The Adventures of Henry Whiskers

by Gigi Priebe

  “Am I trapped?” asked Isabel, starting to cry.

  “You’re not trapped,” Henry said, sounding more confident than he felt.

  “Look,” shouted Jeremy, trying to drag something long and shiny over to the trunk. “Maybe this will help.”

  Henry saw that it was a human-size letter opener. It was tremendous and barely budging with all of Jeremy’s effort!

  “How’s this supposed to help?” Henry asked.

  “We’ll stick it under this bottom suitcase and pry it up so all the other suitcases slide off. Then we can push the bottom one off and open the trunk.”

  With the two of them hauling the letter opener over to the stack of luggage, Henry and Jeremy were able to wedge its tip under the suitcase and push down hard on the other end. The stack didn’t move.

  “Let’s lean into it with our shoulders,” Henry suggested, but that didn’t work either.

  Jeremy nervously twisted his whiskers, and Henry wrung his paws.

  “This isn’t going to work,” said Henry. “We need more power to push or pull this stupid stack over.”

  “I’ve got it!” Jeremy clapped his paws. “But you’re not going to like it.”

  “Why not?” asked Henry. “How do you know?”

  “Because it involves taking something that isn’t ours,” said Jeremy.

  “But why?” Henry asked, sounding desperate.

  “Because it’s the only way,” said Jeremy, very convincingly.

  “Only way to what?” they heard Isabel whimper from the keyhole.

  “To get you out of there,” Jeremy answered.

  Henry twirled his tail around and around while he looked back and forth between Isabel’s large brown eye peeking out from the keyhole and Jeremy, standing with both paws on his hips waiting for Henry’s decision. He surrendered.

  “Okay. What do we have to do?”

  9

  MISSION IMPOSSIBLE

  THE DOLLHOUSE SPARKLED LIKE A jewel lit from inside and twinkling in the middle of the darkened exhibit room. It was well past closing time at the castle and all the staff had long gone, so the coast was clear for Henry and Jeremy to sneak out. To Henry’s relief, the cars were still there on the exhibit room floor, reflecting light off their polished hoods.

  “Someone sure keeps this fleet looking shiny,” Jeremy joked.

  Henry snickered, then nervously focused on the cars.

  “Which one do you think we should take?” he asked.

  “The motorcycle with the sidecar would be fun,” said Jeremy.

  “But there wouldn’t be enough room for all three of us,” Henry pointed out.

  “Oh, yeah. How ’bout the town car?” Jeremy suggested. “Then we could ride in style like the queen.”

  “Too big,” Henry said, walking toward a sleek car called the Silver Ghost.

  “Humph!” Jeremy snickered, crossing his front paws and shaking his smiling face at Henry. “This is a first!” he mumbled under his breath as Henry climbed into the driver’s seat.

  “What do you mean?” asked Henry, running a paw around the smooth steering wheel. “I know it’s not ours, but we need it to save Isabel.”

  Jeremy nodded in agreement, then smiled and jumped into the front passenger seat as Henry searched for the starter button.

  “Do you know what you’re doing?” Jeremy asked as the car rumbled to a start. “Can I drive on the way back?”

  Henry could tell Jeremy saw this whole thing as one grand adventure, but this was serious! They had to get to Isabel before someone else did! He slowly inched the car forward, then it gained speed as it rolled out into the middle of the room.

  “Watch out!” shrieked Jeremy as Henry frantically spun the wheel left and right, just missing a wall. The little car whizzed and bounced over a nubbly red rug that led from one room into the next. Henry was getting the hang of it.

  When they reached the staircase at the end of the corridor, Henry braked hard at the top.

  “What do we do now?”

  They both peered over the dashboard and down the long, steep staircase. There were no lights on at the bottom, so it looked like the stairs fell away into a bottomless hole.

  “Hold on! This is the only way,” said Henry as he pressed the accelerator to the floor, hurling the car over the edge. Bumping and bouncing, the little car shot down the stairs, soaring over several at a time while Henry and Jeremy hollered at the top of their lungs. With a hard thump, the car landed on the floor at the bottom. Henry braked and stopped the car long enough to find a knob that turned on the car’s headlights. “Okay,” he said to Jeremy, driving forward again, “now we can see where we’re going.”

