That summer, didn't just give Leo a story to read—it gave him one to live.
“To whoever finds this: The secret is on page 14, behind the comic strip. Don’t let the cat see you looking.” Piff Magazine No 46 1973
The cover featured a psychedelic, hand-drawn illustration of a cat wearing aviator sunglasses, lounging on a slice of pepperoni pizza that was floating through a nebula. It was absurd, it was colorful, and it was exactly what Leo needed to escape another long summer in the suburbs. That summer, didn't just give Leo a story
He looked up, half-expecting the psychedelic cat from the cover to be watching him from a branch. The park was quiet, save for the distant sound of a lawnmower. He looked at the key, then back at the magazine. On the very last page, in the "Letters to the Editor" section, a small, bolded line at the bottom read: “The lock is in the hollow of the old oak at the center of the world.” It was absurd, it was colorful, and it
Leo looked at the trunk of the tree he was leaning against. High up, where the main branches split, was a knot that looked suspiciously like a keyhole.