saw the motorcar slow down she ran into a nearby park, getting lost amongst the trees and dark lanes. She had no idea what time it was getting to be, but she was sure the trains to her neighborhood were no longer running. She had also completely lost her bearings, and wasn’t sure where the bridge was. At this point she didn’t care. It no longer mattered what happened to her.

        She came to a small bench near a wide thoroughfare which was empty due to the late hour. There she sat, shivering in the cooling night, tears streaming down her face. She felt that once again she had been so foolish, felt that nothing she ever tried worked out. She had decided to somehow find the bridge, and when she did she would cross it, but not all the way. When she got to the highest point she would jump off the long iron expanse and end her life, that way at least the people who knew her would be forever safe from her foolishness.

        The night was quiet, but Edna became aware of footsteps approaching, probably another Constable she thought. She choked back her tears preparing to run. Instead of a Constable, however, a tall thin well-dressed figure appeared. He was strolling along alone, as he came alongside the bench he saw Edna Squirrel sitting there her head bowed. He was an older Weasel, and he addressed the Squirrel quietly.

        “Hello.”

        “Hello.” She said keeping her head down, a shiver shaking her.

        The weasel looked about at nothing in particular. “Lovely evening.”

        Edna Squirrel nodded, barely perceptibly.

        “I don’t sleep well. Insomnia. Always has been a problem. Late evening walks help.” He looked straight at Edna Squirrel, she glanced up quickly barely see his face in the dark and the glare of the streetlights. “Do you suffer from insomnia also?”

        “No.”

        “I live very close to the park here, do you live here also? You don’t speak as though you’re from the neighborhood.”

        “No I live across the river.”

        The Weasel sat down next Edna Squirrel, “Interesting. You don’t look like a creature from across the river. If you are indeed from across the river, you are a long way from home. It is late, you have a long way to go to get home, and the journey is not exactly safe. Do you want to go home?”

        Edna Squirrel’s brow was knotted, and a lump was in her throat, she knew that she looked horrible, her dress rumpled, her face a mess, and her tail full of briars from the undergrowth of the park. She nodded jerkily.

        “Come along then, we shall roust my driver. He thought that he was going to get the night off, but we shall give him a surprise.”

Together Edna Squirrel and the Weasel took a short walk back to the building where he lived. His driver lived in a separate apartment downstairs from the Weasel’s quarters and it didn’t take long for the Weasel, whom Edna had learned was named Raul, to wake him and set him about getting the motorcar ready for the trip back across the bridge. As he did so she stood near the door knowing how awfull she looked, just wanting to shrink to nothingness. Although the driver showed little surprise at being put to work in the middle of the night he was surprised at the presence of Edna Squirrel, apparently Raul Weasel was not often in the company of females.

        When they started out Raul Weasel showed some consternation when he heard of Edna Squirrel’s address. He knew about the reputation of that area of the city and became convinced that she was probably a drug user. But Edna Squirrel quietly convinced him otherwise, telling him her story through, while she knew that it sounded perhaps no better than what he had imagined she no longer cared. It was unimportant to her if he turned her into the authorities or took her to Mr. Owl. For it seemed to her as though there was no escape from the trap in which she had fallen.

Raul Weasel listened to her story gazing out the window of his comfortable car while the decrepit buildings that occupied the other side of the river rolled by. The driver was truly nervous about being in this part of town late at night, but he said nothing and merely looked suspiciously at the creatures that wandered the late night streets, neglecting even to come to a stop at the streetlights and stop signs.

        By the time they neared the building where Edna Squirrel lived all she wanted to do was go to sleep. Raul Weasel told the driver to stop the car down the block from her building so she could walk home without attracting undo attention. Edna Squirrel grasped the handle of her door to depart, not even caring to thank Raul Weasel.

        “Wait,” He said reaching into his pocket, “here is my card, if you ever need anything give me a call, maybe I can help.”

        Edna Squirrel looked back at the sleek paw holding out a small piece of paper. She hesitated, and then reached out, but her paw traveled past the card to Raul Weasel’s leg. Her paw came to rest there, high up. Then she slid back across the seat and nestled her head in his shoulder.

        “Driver, take us home.” Raul Weasel said softly, leaning his snout down to Edna Squirrel’s head where she was already sleeping.

