The School for Talking Pets

by Kelli Anne Hawkins

  CHAPTER 50

  THE EVEN BADDER GUYS

  Lord and Lady Roderick wore expensive-looking black clothes. Never had they seemed so alike — or so terrifying. Kyle was kicking himself for not realising the Rodericks would bring backup. There were grumbles from the audience as the animals tried to work out what was going on. One of the bigger dogs growled and a sheep bleated nervously.

  ‘What do you want, mister?’ called out a tubby-bellied pig from the back of the room. ‘Are you going to hurt us?’ She snorted defiantly.

  Lord Roderick squinted in the direction of the pig’s voice. ‘Ah, what is that —? Are you a pig? Well, a talking pig, how about that! This is all very exciting, isn’t it, Rosemary?’

  Lady Roderick had been glancing around at the extreme gold tones of the Golden Hall with a look of distaste on her face. Now she turned to her husband. ‘The first thing we will change is the décor of this room, Neil. It’s so . . . vulgar.’ Then she turned her attention to the pigs, peering down her long nose at them before leaning a little towards the microphone. ‘I don’t particularly like pigs. Or mice,’ she said, grimacing again as she looked down at the dozens of mice on their tiny front-row chairs. ‘I can see uses for mice, however. They are so tiny; they would make wonderful spies. Pigs, on the other hand, well, they don’t seem particularly useful.’ She turned to her husband again, gesturing at the pigs with a hand and speaking in an indifferent manner. ‘We might need to have the pigs killed, Neil. Possibly some of the sheep too.’

  Gasps from the audience mixed with snorts and some yipping from a group of puppies who huddled together in fear.

  ‘We’ll discuss killing animals later, Rosemary,’ Lord Roderick muttered, his hand over the microphone.

  Kyle had been right. The Rodericks didn’t want to close the school down. They had something else in mind. Something worse.

  He spotted the shaggy brown and white llama, her ears pulled back in distress, standing near the pigs. His heart sank. Were llamas useful?

  ‘Could Miss Einstein come up on stage please?’ Lord Roderick continued. ‘We need to know the secret of this talking-pet school so we can take it over and train animals to do our bidding. With your help, pets, we will rule the world!’

  CHAPTER 51

  LORD RODERICK DEMANDS TO KNOW THE SECRET

  The animal muttering grew louder. A cat howled.

  ‘Oh, did I say that out loud?’ Lady Roderick’s husband spoke over the racket, smiling at his own joke and smirking at her.

  Sometimes that man lets the power go to his head, Lady Roderick thought to herself. Usually right when there’s hard work to be done. ‘Enough with the jokes, Neil,’ she said, grabbing the microphone from him. ‘Silence, everyone!’ The audience grew quiet. ‘Miss Einstein, come up here immediately.’

  Miss Einstein walked onto the stage. Lady Roderick thought she seemed in control but subdued. Not like the vibrant woman she’d seen on television. Good. Perhaps that meant she was worried. Lady Roderick smiled. They’d have the secret in no time.

  ‘Now, Miss Einstein. We will make this easy for you. You tell us how you teach animals to talk and you are free to go.’

  ‘My pets . . .’ Miss Einstein began. ‘What will happen to them if I tell you the secret?’

  ‘Well,’ Lady Roderick said. ‘I could lie to you and tell you they will also be free to leave the island. But you are smart; I doubt you would believe me. Plus, I don’t have time for games. I just want the secret. We intend to keep the school running, but we will train these animals, and the new pets we intend to bring in, a little differently from now on.’

  She looked at the animals, who stared at her, wide-eyed. ‘Never fear. You will continue to learn. But we will teach you things that are far more useful than whatever academic clap-trap you are currently learning.’ Such as how to spy on humans, she thought. With animal spies, she and her husband would be able to infiltrate organisations and governments as never before. She smiled. ‘Imagine, a mouse in the White House, under the desk in the Oval Office, listening to the President of the United States making plans. Or a cat-loving Prime Minister of Britain who whispers secrets to his pet, believing them safe from enemy ears. And some of you larger dogs would make excellent assassins.’

  ‘Even rabbits and guinea pigs,’ added Lord Roderick. ‘Who would ever suspect such cute little creatures were actually spies?’

