- Meanwhile, back at the poker joint, things are heating up quite a bit. Mona has lost all her chips, but Mr. Emoto Hed makes the next hand double or nothing.
- Mona, being the bright lady that she is, takes Eck and bets him. Bob doesn't seem to notice that his pet, which is also the last of his delicious kind, is on the line in a poker game.
- Estelle, who seems more reasonable than anyone else in this book, is upset and tries to stop the bet. It doesn't work.
- Emoto takes the bet, Mona produces a brand new, untampered-with deck of cards, and the game is over as soon as it began. Mr. Emoto Hed is going to eat the very last, and might we say cutest, Eck in the universe.
- No way, Estelle tells her dad: you are not eating the last Eck in the known universe.
- Well, Mr. Emoto Hed goes all God-mode on her, but like all good daughters, she has him wrapped around her finger. Well, sort of wrapped. Maybe halfway. He gives Eck six weeks to live.