  “You sure you’ve never done this before?” yelled Jeremy, grinning from ear to ear.

  Just as they were rolling past one of many offices off the hallway, Henry thought he heard something.

  “Did you hear that?” he asked, turning to look at Jeremy. He slowed the car to listen.

  “It sounds like someone’s hurt,” said Jeremy.

  Thinking only of Isabel, Henry panicked and turned the steering wheel hard to drive in the direction of the sound. When they reached a doorway in the middle of the hall, they saw Titus, sitting with a tiny rat pinned beneath his paw. Henry hit the brakes, stopping before Titus noticed them in the doorway.

  “This doesn’t look good,” whispered Jeremy.

  Henry’s mind was racing. His eyes darted around the room, and he lifted his nose, as if a clue might be found floating in the air. “That rat’s just a baby!” he said.

  “Come on, Henry! Get out of here before Titus comes after us!” Jeremy pleaded.

  “We need to do something,” said Henry. “We have to help him.” Henry changed gears and slammed the pedal to the floor. The car shot forward.

  “What are you doing?” screeched Jeremy, grabbing the dashboard and closing his eyes.

  The car barreled into a wastebasket, but Henry didn’t let up on the pedal. The engine strained while the tires spun, but the wastebasket slowly began to move. Henry kept at it, sliding the can along the floor until it finally tipped over.

  Frightened, Titus jumped out of the way just long enough for the little rat to run for cover.

  Henry put the car in reverse, then spun it around and raced out the door.

  “Is he chasing us?” Henry hollered over the whisker-whipping wind in his face.

  Jeremy checked the side-view mirror and looked out the back of the car.

  “Not yet, but let’s not make any more unnecessary stops.”

  Henry nodded as they zoomed along, heading for Isabel.

  “Wait a minute,” shouted Henry, suddenly remembering a long piece of carpet string he had seen earlier. “One last stop,” he promised as he pulled up to the heap on the floor. “Open your door and grab that. I have an idea.”

  Jeremy leaned out his door, snatched the wad of string, and shut the door as fast as he could.

  Henry put the car in high gear again, then hollered “Hold on!” as he made a sharp turn back into the repair room, where Isabel was waiting. Before he could put a paw on the brake, they crashed into a table leg. One of the headlights broke, and the engine sputtered to a stop.

  “Wow!” exclaimed Jeremy, straightening his whiskers.

  “Isabel, I’m here!” panted Henry, racing up the table leg. “Are you all right?” he puffed, skittering to the keyhole.

  “I thought you were never going to come,” Isabel squeaked, frightened, from inside the trunk. “Can you get me out?”

  “We’ll have you out in the twitch of a tail,” said Henry. Then he scampered halfway down the table leg and hollered to Jeremy. “Hey, throw me the string.”

  Jeremy leaned into the backseat to pull it out. He tossed one end of it up to Henry, who lassoed it with his tail.

  “Tie your end to the front bumper,” Henry shouted as he clambered back up the leg.

  Pulling himself up on top of the table, Henry turned and waved down at Jer
emy. When Jeremy gave Henry the paws-up sign, Henry dashed over to the trunk and climbed up the stack. He carefully wrapped the string around the handle of the top suitcase, tied a knot, leaped down, and darted back over to the edge of the table to signal Jeremy.

  “Now what?” Jeremy yelled between his paws.

  “Start your engine!” hollered Henry.

  “Brilliant!” Jeremy shouted back. He jumped into the driver’s seat and put the car in reverse. The top suitcase flew off the stack, whizzing over Henry’s head as it sailed off the table and crashed to the floor.

  “It worked!” Henry hollered, clapping his paws. Then they repeated the whole thing again.

  One by one, Jeremy and Henry moved the suitcases off the trunk. Finally, Henry heaved open the trunk’s lid and held it just long enough for Isabel to scramble out.

  “That sure was a good hiding spot,” said Henry, wrapping his paws around his sister.

  Isabel buried her face in Henry’s shoulder and cried with relief.

  “I did what you always tell me to do, Henry,” she sniffled.

  “What’s that?” he asked, nuzzling her head.