 

        Over the next few months Edna Squirrel achieved what she had hoped without even trying. She became the mistress of Raul Weasel. She managed to get an extra day off from Hope Mink’s without creating undue suspicion over her outside activities, and with the help of Raul Weasel she was able to travel to and from her neighborhood without Mr. Owl finding out about the commitments she had assumed. Often there were nights now that she would stay at his house on the other side of the river, this she did despite the guilt she felt over abandoning Harold Mole. Here Raul Weasel made sure she was able to enjoy the fruits of a life endowed with material plenty. Good bedding, fine food, and a great comfortable bed in which to sleep. On top of that Raul Weasel’s requirements were modest due to his age, and he was attentive and intelligent. There were even times that he had Edna Squirrel join him at small parties. She was able to socialize with the others there easily, having seen and heard how such creatures behave from her years at the estate of Baron Fox. As the months progressed she became very fond of Raul Weasel and hardly began to think of the relationship she had originally. It had been so long since she had felt comfort and security.

        During this time Harold Mole hardly noticed she was gone, so deep had he fallen into his drug-centered life. Still Edna Squirrel thought of Mole constantly despite the comforts of her time with Raul Weasel. Harold Mole was, after all, her husband, and that was a commitment that meant the world to her. Often she would sneak home food or other things from Raul Weasel’s to help make his life at their tiny apartment more comfortable and it was their time together there that was still dearest to her. She treasured those hours that she spent sitting with him, or lying next to him. Though it also filled her with despair to watch as he grew thinner, and his fur became thin and gray. Because of this her anxiousness to acquire the funds they needed to leave Lusk never left. She put away every cent she could, and with the money she got from Raul Weasel her box under the bed was soon filling.

        It was clear Raul Weasel had not only grown fond of Edna Squirrel he had started to fall in love with her. She found she enjoyed his attentions. He treated her as a creature of worth, not just an empty vessel for his passions, or a nurse to care for him. When they went out together she knew that he was proud to have her next to him. She could see the change in how Raul Weasel was coming to care for her. Whenever she needed to return to Harold Mole, or go back to the neighborhood to keep up her duties at Hope Mink’s his aura of culture would slip away and he would grow sullen and angry. Since she liked him deeply this wounded her, and she started to worry about how their relationship was slipping passed the simple exchange it had started out as. Raul Weasel had also developed a pull on her that she hadn’t expected since he hda awakene in her something she had never experienced with a male, for despite the fact that she gave her heart to Harold Mole wholly; when she mated with Raul Weasel she found her body responded in ways she hadn’t believed was possible. He was an experienced lover, and knew how to bring female passions to a place that thrilled her, and left her hungry for more. There were times, when she was lying with Harold Mole, that she would feel herself grow flushed and anxious. Sometimes when she arrived at Raul Weasel’s she would fairly throw herself at him, and if he didn’t respond, distracted perhaps with other affairs, she would, despite herself, grow petulant and disagreeable.

        Edna Squirrel knew that things were reaching a point between her and Raul Weasel when he entered the bathroom one day while she was bathing and explained that he felt something must change. He noted that he wanted her alongside him when he traveled in his social circles, but if his companions became accustomed to this what was he to tell them when she was no longer around, how could he explain her absence? An even graver danger might occur if some male in the employ of his friends should see her at Hope Mink’s his reputation would be seriously damaged. Didn’t she get all needed with him, he asked, and if she needed protection from Mr. Owl, that should be no problem since once she crossed the river for the last time she never need go near that part of town again. As for her Harold Mole, he pointed out that their marriage was not valid in the least, and if leaving him caused her pain he would be glad to pay to have Harold Mole placed in the finest private hospital in Lusk, so that he could recover and carry on some kind of normal life.

