by Ruby Loren
Tonight I'd taken Lucky home with me to the apartment I was renting. It had a strictly no pets rule, but while I could allow him to be left during the day with Marie, when I could check in at regular intervals, I didn’t want him there all night. It wasn't that I thought Marie would do anything malicious, it was more that she might pop out to the loo and leave the door open. And with a room full of snakes just down the corridor, I wasn’t willing to risk it.
I fed Lucky his night time formula and popped his basket down on the large bedside table I was using as a desk. The apartment I’d rented was more of a studio, with just a bedroom, bathroom, and a kitchen. It suited me just fine. The rent was cheap and it wasn't as though I stayed there beyond the evenings.
Now that I was a consultant, I could choose the days I worked. One of the advantages for many people working freelance was that you could work fewer days, but I’d chosen to work more. I didn’t need a day off from doing something I loved. It also had the bonus that I was paid a sight more than I might have been, had I still worked as a zookeeper. Although renting on the edge of Hull wasn’t expensive, I still had rent to pay on my permanent residence down in the south east - and that was expensive. Despite that, I did all I could to make sure there was money put aside in the hopes of one day being able to afford to buy my own house.
Where would you buy it? A voice in my head piped up and I suddenly realised I wasn’t sure. It had seemed so obvious when I'd been working at Avery, but the exorbitant prices in the south east were what had stopped me from being able to buy a house already. I didn’t have a deposit saved up yet. But if I could move anywhere in the country…
I shook my head. It was far too much to think about on top of everything else. There was plenty of time for that in the future. For now, I would keep up with my rent payments and see what happened next. One and a half jobs into my new career was hardly the moment to be making huge decisions.
“Comic time,” I said to Lucky, who opened a bleary eye and then shut it again.
Monday’s Menagerie, the comic I drew and posted online, had been a bit of a struggle recently. When I'd worked as a zookeeper at Avery Zoo, I’d created a cast of recurring characters. While I wouldn’t say I’d ever copied anyone so exactly that they would notice, I had definitely borrowed some aspects of my colleagues’ personalities, and the animals themselves had provided many of the humorous happenings. Now that I was away from Avery, I had to be a little more creative. The characters that my readers had come to love still cropped up, but now I had to apply imaginary situations to their storyline.
I opened my webpage and posted a cheerful comic about a gang of orphaned meerkats and their mission to raid the food cupboard. Even away from Avery Zoo, there was still inspiration to be found.
The next thing to do was to check my inbox. The number of emails I’d been receiving every day had been steadily increasing, as had the view counter on the website. What had started out as a fun way to let off steam about the things that happened to me every day had turned into something that other people genuinely loved.
“Hey, Lucky… did you know you’re famous?” I said to the sleeping kitten. I’d just opened an email from a reader who’d written to tell me they loved the new recurring character - a black kitten with white socks called Lucky.
I finished reading and replying to that day's emails and then turned my thoughts to bed. It was still relatively early, but I hadn’t exactly got a lot of sleep last night.
As I lay there and waited for sleep to take me, I thought about Lowell’s case, the dead woman, and Mr Limey - who still hadn’t managed to shift the blockage. Despite being dog tired, I tossed and turned with a strong feeling that I was missing something. I drifted off to sleep before I could figure out what it was.
The next morning I checked on Mr Limey. He seemed exactly the same as he had before. His tongue still flickered in and out, but I could sense he was pretty unhappy. The vet had told me to call him back out if the bath hadn’t worked, but before I did that, I was going to take one of the reptile experts up on his offer to take a look. Rod had told me late yesterday he could take a look this morning, but all of the keepers were busy preparing for autumn. In the months leading to Halloween, there was always an increase in visitors to the manor and the reptile and amphibian collection. Their mission was to persuade people that the animals weren’t that scary after all. How they figured they’d manage that when they specialised in venomous varieties - most of which could kill you - I didn't know.
Dracondia Manor looked as imposing as ever when I walked across the lawns towards it. I suddenly remembered the casual inclusion of the open snake pit of mambas in the historical story featured below the Serpentine Emerald. I wondered if even now I was walking over the place the pit had once been. I shuddered. I was glad that animal care standards had risen so much during the past century. Health and safety was no bad thing either.
I’d transferred Mr Limey back into his travel vivarium for the journey up to the manor and I placed him down in the staffroom whilst I waited for Rod. Trinity Snidely walked in and glanced towards the table.
“How’s everything going?" she asked.
I inwardly frowned when I gave her a brief update of how my review was going. She wasn't my employer and technically, I shouldn’t have to answer to her. I’d noticed her taking a more prominent role in the Snidelys’ affairs and I wondered why. Were they putting their faith in her as they prepared to hand over control to someone younger, who still carried the family name? It was the only reason I didn’t question her demands.
“I thought it would be quicker,” was her only comment when I’d finished my report.
Now I did bristle.
“Some of my time has been taken up by other matters. The incident in the lion enclosure caused a delay and now I’m the only one looking after this snake,” I gestured to the vivarium on the table.
Trinity frowned at it. “Why are you looking after a snake?”
