CHAPTER#38

"What is it?" He watched her unfold it. The fabric shimmered oddly beneath the light, both purple and black. Once unfolded, he realized he was looking at a vest.

"Do you remember when we were in the Labyrinth and found Ratu's skin?" She handed it over to him. "Naga skin is notoriously durable. I used some to make a nice pair of oven mitts, but had plenty left over and decided to make you some clothes from it."

"That's... does Ratu know you made me a vest out of her old skin?"

"She does. It was her idea when she found out I had taken some. She even helped me preserve some of its magical properties. It's strong against fire and earth magic and is very hard to puncture. You can't wear anything under it though, it has to be against your flesh. It was supposed to be a full tunic, but I ran out of time, so this is what I have.

"Thank you, Sofia." He took off his shirt and slid the vest on, covering up his scars. Once against his skin, the fabric tightened, molding itself to his torso. It was uncomfortable at first, but the cool fabric warmed up to match his body heat and became a bit more pliable. He realized that he could see no seams and wondered how she had stitched it together.

Sofia looked at him oddly, then let out a sigh. "Try not to die."

He thought briefly about Cecilia. Someday, she would take him to that shore. For now, he could wait. "I'll do my best."

"Good." She leaned over him to check the fit, then gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Put your regular shirt on over it. That way nobody will suspect you're wearing it."

"Good idea." He slid his shirt back on, chasing away the chill of the room. "Are you coming with us?"

She shook her head. "The rats are officially in the Library. As much as I want to help, those little fuckers are tearing up the place and destroying irreplaceable books." She shook her head. "If they chew a hole in the wrong place, we could end up dealing with something far worse than rats. Remember, the Library used to be tied to other places in the world. A hole in the right place could let anybody in, geas be damned."

"Shit." He strapped on his dagger and stuck Zel's vials in his pocket. "Guess I better go cut off the head of the snake. Pun intended."

"You're going to kill the Rat King?" she asked.

"Smash stupid fuck." Tink stood in the door, her eyes on Mike. "Husband smell different, like snake face. We go now."

"What on Earth is that?" Mike asked her. The goblin was holding a strange looking club that looked like it had been reinforced with thick bands of metal.

"This is Tink's Rat Smasher. Big surprise for Rat King." She hoisted the club over her shoulder and left. He followed her out and down the stairs, bidding farewell to Sofia outside of the office. He watched her disappear through the portal, the light vanishing and becoming a simple bookshelf once more.

"I wish this place had a user's manual." It was easily the hundredth time he had wished it.

"You and I both." Beth stood at the base of the stairs in a pair of jeans and a sweater, the rat next to her looking nervous. He narrowed his eyes at the rodent, fighting the urge to give him a kick.

"Lead the way," he told it. The rat nodded, then took them up to the second floor. Mike expected to go in one of the doors but was surprised when they walked into the servant's room.

"We closed this one up," he said, but the rat pushed on a hidden panel in the wall, revealing a thin hallway. It went between the rooms, leading deep into the house.

"Secret passage," Tink said sagely, walking in front of him with her goggles on. "House have normal secrets too."

"I guess." He followed behind her, turning on his flashlight. The hall was dusty with large cobwebs in the corners. Rat prints in the thick dust let him know they were on the right trail.

"His Lordship will not be expecting you, so we will proceed with caution when we reach the royal chambers." The speaker adjusted his plastic glasses, his whiskers trembling. "He is in a poor mood since the demon doll burned down one of his favorite rooms."

"How large is your kingdom?" Beth's question was innocent, but Mike's mind immediately went to how many rat traps he would need to order from A****n.

"We number in the thousands and our rooms in the hundreds. We live in the forgotten places, the lost temples of the Maya, the pyramids beneath the sands. When you see an abandoned home off the highway, we are there. A broken down factory in the city, we are there. A shipwreck off the coast of-"

"We get it!" Mike didn't mean to yell, but it had slipped out. The rat's voice had been steadily climbing higher, grinding down on his nerves. "If the rats live in all these great places, then why the fuck do you want my house?"

"Your home is bigger than all of these places combined and it is safe. The Rat King wishes to expand his dominion."

"I'm afraid that eminent domain only applies to the government in the human world," Beth told him. "Your king cannot simply take away my client's home."

"We do not follow the laws of the human world. The laws of nature are far stronger."

"I'm guessing we're about to find that out," Mike said, his eyes on the hole in the floor up ahead. Was he about to walk into an actual fight? Could he kill the Rat King? In the back of his mind, he had always wondered if he could kill somebody to protect his family, and he was having a tough time seeing the Rat King as a person. The speaker stopped just before the hole and held up a paw.