        Edna Squirrel was troubled by all this, she could see that Raul Weasel was deadly serious. A tone had entered his voice that she had never heard before, it frightened her, and she begged him for time to think, knowing that soon her world was to change in some way. The next time she returned to the tiny apartment she shared with Harold Mole she didn’t sleep a wink all night. Lying next to Harold Mole, feeling him softly breath, she thought of the life that would be possible for her if she chose to stay with Raul Weasel, the comfort and wealth. She thought about the medical care that would be possible for Harold Mole. Maybe such a chance would never present itself to her again. She remembered her strange meeting with Raul Weasel on that lonely night, perhaps they were meant to be together in some way. Then she felt a certainty grow inside of her. Ultimately it was her fault that Harold Mole had fallen to the life he had now. She couldn’t run from the responsibilities she had shouldered, she had to see them through, and though it might be true that her marriage to her dear Mole wasn’t official, she had pledged her heart to him a thousand times over, from their good days at Watersedge, to their sorrowful straights now. It was impossible for her to turn her back on that. She pressed her lips close to the sleeping Mole, and whispered, “I love you, Mole. Never forget that I love you.”

        One evening when Edna Squirrel was supposed to leave for Raul Weasel’s she took out her box and counted the money inside of it. She knew Harold Mole would be returning home soon, and so she had a few moments to do this since she never let him know about the boxes existence. She thought the money there might just be enough to accomplish what they needed. But she still felt a sadness, she didn’t want to lose what she had with Raul Weasel. Yet she steeled herself with the thought that there was hope, that Harold Mole might still become the creature he had once been. Maybe after they had returned to Watersedge he would have the strength to leave behind this horrible path his life had taken. She stuffed the money into her bag, planning to talk to Mr. Owl that night.

        She could hear Harold Mole’s measured steps feeling their way up the stairs. He entered the flat at last and started undoing the buttons of his coat, his paws shaking, as they did always did these days.

        “Hello, Love.” Edna Squirrel said cheerily, but warily, she could never be sure what to expect of him anymore.

        “Hello.”

        She could tell that he was relatively straight, under the influence of the drug but not incoherent. “Would me like you to make you some coffee before I go?”

        “Yes, that sounds good.”

        Harold Mole fumbled over to a chair near the door and put his coat on it. Then he turned, shuffled over to the little table in the center of their flat and sat down, folding his paws on the table in front of him.

        Edna Squirrel went over to the stove and heated a pan of coffee left over from the morning, she also got out a piece of bread and some cheese and put them on a plate. When the coffee was steaming she filled a cup. She brought the coffee and the plate with her as she walked over to the table and sat down opposite Harold Mole. She pushed the plate and cup across the table to him. He heard the sound and reached down to take the cup with one paw while testing out the location of the plate with the other.

        “Mole, I’ve something to say.”

        He was quietly sipping the hot coffee, his whiskers drooping.

        “I think I have enough money for us to leave.”

The paw holding the cup dropped halfway to the table, some of the hot coffee escaped over the edge and ran over his paw, but Mole didn’t notice. “Leave?”

        “Yes. I think we can go back to Watersedge.”

        Mole carefully put the cup on the table. “Back to Watersedge.” He repeated softly.

        “Yes, Mole. We can go home and start our lives over. That will be good wont it?”

Edna could see that tears were starting to stream down Harold Mole’s face. She got up from her chair and came across the table held him. She sensed his tears were not tears of joy. His body trembled as she held him. “It will be o.k. It will be o.k.” She said, not knowing what she could to take away his sorrow.

 

        When she left their apartment Edna Squirrel went directly to Mr. Owl’s. She figured she had enough time to see him before she was supposed to leave for Raul Weasel’s later that night. When she got there Floyd Rat, who had been performing his usual guard duties in the front room, took her from the butler and escorted her to Mr. Owl’s study.

        “Good to see you again, beautiful.”

        “Yes, Floyd.” She reached out and touched his paw. “I am leaving, Floyd. Thank you for being my friend.”

        They stopped in the hall. “You’re leaving?” He said surprised.

        “Yes Mole and I are going back to Watersedge.”

        Floyd Rat squinted his eyes, a look of concern passing over his face, but Edna Squirrel, preoccupied with what she needed to accomplish, didn’t notice. She leaned over and hugged Floyd Rat, “I’ll always remember you.” She said.

        “Ya. Same here, beautiful.” He said quietly, but his thoughts seemed to be elsewhere.

Mr. Owl was, as usual, in his study. He was relaxing in a large chair talking to an unknown mouse when they entered. The talk must not have been too important because the mouse excused himself cordially when they came in. Floyd Rat seated himself on a sofa, and Edna Squirrel approached the     Owl.