“It was the one George Ashdown brought in. That was the whole reason he was at the critical care unit when… it happened,” I said, wondering how this detail had escaped her attention. “He’s not very well, so I thought I’d bring him up here to be seen by Rod before I bring in the vet.”
“Let me guess… it's venomous?” Trinity asked and I nodded, unsure if she were trying to make a joke or not.
She threw her head back. “Everything’s venomous around here.” She gave me a nod and then walked out of the room again.
I couldn’t help but think she was right. Everything was venomous - including some of the staff.
Unlike me, Rod seemed to relish the chance to handle Mr Limey.
“Oh, wow! What a beautiful green mamba,” he said once I'd removed the lid. Mr Limey, as ever - did nothing.
“He’s got this bulge in his tail that doesn’t want to shift. I don’t think he’s very happy about it,” was all I could say.
Rod pulled on a fancy snake handling glove and gently set his hand down close to Mr Limey’s head, so he couldn’t suddenly swing round and bite him. With his bare hand, he gently felt around the bulge. When he got close to it Mr Limey jerked in obvious discomfort.
Rod looked grave. “You’ve tried a lukewarm bath and raising warmth and humidity levels?”
I nodded and he looked thoughtful. “Where did he come from?”
Good question, I thought. “I think he was kept at home by someone.”
Rob scratched his fluffy brown hair. “Yeah, they probably fed him thawed frozen food. Snakes rely on water in their food and freezing and thawing can mean there’s not enough. That or he's got too hot at some point. It all results in things getting stuck. Now we just have to figure out the best way to make him better. Is he eating?”
“He wasn’t interested in what I gave him yesterday,” I said, but Rod was already rifling around in his bag. He pulled out a cooler container and fished inside.
“I’ve something that may do the trick. I’ll add a little mineral o
il and we’ll see if that won't sort him out, eh?” He vanished into another room for a second and then returned with a slightly bloody morsel that he dropped in front of Mr Limey. We both held our breath as the snake turned his lime green head and then…
“He swallowed it,” I observed, surprised that he’d taken the bait.
Rod nodded. “That tends to do the trick. Anyway, give it another 24 hours and if there’s no change, call the vet immediately and he’ll have to go through some, er, slightly less pleasant treatments.”
“Well, let’s keep our fingers crossed,” I said with a smile and thanked him for his help.
I was grateful to have one less thing to think about as I walked back across the dew studded lawns with the vivarium in my arms. Mr Limey was being treated, and hopefully it would pay off and the blockage would shift. Then it would just be a matter of finding out where he could live.
I’d suggested to Rod that he stay up with the other snakes, but due to his current unsure condition, Rod thought he was better suited to the critical care unit. I also had a sneaking suspicion he didn't want to take on any extra work. It had been plain to see when I’d walked around the manor that preparations for the autumnal period were well under way. Decorations and new exhibits were being put up everywhere. I couldn’t blame Rod for his less than accommodating attitude.
Something he had mentioned as I was leaving stuck in my mind. He’d reminded me that in order to keep a snake as venomous as a mamba at home, you’d need a dangerous animal license. He’d asked me if the man who’d brought the snake in had struck me as the kind of guy who’d have one of those. If not, the snake might have been sold on the black market and it could be something that needed reporting. He’d advised passing the info along to the police for them to look into, but I knew I had access to an easier answer.
It was time Marie started talking.
I peered into Mr Limey’s vivarium and noted that he was moving a little bit more than he had been, although it could just be because we were walking along. I was still trying to figure it out when I tripped on a kerb by the critical care unit and fell straight into the flowerbed.
“Oh, hell!” I said once I'd recovered, urgently checking on the snake. I’d kept hold of Mr Limey’s vivarium when I’d fallen, but it had definitely taken a knock against a rather sturdy rose bush. My arms and fingers were scratched to pieces.
Mr Limey stuck his tongue in and out and looked unfazed.
It nearly gave me a heart attack when the bottom of the vivarium slid off. A second later, I realised that the green mamba was still inside.
I looked down at the black plastic casing, which had fallen into a clump of dahlias, and discovered it wasn’t empty. Five packets of crisp, new, twenty pound notes stared back at me. How much money was I looking at? A thousand? More? I didn’t know.
I pushed my glasses back up my nose, wiping dirt on my face in the process. Before, I hadn’t been a hundred per cent sure about Mr Limey’s life prior to this, but now I was definitely suspicious.
Getting upright was a challenge, but I managed it and removed half a rose bush from my hair. It probably hadn’t made much of a difference to its original state. Without thinking, I pressed the now-broken, false bottom back onto the vivarium and carried it through the entrance of the critical care unit.
I should have given it more thought.
6
Ghosts of the Past
“Hello, Madi, where have you been?” Lord Snidely asked when I walked into the critical care unit.
I froze with my hands still pressing the false bottom back onto the vivarium. Dare I put it down? If it didn't sit flat, it would become immediately obvious that something was wrong with the base. What if Lord Snidely asked to see?
I decided to keep a hold on poor, well-travelled, Mr Limey.
