The Adventures of Monday Addams and Wednesday Addams

Chapter 50-The Truth

Pugsley looked behind him and saw Monday walking over "Go away." He said sadly.

"You forgot your fishing gear." Monday said giving it to him.

"Stop pretending to be nice. It doesn't suit you." Pugsley said.

"I'm not pretending" Monday said "Father packed your favorite bait."

"What'll happen to him now?"

"Well, he's confessed, so there won't be a trial. After he's sentenced, he'll be sent to a state penitentiary, where he'll lose his mind being separated from Mother. Did you know they haven't spent a night apart since they tied the knot?"

"I always thought it would be Wednesday who would be the first one in the family behind bars. Lurch and I had a bet going."

She smiled at Pugsley "Come on. Let's see if the fish are biting". She handed him the grenade. Pugsley pulled the pin and chucked it.

He killed a bunch of fish. Monday smiled again "That's quite a catch." She told him.

"I'm gonna miss him, Monday." 

"It's not over yet. He's innocent." Monday told Pugsley hopefully.

"Well, if anyone can figure out who really committed the crime... it's you and Wednesday." Pugsley said proudly. "You have to find out the truth and free Dad."

"Well, until that happens, we both know Mother will be falling apart. Which means we have to be strong. And by "we," I mean you and me."

"Now, give me one of those." She said and Pugsley handed her a grenade.

"Where is Mother anyway?" Monday asked.

"She said she wanted to be alone. Somewhere where no one would find her." Pugsley said.

"I know where she is." Pugsley looked at Monday.

"I like this new you. You're not just copying Wednesday your your own person now." Monday smiled and walked away.

——————————————————
THE NIGHTSHADES LIBRARY

"Hello, Mother."

"Hello, Monday"

"So you're a Nightshade. That didn't take long."

"Actually, we rejected them."

"Why? Because I was a member?"

"We'll never live up to your legacy here, so why try? We win the Poe Cup, you claimed it four times. We join the fencing team, you captained it. Why would you send us somewhere we could only ever exist in your shadow?"

"It's not a competition,Monday." Morticia said.

"Everything is a competition, Mother. I'm either in your shadow or Wednesdays. But mostly we rejected them because they're a trivial social club."

Morticia sighed "We used to be so much more. Our mission was to protect outcasts from harm and bigotry. In fact, the group was started by an ancestor of your father's from Mexico. One of the first settlers in America."

"Goody. I saw her painting at Pilgrim World."

"Oh. How ironic, since she was the one who killed Joseph Crackstone. The Nightshades were her secret, but deadly, answer to his oppression."

"I know why you've come here, Monday. So go on. Ask."

So she did "Father didn't kill Garrett Gates, did he?"

"No. By the time I made it up the stairs, I found your father fighting for his life. It was terrifying. "Garrett, no! Garrett! Garrett, stop! Leave him alone!" I'll never forget the way he looked at me. He was even foaming at the mouth. It was like I was staring into the eyes of a rabid beast. "Oh, no." It was only when I heard the scream that I realized what I'd done. Your father was so... calm and brave. "Tish, you need to leave right now. Go to your room and lock the door. You were never here. You understand me? Morticia? Put this back on the table. Go." "Okay." Your father took the blame in order to protect me. I was so grateful when they cleared him of any wrongdoing. But I knew, someday this would come back to haunt us."

"You said Garrett was foaming at the mouth." Monday asked thinking.

"His eyes didn't look human. I've never seen someone so blinded by rage."

"Maybe it wasn't rage at all. Foaming saliva, dilated pupils, mental confusion. What are those all textbook symptoms of?" Morticia gasped.

"But how can that be?" She asked.

"There's only one way to find out" Monday said.