The Bad Weather Friend

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of graphic violence, death, child death, and suicidal ideation.

F. Upton Theron knows that someone is working on behalf of Benny Catspaw. However, he believes that he and the other members of a group called the “Better Kind” are superior and will therefore win (239). Upton is a 90-year-old billionaire who is now ensconced in a guarded estate with his beloved white rabbit, Arabella. Following orders, his physician installs a catheter in Upton’s arm, leaves him with two loaded syringes, and leaves. Upton puts Arabella in his bedroom, orders his security guards to leave, and settles into his armchair.

Upton recalls his father’s endless collection of mistresses. He also reflects on the fact that his mother hated him because he resembled his father. Rather than bonding with Upton, she showered Upton’s younger sister with affection. His sister received a white pet rabbit, while he received nothing. Then, one night, his sister was found drowned in the pool. Upton kept the white rabbit in her honor and renamed it Arabella after his sister. When his parents died, he renamed the estate Palazzo del Coniglio, Palace of the Rabbit. When the family butler and cook revealed that they knew he had drowned his sister, Upton had them killed as well.