  She stepped back and wiped her wet cheeks. “I didn’t give up,” she said, beaming proudly.

  Henry got a lump in his throat. “Good job,” he said, pulling her back to him for another tight squeeze. “You’re the bravest girl I know,” he told her.

  Together, they scurried over to the edge of the table. “I’ll lead and you follow,” said Henry as he started down the table leg.

  When they reached the bottom, Jeremy clapped his paws and hugged Isabel. Her eyes lit up when she saw the car.

  “Oh, Henry. It’s beautiful!” she said.

  “We’ve got to hurry, Isabel. Mother will be frantic about us. You hop in the back,” said Henry. “It’s safer back there, and I need Jeremy up front to help navigate.”

  Jeremy held the back door open for Isabel and bowed just like the queen’s chauffeur. Henry scurried around the car to take the wheel while Jeremy jumped into the passenger side. The next moment, they were speeding down the hall headed for home, laughing and cheering the whole way.

  10

  ON THE WAY HOME

  ISABEL SQUEALED WITH DELIGHT EVERY time the car hit a bump and she was bounced up and down in the backseat.

  “Hey, my turn to drive,” said Jeremy.

  “Oh, yeah. Sorry ’bout that. Let’s switch places,” said Henry, slowing the car to a stop. He slid over to the passenger side as Jeremy hopped out to run around the back.

  “Can I try too?” asked Isabel eagerly.

  “I think you’ve had enough adventure for a while, Izzy,” said Henry.

  “Well, we’re about to have another!” exclaimed Jeremy as Titus suddenly pounced into their path.

  “Watch out!” screeched Isabel.

  Jeremy ducked as Titus’s razor-sharp claw lashed out, missing him by a whisker.

  Henry shimmied back over to the driver’s seat. “Jump into the back,” he hollered at Jeremy.

  Isabel shrieked as Jeremy threw himself in and Henry floored the gas pedal. Titus erupted with hisses and took off after them.

  “We’re going to run out of hallway,” screamed Jeremy, waving a pointed paw over Henry’s shoulder at the wall ahead. At that same moment, Henry saw the wall getting closer and closer. He yanked the wheel back and forth, trying to buy them some time, but it was no use.

  “Brace yourselves!” yelled Henry, slamming on the brakes, which threw the car into a stomach-sickening spin. He fought for control, frantically turning the steering wheel around and around.

  “Straighten her out!” screamed Jeremy, clutching the back of Henry’s seat. “Don’t stop or we’ll be mouse meat!”

  The car felt like it was about to flip, but Henry held the wheel steady, managing to steer them out of Titus’s reach. They sped down the darkened hallway and took a sudden turn into one of the rooms.

  “Why’d you do that?” yelled Jeremy. “There’s no way out!”

  “Yes, there is,” squeaked Isabel. “Look!” She pointed excitedly.

  “Where?” Henry yelled back to her.

  “Over there!” yelled Jeremy, pointing over Henry’s shoulder. “Behind that pipe.”

  Henry turned the car slightly until the one working headlight shone on a gaping hole in the wall behind a rusty radiator. “Think we can fit?” Henry hollered.

  “It’s going to be close!” shouted Jeremy.

  “He’s coming,” squeaked Isabel, looking back at Titus.

  Henry gripped the wheel firmly with one paw, covered his eyes with the other, and gunned the engine. When he opened his eyes, they were on the other side of the wall in pitch blackness except for the car’s headlight. Seething hisses trailed after them, and when Henry turned around, he could barely make out the shadow of Titus’s paw poking desperately in and out of the hole in the wall. That was the last thing he saw before the rats.

  11

  RAT ALLEY

  “GO BACK! GO BACK!” JEREMY shouted.

  The car slid sideways before skidding to a stop right in front of a pack of rats. Everyone held their breath and stared ahead.

  Ten bloodred eyes zeroed in on the car. Henry quickly flipped off the headlight.

  He heard Isabel’s muffled whimpers in the backseat. His mind raced. He sniffed the air. It was cold and smelled dank and musty. A shiver ran up his spine.

  “What now?” Jeremy whispered into Henry’s ear.

  Henry spun around to check the hole in the wall. His eyes had adjusted to the dark, and he saw Titus’s sharp claw still batting at the opening.