  ‘That is correct, husband. Secrets. So many secrets, and soon we will have access to them all,’ Lady Roderick said, her eyes alight with the thought of such power. ‘Eventually, even the cockroaches in the offices of the CIA will report back to us.’

  She regarded the farm animals with a critical eye. ‘Some of you more . . . impractical animals will need to prove your worth to us. But, perhaps if you have a skill — singing, or dancing, say — we could promote you as a kind of animal freak and people might pay us to watch you. Perhaps.’

  ‘No.’

  The word burst from Miss Einstein in such a forceful voice, Lady Roderick was startled out of her daydreams.

  ‘No?’

  ‘No. I will not tell you the secret. I will not betray my pets. It is wrong.’

  Lady Roderick laughed. ‘Wrong? Of course it is wrong, Miss Einstein. We want these talking pets so we can become even richer. But also because we want more power. We don’t care one tiny bit if it is wrong.’

  The headmistress and Lady Roderick glared at one another. The silence grew and lengthened. Lady Roderick sighed. It appeared the stupid woman had principles. She wasn’t going to tell them. No matter, Lady Roderick thought. If they needed to, they would use force. Her guards were well trained; they would have no problem subduing this riffraff.

  She opened her mouth to give the order.

  ‘I will tell you the secret,’ came a voice from the crowd.

  ‘Who said that?’ demanded Lady Roderick, spinning to face the audience.

  ‘Me,’ said a small boy, standing up. ‘Miss Einstein told me the secret. I will tell you.’

  Uproar broke out. Animals snorted and woofed and meowed. Children’s voices called, ‘What?!’ and ‘No, Rusty, don’t!’

  ‘Be quiet!’ Lady Roderick yelled.

  ‘What? Rusty, what are you doing?’ Miss Einstein’s voice broke.

  ‘Rusty. Is that your name? You know the secret?’ Lady Roderick asked.

  Rusty nodded. ‘Miss Einstein told me yesterday. I will tell you. On one condition.’

  Lady Roderick narrowed her eyes. ‘Which is?’

  ‘You let me and Bongo go with you,’ the boy said, holding up his lizard. ‘Walk us down to your boat and I’ll tell you the secret when we’re safe.’

  A lizard! Lady Roderick took a step backwards at the sight of the stumpy reptile. Urgh, he’s touching the foul creature with his bare hands, she thought, eyeing it carefully.

  ‘No, Rusty. You mustn’t do it,’ said Miss Einstein, her voice anguished.

  ‘Why should we trust you?’ asked Lord Roderick, who had noticed his wife’s panic at the sight of the lizard and took her arm.

  ‘Yes. Why indeed?’ added Lady Roderick, a tremor in her voice.

  ‘I know the secret and Bongo still refuses to talk. There’s nothing for me on the island,’ the boy said.

  He certainly sounds sad enough for this to be true, Lady Roderick thought. She looked at the stubborn headmistress then back to the boy. He had an innocent face. Plus, if he left, she could get the fork-tongued reptile out of here, right now.

  She’d have it killed later. There was no way that evil creature was getting on her lovely shiny boat.

  ‘Fine,’ she said in a clipped voice as the animals wailed. ‘Lord Roderick will walk you and your lizard down to the boat. You will tell him the secret. He will call me and tell it to me. Once I am satisfied you have done what you say, you will be free to leave on our boat.’

  Behind her back, her bony fingers were crossed.

  She looked at Bongo, unable to prevent the shiver of t
error that ran though her. ‘And take that disgusting, slimy reptile with you.’

  CHAPTER 52

  RUSTY NEEDS A NEW PLAN

  The other children stared at him with mixed expressions. Akira had tears in her eyes, whereas Shelby’s were wide and staring. Both Maximilian and Braithwaite’s mouths hung open. Rusty glanced around, seeing Gretel slash the air with her tail in an agitated fashion. Nader scowled. Nan called out, ‘Don’t do it, Rusty!’ while Cam turned round and round in perplexed circles on his seat.

  But Rusty had no choice. He had to change the plan; there were too many guards. Animals would be injured. His heart thudded. He bit his lip. Was he doing the right thing?

  Lord Roderick marched down until he stood beside Rusty. He grabbed Rusty’s arm, but then Bongo hissed and he removed it, instead gesturing for Rusty to go towards the door and waving for the guards to open it. He pushed Rusty through the door and made to follow him. ‘Wait,’ Rusty said desperately. ‘Aren’t you bringing any guards with you?’