        “Well to what do I owe this visit?” Asked Mr. Owl, raising his wingtips and pressing them together.

        “Mr. Owl, Sir, I think Mole and I are ready to leave.” Edna Squirrel said nervous over what Mr. Owl’s reaction was going to be.

        Mr. Owl gazed over at Floyd Rat, lowered his wings to the arms of the chair, and lowered his beak. The silence hung for a moment, then he looked back up at Edna Squirrel, smiling his thin inscrutable smile.

        “So you are ready to leave, just like that.”

        “Yes, I have the money we need for our papers.”

        “Uhm. I see. Floyd, where is our dear Mole’s debt?”

        Floyd Rat named a sum flatly.

        Edna Squirrel looked back at Floyd Rat. His eyes had gone distant and vacant. “We can cover that.” She said, she said firmly.

        Mr. Owl’s eyes were questioning. “The price of these papers, you understand it has gone up.” He said. “Difficulties, unforeseen , of course.”

        “I don’t believe that will be a problem.”

        “I see,” Owl said looking back at Floyd Rat. “Business has been good at Hope Mink’s, yes?”

        “We-we have been busy.” Edna Squirrel said feeling slightly panicked.

        “O.K, well I have to tell you that this sorely disappoints me. I have obligations, Hope Mink has obligations, which needless to say involve you to a great degree. From a business standpoint this is a problem. Do you understand what I am saying, Squirrel?”

        “I do, I am sorry.” She said softly, feeling the room closing in.

        “But you wont change your mind, of course I am sure a creature of your means probably feels free to do anything.”

        “No, Sir, no. It isn’t that, but I can’t change my mind. Mole is very sick, I need to take him home.”

        “Of course, alright. Give me till later, the papers will be here. Then you can leave immediately if you wish, the trains to Watersedge run out of the main station through the night”

        “Thank, you.” Edna Squirrel excused herself from the room, and left, sorely wishing it wouldn’t be necessary for her to return. As she closed the door she could hear Mr. Owl speaking softly but sternly to Floyd Rat.

 

        Edna Squirrel had a wonderful dinner that night with Raul Weasel. It was a quiet evening, just the two of them at the house. Then they made love slowly and passionately. Edna Squirrel had hoped to make her visit and her goodbye short, but when, after dinner, she felt Raul Weasel walk up and put his paws on her hips she knew that she had to savor that intensity of his love one more time. All through dinner and their ensuing passion, however, she was haunted by what she had to tell him. She didn’t want to leave this life, or hurt this creature who had treated her better than any other creature ever had.

        When they had finished with their mating, Raul Weasel got out of bed and walked over to the large windows that looked out on the city. Edna Squirrel looked at the silhouette of his narrow back, she was sleepy, but knew that she had to be leaving, Mr. Owl would be waiting, and then she and Harold Mole would be returning home.

        “Edna, I need to talk to you.” Raul Weasel said, not turning from the window. “I know I have something I have to-” She started.

        “Please.” He cut her off tersely, turning around and coming back to the bed. He sat on the edge and leaned his long thin body over hers, planting his paws on either side of her. She could see his eyes glittering in the darkness, smell his breath, she was aware of the odor of their sex rising from the sheets.

        “This must come to an end.”

        She felt relieved. Perhaps she wouldn’t be the one to break off their union.

        “I can no longer share you with those creatures. You must understand, I love you. You do understand that don’t you? The thought of their paws on you, it gnaws at me. You will be mine, you are mine, you cannot do this any longer, I forbid it.”

        Edna Squirrel felt such a pang of longing rise in her, how she wished to just fall into Raul Weasel’s arms. No one had ever sought her so definitely, with such purpose, with such need. But she tried to turn away from him, she knew that she couldn’t do what he asked. She would never be able to live with herself if she abandoned Mole.

        “Weasel, I can’t.” She muttered trying to turn away.

He roughly turned her back, “what do you mean?” He asked his voice rising in anger.

        “I can’t stay, Raul. Mole, Mole he-”

        “Mole! Mole! You are obsessed by that drug addled animal. I have supported you. You and his horrid habit. Now this is the thanks I get! I don’t believe it you will leave me here alone while you go live in that squalor. Tell me that I haven’t been wrong, Edna. Tell me that you aren’t just a whore with no common sense.” He had slithered up onto the bed and straddled her now, pinning her to the sheets. Edna Squirrel could feel, despite his age, the charge of his strength come alive in his sinewy limbs, she gasped for breath.