  “We don’t stand a hair of a chance against Titus,” said Henry. “I’d rather try our luck here.” He flicked the headlight back on and revved the engine. The rats backed away, but not by much. One of them snarled, showing his horribly yellowed teeth. Then they all moved toward the car.

  Henry made the engine roar again.

  “It’s going to take more than that to chase us away,” sneered the shifty-eyed rat with the yellow teeth. “This is our territory, and you don’t belong!”

  “Hang on!” Henry yelled as he pounded the pedal to the floor and drove straight at the rats. All five of them jumped clear of the car as Henry sped past them into the pitch-black tunnels and passageways beyond.

  “Are they following?” Henry yelled over at Jeremy.

  “Yes, but they’re falling behind. Don’t slow down!”

  “Drive, Henry! Drive!” Isabel screamed.

  “Where are we?” yelled Henry.

  “How am I supposed to know?” Jeremy shouted.

  “I don’t like the looks of this tunnel,” Henry shouted back.

  Slow trickles of water oozed down the tunnel’s slimy green walls, and the air was thick with the stench of garbage.

  Henry jammed on the brakes when he caught sight of what lay ahead of them. There were swarms of rats as far as a snout could sniff.

  At first, nobody moved.

  “Those guys don’t look too happy to see us,” squeaked Jeremy, pointing to a group of particularly scruffy-looking rats emerging from the shadows and approaching them.

  “Cat got your tongue?” snarled a rat with greasy fur and orange crumb-encrusted whiskers as he chucked an empty bag to the ground.

  Henry scanned the crowd. All the other rats seemed to be keeping their distance from the pack that was slinking toward the car. “There must be nine—no, ten, eleven—of them!” he said, counting quickly. He wanted to tell Jeremy and Isabel what to do—or what not to do—but he didn’t have a clue.

  As the band of rats got closer, Henry realized how big they were. One of them lit a match and held it out toward the car. He turned and half smiled at the others, revealing a gap between his rotten teeth.

  Some of the rats had scars; some were missing the corner of an ear or the end of a tail. There was an especially scary-looking rat with a patch over one eye.

  “Mighty nice set of wheels for y
our collection, wouldn’t ya say, Snag?” said a rat missing part of his ear. The rat bent over and looked at himself in the side-view mirror and ran a paw through his grimy fur.

  “I quite agree,” Snag answered with a sneer as he ran his wrinkled paw down the length of the car. “Mighty fine!” Then he turned to look at Henry.

  “You wouldn’t mind if I take her for a little spin, would you now?”

  Henry didn’t think it was a question. He resisted the urge to twirl his twitching tail and tried to look Snag straight in the eye. “Of course not.” He hated himself for trembling. He pushed open the door, and Snag moved aside, then he climbed out of the car, waving a paw to Jeremy and Isabel to follow.

  Snag didn’t hesitate. He squeezed himself into the driver’s seat. The moment he was in, the rest of the pack fought fiercely for space.

  Henry cringed as he watched them clamber all over the car, scratching its beautiful shiny paint with their claws and ripping through the soft leather seats. He noticed Snag staring blankly at all the dials and buttons on the dashboard until he finally found the starter button. Then something amazing happened. Snag hit the button over and over again, but the car wouldn’t start. It was out of gas!

  Snag got out, slammed the door, and whipped his powerful tail down on top of the car’s hood. “What kind of trick is this?” he fumed. “You’re messing with the wrong rat!”

  As Henry stared wide-eyed up at Snag, he took a few steps backward. This is it, he thought. Henry’s mind raced as he wondered what to do, but before he could come up with a solution, he heard a voice boom from behind him.

  “Go stick your snout into someone else’s business, Snag.”

  Henry spun around and saw a wizened rat who looked like he’d seen a lot more fighting in his day than Snag and the rest of his gang. Half his tail was missing, and he had jagged scars and gashes all over his body.

  “You’ve got it wrong, Silver Snout,” said Snag, making a deep growling sound as he narrowed his eyes threateningly. “I suggest you go back to where you came from before you get hurt.”

  Silver Snout walked right up to Snag and stopped, barely a whisker away.