  Lord Roderick halted, turning his questioning gaze to his wife. ‘Well, yes, I suppose I should, don’t you think, Rosemary?’

  Lady Roderick glanced over to Kyle, narrowing her eyes, then replied to her husband. ‘Oh, Neil, I think you can manage a boy and a lizard on your own, don’t you?’

  ‘Of course, dear,’ Lord Roderick said and turned around, pushing Rusty out the door, Bongo gripping his shoulder with his sharp claws.

  Oh no, so much for my new plan, Rusty thought. Trying to lessen how many guards there were for the others to overpower was the only idea he’d had. He glanced back through the entrance and caught BJ’s eye. The big man smiled at him, his expression questioning but accepting. It was the last thing Rusty saw before the door slammed shut.

  BJ trusted him. The thought gave Rusty a warm feeling in his stomach that immediately changed to nausea. BJ might trust him, but that trust was misplaced. Because now, Rusty had no plan.

  ‘Want to tell me the secret on the way, boy?’ Lord Roderick’s voice surprised him.

  ‘What? No. That wasn’t the deal. I’ll tell you when we get to the boat.’

  Rusty had no intention of telling these ghastly people Miss Einstein’s secret. His stomach churned. What had he done? He wasn’t a hero. He’d jumped up without thinking when Lady Roderick started talking about the horrible future she’d planned for the animals. He’d tried to help, but yet again, he was proving he was no use at all.

  The lift pinged and opened. Lord Roderick dragged him inside. As the lift door closed, Rusty realised the fate of Miss Alice Einstein’s School for Talking Pets depended on him. He closed his eyes. The school was doomed.

  As they ascended, he stroked Bongo, as much to make himself feel better as to reassure his pet. He looked down at his lizard and was surprised to see Bongo return his gaze. The lizard tilted his head and hissed at Rusty, then winked.

  What the . . . ?

  CHAPTER 53

  A LIZARDY REVELATION

  As Rusty and Lord Roderick crunched down the driveway, Bongo hissed again. Rusty looked down and saw the lizard staring up at him. Bongo stuck out his blue tongue, waved it around, then pulled it back in and hissed a little bit louder.

  Rusty tilted his head at Bongo, trying to figure out what the lizard wanted.

  Then Lord Roderick stopped and Rusty halted too. From atop the hill, Rusty could see the Rodericks’ huge black cruiser at the end of the wharf, towering over BJ’s smaller boat.

  Lord Roderick tilted his head and regarded it with an admiring gaze. ‘She’s a lovely beast,’ he said. ‘The captain had better have fired up that sauna like I requested. I believe I’ll be wanting a relaxing steam bath this evening.’

  Unobtrusively, Rusty lifted Bongo closer to his face. ‘Pigs can fly, Rusty. Lizards too.’

  Rusty almost dropped the blue-tongued lizard right then and there. Not because Bongo was finally talking. No, he almost dropped the lizard because, now that he could hear Bongo’s voice, he realised that Bongo was a girl.

  CHAPTER 54

  BONGO TO THE RESCUE

  ‘Put me down.’ Bongo’s voice was a whisper. The lizard glanced at the ground.

  Without thinking, Rusty leaned over and dropped Bongo gently onto the road while Lord Roderick remained lost in anticipation of the peaceful sauna he would enjoy that evening.

  The lizard scuttled off the gravel and into the grass. When Rusty turned back to Lord Roderick, he saw the man watching Bongo with a smirk on his face. ‘Wanted to stay with the other animals, did he? I’ve always believed reptiles were a little stupid,’ he gloated before grabbing Rusty’s arm and continuing towards the wharf. ‘Saves me killing the slimy creature. Rosemary would never have let it on the boat, anyway.’

  Rusty took one last look at Bongo’s slow progression through the grass, still in shock.

  He was a she!

  There was no mistaking it. Just as he’d known the age of a pig by its voice, he knew, without a doubt, that Bongo was female. How was it possible he hadn’t known?

  Rusty shook his head again. Now wasn’t the time to ponder that, because Bongo had spoken. Finally. That’s what he needed to concentrate on now. What was it she said?

  Pigs can fly. Lizards too.

  Fly.

