“Wow, she was going to throw this all away? This update really is no joke.” She hadn’t seen the consequences of the update firsthand, but now she’s getting the idea. She breathes out a long, ragged breath. “Well, only two more days of school. Then we’ll be on the hunt for Monica. Want to catch the bus together?” Zora asks.

“I’ll meet you at school,” I say. “There’s something I have to do first.”

Zora raises an eyebrow at me. “You’re not going up to try and find Lake Baku on your own, are you?”

“No, nothing like that. I promise.”

“Okay, good. Because we’re a team in this, remember.”

“I know,” I say. “Thanks for staying with me last night. It means a lot.”

“Don’t worry, Lacey. We’ll get your mom back to normal.” She gives me a hug and then heads back to her home to get ready.

It’s still early when I leave the apartment, but I don’t feel like going back upstairs. It’s early enough that the streets are still quiet except for the most eager commuters. It’s not rush hour yet.

I walk until I pass the threshold of Monchaville, heading toward downtown. When we’re no longer on streets guarded by twenty-four-seven baku surveillance, Jinx feels more comfortable being visible, and I catch sight of the black cat baku streaking along ahead of me. He’s waiting at a streetcar stop, and when I reach him, I put Slick in my pocket. Now Jinx and I look just like everyone else—owner and baku, happily coexisting.

Other people’s bakus are slightly more helpful than Jinx, though—of course. I’m the only one waiting at the streetcar stop because Jinx wasn’t kind enough to inform me the next one wasn’t due for another ten minutes. Across the street from where I’m standing, waiting and shivering, I can see into the window of a local coffee shop chain, busy with people sitting at tables, sipping their winter-themed spiced lattes. No one is waiting in line—the bakus are doing that, while the people chat and catch up with work. I wish I could send Jinx to get me a hot drink, but somehow I don’t think he’d take too kindly to that request.

My eye catches movement on the roof, where I see a couple of stray cats staring at us, their ears twitching. But when I blink to check again, they’re gone.