        “ What you have no answer? You aren’t any better than him! What an idiot I’ve been. Well let me tell you something, dearie, if I can’t have you, no one will! You, you, simple slut!” His paws traveled up to her throat, she could feel her eyes bulge as the air was cut off, the blood pounded in her ears.

        Raul Weasel arched his long back and drove his weight down onto Edna Squirrel’s neck. She was pressed down into the bed. In a flash she felt the shock of what was happening, of how her lover had turned into this crazed creature, how she would die here, her neck broken, her body cooling rapidly in the expensive sheets. She had a flash of the burning estate of Baron Fox, in the glow of the crashing timbers and rising sparks she could she the faces of the creatures whom she had called her friends, they seemed to be calling out, why, why, tears streaming from their eyes. Her paws flailed wildly, she felt something heavy against a paw, grasped it, and swung without thinking. Suddenly Raul Weasel went limp and fell against her, she felt warmth on her chest.

        Edna Squirrel extricated herself from beneath Raul Weasel. Gagging and sputtering she found herself on the floor, where she vomited, wincing at the painfull bile crashing through her bruised windpipe. Then she rose and stumbled over to a light switch, as soon as the lights came on she grabbed a chair nearby and raised as though to strike at her assailant. Raul Weasel, however, lay unmoving on the bed. Edna Squirrel looked at her chest and saw that her fur was covered in blood, she was covered in Raul Weasel’s blood. She slowly walked over and saw that the bedding beneath him was soaked, a stream of blood welling thickly from a crack in his head.

        She stopped cold in horror and fear, listening. Trying to still her ragged breath and the pounding of blood in her ears, but the building was silent. “Bastard,” she muttered, “why? Why you, bastard? You said you loved me!”

        She stumbled away from the bed, once again feeling her stomach churn. She went to the bathtub and turned on the water, spitting the corruption from her mouth at the drain below. She got in and hastily started to clean herself, watching as the water turned from crimson to clear. She wanted to collapse, in remorse and sorrow, but she knew she couldn’t, there were spare hours before daylight, and she had to act quickly.

        She hurriedly dressed when she was done washing, putting on a top with a raised collar that she hoped would hide her swollen throat. Raul Weasel’s driver woke easily, and showed little surprise at the Squirrel’s request to be driven home at this late hour. Due to the nature of her relationship with Raul Weasel it wasn’t unheard of for him to have to perform such duties. When he dropped her off at her neighborhood she requested that he pick her up again in a short amount of time. She did this figuring that it wouldn’t give him the chance to return and investigate Raul Weasel’s house. Then when he returned he would dutifully wait for her, and wait. She would have plenty of time to gather Mole and get away, before Raul Weasel was ever discovered.

        When she got to Mr. Owl’s house the lights were on, blazing late into the night as they always did. The house was quieter than normal, though, and Floyd Rat was outside the entryway, smoking, as though he had been waiting for her. “Heh, beautiful, you know I don’t like to be kept waiting.” He said quietly.

        “Oh, Floyd. Please I need to see Mr. Owl right away.” She said her voice strained.

        “Sure. But, Beautiful, let me say-don’t do this thing, please. You still have time to change your mind.”

        She looked at him on the darkness of the stoop, shook her head and reached for the door.

        Mr. Owl was sitting at his desk when they entered. “Shut the door, Floyd.” He said. Then as Edna Squirrel came up to his desk he motioned her to sit down in a chair that was situated in front of him. “You have the money?”

        She tossed her bag before him. He looked up over his beak for a moment and then pulled the notes out of the bag. He counted them in a cursory manner, and then lightly touched a pair of identity papers that were on his desk.

        “These,” he said, provide you and your Mole with the chance to return to your home. With new names, new identities, free. But before we complete this transaction I must admit to having a little problem. I don’t appreciate being taken for an idiot. Which I guess is the role I am supposed play here. You don’t seem to think that I know what people in my employ are paid. A ridiculous assumption from an intelligent creature, Ms. Squirrel. Well I am sorry, but I decline the role you are offering. I do happen to know what people in my employ are paid, and because of that I also know that these funds did not come from work you did for me.”

