Treasure of the Malkin: War of the Malkin series, #4

By Virginia Ripple

When demons rise, only a time-traveling feline can save the world.

Henry is the Librarian, or was until a demon from the Horde thrust him into the future. Now he's a magical talking cat in a time where no such thing exists. After a being hit by a car, he strikes an uneasy friendship with an unassuming human named Liz, whose inquisitiveness rivals his own. Hoping to find a way back to his time, Henry asks Liz to grant him a final favor before he leaves: to visit the grand opening of the new Ancient Mysteries wing of the local library. While admiring the exhibits from his own time, Henry discovers someone has plans to raise the demon Horde using an ancient magical artifact tucked away in the librarys collection. With no one else to turn to, Henry and Liz work to stop the threat before the demons rise and bring the end of the world with them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Virginia Ripple
• Release date: Dec 3, 2016
• ISBN: 9781540122421

Book preview

Chapter 5

Evening had come slowly. The children had left, Smithe had given Liz another complaint about Henry’s presence in the library, Liz had gone about locking the doors, then re-shelving and straightening the books before picking him up and carrying him to the car. He’d chosen not to respond to her questions until, finally, her one-sided conversation had dribbled to nothing. He knew he should feel bad about giving her the cold shoulder, but he just couldn’t find the energy to do anything about it.

Now he sat on the kitchen table, staring out the window as the street lights came on. Liz had gone to her bed, taking a book and a decaf coffee with her. She’d paused just behind him for several moments. He could almost hear the question, but she left without voicing it. She’d left him alone. Just as well. I’m alone in this anyway.

The coffee pot hissed and burbled from the kitchen, catching Henry’s attention. Liz had forgotten to shut it off again. A news article he’d read rose to mind, something about a family’s home being set on fire because of a faulty appliance being left on. He dropped to the floor and sauntered into the kitchen. If he were trapped in this time, it wouldn’t do to let the apartment building burn down just because he was feeling low. Besides, he didn’t want any other deaths on his conscience. He’d been lucky with Liz. He still wasn’t sure what exactly had happened, but he wasn’t about to take chances that there’d be someone around to raise anyone he killed on his mission from the dead again.

He leaped to the counter and paced to the little black machine. Tapping the glowing red button with his paw, he turned the coffee pot off, then stared out the dark rectangle over the sink. Beyond the window were more buildings. Liz said they were apartments like theirs, except nicer. They all had balconies and enclosed patios. He maneuvered around the coffee pot and balanced over the sink to peer down into one of the tiny patios.

That neighbor had a dog. It was something of a curiosity to Henry. A smallish creature, not much bigger than himself, with patches of brown, black and white over its shaggy coat. What was most unusual about the little beast was that its front legs were shorter than its back. Liz had said the owners called it Stubby, after its strange build. The dog was asleep now, curled up in its little kennel with nothing but its shaggy black and white head sticking out. A slender chain snaked from the dog’s collar to a triangular piece of metal in the ground, reflecting the streetlight from its links. Henry cocked his head to the side. Links.

His mind continued down the thought chain until he shook his head. What does it matter? Why should I keep working this problem when nothing I do is going to get