Chapter 16 | Page 27: Welcome, Cassie! … again

From possessed coffee to quicksand carpets, Cassie Cruz has faced it all in recent days. Now, surrounded by friends and teammates, the mood shifts to something lighter. But even in the middle of a party, surprises are never far away.

Thanks to YOUR support, Evil Inc After Dark: Full Stream Ahead has officially reached its funding goal! I couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who’s pledged, shared the campaign, and cheered us on.

Now the fun part begins… Stretch Goals!

When we hit $17,000, every backer at the digital or physical book level will receive an expanded Halloween eComic — packed with 20 brand-new pages of spooky, spicy content, including:

• 👻 A brand-new Real Housewives of Transylvania comic featuring a succubus sommeleir

• 🐺 An Evil Inc After Dark comic starring everyone’s favorite werewolf, Mister Howell, in “Breeder of the Pack”

• 💀 A fresh batch of spicy commissions

• 🎃 About a dozen Halloween-themed single-panel cartoons

This bonus will be added to your rewards at no extra cost once we cross that milestone!

💡 Want to Help Us Hit the Goal Even Faster?

Don’t forget about Add-Ons! They’re a great way to grow your pledge while filling out your collection. You can add:

• Earlier Evil Inc After Dark volumes (digital or softcover)

• The NSFW Artbook (hardcover)

• The Best of Phenominal Lass and Best of Catnip digital editions

• And much more — including digital bundles!

Every Add-On helps push us closer to unlocking that Halloween expansion pack for everyone.

Thank you again for helping me bring this book to life. Onward to $17K! 🚀

Transcript

Panel 1:
Narration box: "One week later. It has been an hour since Cassie Cruz was kidnapped outside her home."
(Cassie Cruz sits tied to a chair with a hood over her head.)

Panel 2:
Narration box: "Furtively, she struggles against her restraints."
Narration box: "But furtive efforts are seldom successful."
(Cassie struggles in the chair.)

Panel 3:
Narration box: "It makes you wonder why people bother with them at all."
(Someone reaches to pull the bag from Cassie's head.)

Panel 4:
(Close-up of Cassie as the bag is pulled off.)
Cassie: "YOU?!"

Panel 5:
(Big reveal: Jeremy stands behind Cassie smiling. In front of her, a group of supervillains cheer as a cake sits on the table.)
Group: "SURPRISE!!"
(A banner in the background reads: "WELCOME CASSIE (for real this time!)")

Panel 6:
Cassie Cruz: “You shouldn’t have gone through all this trouble for me!"
Miss Match: "Well… we had it planned already…"
Iron Dragon: "If the possessed coffee, the cobra, the quicksand carpet, and the booby-trapped office supplies* didn’t work…"
Catnip: "…the kidnapping was our last-ditch attempt to eliminate you."
Caption: *The booby traps were seen in Evil Inc After Dark, natch’.

Panel 7:
Cassie Cruz: "I’m happy they failed."
Lightning Lady: "This cake looks delicious!"

Panel 8:
(Lightning Lady slices into the cake, pulling out several dollar signs "$$$" instead of cake.)

Panel 9:
Cassie Cruz: "Oh! That’s right!"

Panel 10:
Lightning Lady: "The kidnapping was our second-to-last ditch attempt!"