        Edna Squirrel was so anxious that it took a minute to register what Mr. Owl was saying, but finally the meaning became clear, and her blood turned cold.

        Mr. Owl looked at her levelly. “Now I appreciate an enterprising soul, good for you. Still I think that if you could earn this kind of money aside of your duties at Hope Mink’s, then it was certainly taking away from what you might have earned there. So, I think I am entitled to a share of this as a recompense for damages to my potential earnings from your work, say, this much.” He moved a sizable pile over to the side, and spread his wings on the tabletop. “Now it seems that perhaps there is enough here to pay a portion of what Mole owes my dear friend Floyd Rat, but enough for your papers, no I don’t think so. And since you have shown how far an enterprising soul can go in this world, I think from now on our expectations of what you can contribute to the welfare of our little family needs to be readjusted. You are more of a gold mine than even I envisioned, sweet Squirrel, though I hope your work doesn’t continue to take such a toll on you, quite frankly you look like hell.”

        Edna Squirrel started to sob. She knew that this was indeed the end for her. Her head fell into her paws and she shook as though she were freezing. Nothing mattered now, more than ever, for when Raul Weasel was discovered, there would be no salvation, no more second chances. Then she heard the sound of a voice talking low.

        “Go ahead, pick them up, beautiful.”

        She looked up, the fur of her face matted from her tears. Floyd Rat stood next to Mr. Owl, his paw was resting on the great bird’s shoulder. Mr. Owl was gazing down at his desk his expression blank. In Floyd Rats paw a knife was barely visible, it’s edge covered by the feathers of Mr. Owl’s neck.

        “Pull yourself together, beautiful. I said to pick them up.” Floyd Rat said his voice now insistent.

Edna Squirrel tried to speak but her voice was lost in her ravaged throat. She rose and reached hesitantly across the desk and took the papers.

        “Take some of the money too, you’ll need it. But leave me some, I think you wont be the only one taking a trip tonight.”

        Edna Squirrel looked up into Floyd Rat’s eyes, and he smiled. Mr. Owl sat still unmoving.

        “Go, beautiful, you don’t have much time. But remember that mole is no good. I am doing this for you, beautifull, not for him, don’t throw away what I am doing for you, understand?”

        Edna Squirrel gathered the papers, nodding weakly, and a pile of the money. She snuffled back her tears and tried to straighten her demeanor. Then she turned and made for the door. She was thankful that she saw no one on her way out.

 

        The dawn was breaking when Edna Squirrel reached her building. She was out of breath from running down the street, and by the time she got up the stairs to her apartment her lungs were burning and her legs were shaking. She wished she could just lay down for a bit and relax, just to sleep, with dear Mole’s head on her shoulder. She fumbled her keys out and managed to get the right one in the lock. She turned the key and threw her weight against the door fairly falling into the apartment. Thin morning light came through the window and filled the tiny room like dirty water. Edna had planned on falling over to the bed, she had imagined holding Mole’s head and waking him with tearful kisses. She believed that they were actually going to get home, after all the misery that had pursued them to this day. She could feel them standing together near the sea, their noses raised to the salty air, the song of the seals barking far below on the rocky coast.

        She saw him immediately. Harold Mole’s body was hanging from the light fixture. The chair on which he had stood had fallen over. The electric cord that was tight around his neck made a small black line above his head, which was tilted over at an obscene angle.

        Edna Squirrel wasn’t sure how long she stood at the window. Time had suspended itself, like the moment between breaths. She felt completely empty, there were no tears left for her to cry. She had been emptied of remorse and guilt. It had poured from her into the hungry silence of the moment. She felt that she was at the end of a circle, completed, finding herself at it’s culmination utterly alone. The sound of the morning train rattling on the old iron tracks roused her. She looked up and took a breath. Without a word, without looking again at the empty vessel of Mole’s body she went to the door and closed it behind her. Within the hour she would be on a train to Watersedge, with a new name, and a new identity. As she left the building she passed her paw over the wood of Gracie Dog’s door. Her only gesture of farewell to the land of Lusk , and the seasons that had brought her there.

                                                           

END