“I just popped up to see Rod about this snake. He’s not very well,” I explained. “But I’ll be getting straight back to my review now.” Holding the vivarium after that declaration seemed awkward. I searched the room and my eyes alighted on a towel that had been spread on the counter, probably left from feeding the meerkats. There! With a bit of luck, no one would notice if the vivarium was wonky.
I set it down and breathed a sigh of relief when it looked okay and no bundles of cash fell out.
That didn’t mean it was a stress-free experience when Lord Snidely bent down and peered into the vivarium. “Wonderful creatures, snakes. My family has been fascinated with them for centuries. Did you know, there’s an old tale that says the Serpentine Emerald came into our possession because of a snake? We’re originally from Ireland and before all of the snakes were driven out, one of my ancestors let a snake take shelter in their house, so it wouldn’t freeze in the snow during the winter. As a thank you, the snake returned in the spring carrying a large emerald.” He smiled and nodded like this story was perfectly plausible.
“Why do people think it’s cursed?” I asked.
“Well, when a mysterious snake brings you treasure, it usually comes with a condition or two. We were told to keep the emerald in the Snidely family in order to keep its good fortune. We’re the direct descendants of the Snidelys who offered the snake shelter, so we’ve gained ownership of the jewel. It’s passed on the same way. You’ve got to admit, since we’ve had the emerald in our possession, things have gone very well for the family. Perhaps there is some truth in the old tale after all,” he said, raising one of his bushy eyebrows.
“Oh, I forgot to ask. Are you feeling all right after your illness the other night?” I enquired.
Lord Snidely’s eyes glazed for a moment before they cleared. “Ah, yes. Much better thank you. Now, I must be getting along. I just wanted to check in after the report I heard." He must have noticed my quizzical expression, as he continued. “Trinity is busy helping get the autumn exhibit ready. It’s our crowning glory, you know! Although, I'm sure you’ll be done long before it opens, which is a shame. However, you are always welcome to return for a visit.”
I pushed down the feeling of not being wanted and summoned up a farewell smile. “I look forward to handing in my review very soon indeed,” I said. Two could play at that game. If he was so desperate to get rid of me all of a sudden, I wasn’t in a hurry to hang around.
Once he was gone I felt my shoulders slump. He hadn’t found the money or Marie. I rushed off to check the office, hoping that Lord Snidely hadn’t tried to open the office door. The fact that I hadn’t been asked to answer some very awkward questions suggested she'd remained undiscovered.
Before I’d taken a couple of steps, my phone began to ring. Cursing, I pulled it out of my pocket and looked at the screen before answering. It wasn’t the best time, but I’d made a promise.
“Hi, Auryn, is everything okay?” I asked, fearing the worst. It wouldn’t surprise me the way things were going right now.
“Yeah, not so bad. Grandad’s out of hospital. He’s back at the zoo, although not working. He’s just taking it easy in his office. I’m so glad he’s back. It means I can run everything by him. When he was away, I had Lawrence helping me out, but he’s in not much better shape than Grandad. I just… I don’t know how long it’s going to be until I’m left in charge,” he said.
I noticed that he didn’t sound as terrified as he once had. Perhaps his grandad’s time away had given him a chance to try out running the zoo for real, and from what he was saying, it hadn’t gone too badly.
“Do the doctors think he’s going to recover?” I asked, wondering what kind of outlook someone of Mr Avery’s age had. I had never known the man very well - he’d been retired when I joined the zoo - but in our brief time together, I’d definitely thought him a tough old stick.
Auryn laughed. “I think they’re scared enough to tell him he’ll live forever. He didn't take being bed bound very well and a lot of the medical staff felt his, uh, displeasure. Still, he’s out now, and I think everything is going to be okay again, for now, anyway.” We both knew the old man could
n’t go on forever, but I was pleased for them both that they had more time together and Auryn would also be that little bit more prepared when it was time for him to take over.
“Hey, you’re twenty now, aren’t you?” I said, suddenly remembering the date.
“I am! A proper grown up now, apparently,” he said and I could tell he was smirking.
I suddenly felt bad for not sending him anything. I would have to call my friend Tiff and ask her to get him a belated gift from me.
“So, uh, when do you think you might be coming back here? For a break, or a visit, or something?” Auryn said.
I was glad we were on the phone, so he couldn’t see my characteristic blush. I’d been immediately transported back to our ill-advised kiss and the awkward conversations that had followed it. “I’m not sure. Things are taking a little longer than I’d expected here and then there’s a job in France…” I trailed off.
“Ah, okay. I understand. Well, hopefully it won’t be too long, right?” Auryn said and I found myself smiling.
“I hope not, Auryn. I miss you,” I told him, knowing it was true. He echoed back the sentiment and we hung up, both (I hoped) somehow feeling lighter than we had before the conversation.
I stood still for a moment before the harsher realities of Snidely Safari and Wildlife Park came crashing back down.
Ah, yes… I had been on the warpath.
I still didn't manage to make it into my office. Instead, I met Lowell who had been walking down the corridor towards me.
“There’s something I need to show you,” I said, by way of greeting, and took him back in to the critical care unit. I checked no one was around and then pulled the false bottom off Mr Limey’s vivarium.
Lowell took in the bundles of cash. “This raises some questions,” he said, and I nodded.
