Has it been eight years? More? Certainly not less. It feels like forever.

Short version: I lost a bet and had to write a short story with the title “The Improbable Cat of Neverwhen” (a title supplied to me by the evilly wonderful Kimberly Pauley ). Limberly won this year’s bet, making her exempt from writing a story. Fellow better Catherine Ryan Hyde was also forced to write a short story (hers was titled “A Cathedral of Bees”) and you can find it here. Our third loser, Gail Doggett, will be posting her story shortly.

Here’s my story: “The Improbably Cat of Neverwhen.”

I’m sure the Bet will be back next year albeit with a slightly different origin. For years, we’ve been betting on the Kentucky Derby. In recent months, though, our core Betters have been rethinking this in light of information about how cruel the world of horse racing can be towards horses. So we’ll be finding something else to bet on next year. What exactly? Well, we’re looking for ideas…