  He thought back to the previous day; remembered Bongo’s face as she had peered down at Rusty from the pigs’ ultralight. She had been so happy up there. A large and heavy weight settled down into the pit of his stomach.

  Oh no.

  Was Bongo going to try to fly that thing on her own?

  He pictured the jagged rocks, so far below. Not to mention the vast ocean. Plus, Rusty was pretty sure Bongo couldn’t swim. Although since he hadn’t known Bongo was a girl, or that she could talk, could he be sure of anything anymore?

  Where would she go? She couldn’t fly for help. There was no-one anywhere for a hundred miles, so far as he knew. Somehow, Bongo was going to rescue him.

  Rusty swallowed and straightened his shoulders. He had to be ready.

  CHAPTER 55

  A HAPPY LITTLE PILOT

  Rusty and Lord Roderick reached the wharf.

  The Englishman had prattled non-stop to Rusty since Bongo departed without expecting an answer. He appeared to be extremely confident that he and his wife would soon be in charge of the island and in possession of Miss Einstein’s secret.

  Not on my watch, Rusty vowed, clenching his jaw.

  Together they walked past BJ’s speedboat, which looked like a child’s remote-controlled toy beside the gigantic cruiser. A man in a white uniform marched down the cruiser’s gangplank, nodding at Lord Roderick as though he might already be in trouble. Which he was.

  ‘Captain,’ began Lord Roderick immediately, ‘is the Black Heart’s sauna being heated as we speak? I do hope so.’

  ‘Oh no, Lord Roderick. We were not expecting you back so soon,’ the man said, his nods becoming a flurry of apologetic bows. ‘But I can get that started for you anytime, of course. It will take but a jiffy.’

  Lord Roderick huffed and shook his head, then began berating the man for incompetence.

  Rusty stepped towards the captain then turned back to face Lord Roderick. Behind his Lordship, he could see the cliff where Bongo had been headed, the sun glinting off the glass of the school. Marguerite was no longer perched at the top of the cliff.

  Rusty squinted into the clear blue sky. There was nothing there.

  Come on, Bongo.

  Lord Roderick had not drawn breath as he demanded the captain prepare roasted spatchcock for dinner and chill their best champagne in celebration of their takeover of the school. And for dessert, he asked for Eton mess — Lady Roderick’s favourite, he confided in an aside to Rusty.

  Then, above and to the left of Lord Roderick’s chattering head, Rusty saw it: a speck in the sky, growing bigger by the second. Rusty heard the faraway drone of the ultralight’s propeller.

  He had to do something to distract Lord Roderick
from the sound.

  ‘Um, look, Lord Roderick, do you want to hear the secret or not?’ he interrupted as his Lordship jabbed a finger at the captain, who had just admitted they were completely out of spatchcock.

  Lord Roderick stopped and blinked at Rusty. He was very rarely interrupted and was not quite sure what to do in such a situation. ‘Yes, of course.’

  ‘Well, um, tell your man here to start the boat. I want to feel like we’re ready to go at the drop of a hat.’

  ‘I think that’s a little unnecessary . . .’ Lord Roderick began.

  ‘No,’ said Rusty with a jab of his own at the adult. ‘It is very necessary. If you want me to tell you the secret, which, by the way, is a very juicy and life-changing secret, then get your man to start the engine. Now.’

  Lord Roderick huffed again, but seemed kind of impressed with the new, forceful Rusty. ‘You heard the boy, captain.’

  The captain raced up the gangplank. Rusty bit his lip again. The ultralight now sounded like a blowfly. A nasty, Sydney-sized blowfly. Lord Roderick cocked his head and made to turn around, but just then the cruiser’s engine growled into life and he regarded Rusty more closely instead. ‘OK, boy, now is the time to tell me this secret.’

  Rusty gestured Lord Roderick to come closer, and the man stepped forwards. Rusty held his hands to his mouth to signify he was about to impart top-secret information, and Lord Roderick leaned over, cocking an ear towards him.

  Marguerite was close now. Rusty could just make out Bongo sitting in the seat at the front of the ultralight, her stubby front feet somehow working the controls. She flew towards them along the wharf as straight as if she were approaching an airport runway, coming in at top speed.

  Rusty squinted. Bongo had Nan’s silk scarf wrapped around her neck. Rusty smiled in spite of his fear. She was enjoying this!