At the sound of my favorite word, my stomach grumbles. The pizza already feels like a long time ago. “I could eat,” I say.
“’Kay, ready?” Marigold stands up tall and throws back her head. “Food now!” she yaps loudly.
In the front seat, the driver reaches for something. Without looking back, he opens the window, tosses it into the backseat, and shuts the window.
“Hashtag I told you so,” Marigold says. She kicks the food over to me. I was hoping for a nice, spoiled hash brown, but this is shaped like a chicken bone. It smells weird, all dry and chalky. But my stomach is grumbling, so I gobble it up. It’s not very good, but at least it’s stale.
“Do you know what happens if two lowlifes like you are found bothering a high-class animal like me?” Marigold asks. She lowers her voice to a whisper. I have to lean in to hear her. “Animal Control, that’s what.”
I shiver. I’ve heard stories about Animal Control. Animals go in and they never come out.
“You’ve got three seconds,” Marigold warns. “Then I’ll get Thomas. And he’ll get Animal Control.”
CHAPTER
14
Not Just Puppy Love
“One,” Marigold counts.
Kaz nudges me with his stubby wing. “Let’s go,” he grumbles. “This dog is crazier than humans in rush hour. We’ll find another way into Manhattan.”
I glance out the window. We’re already near the end of the bridge. If I can just keep Marigold talking, we might stand a chance at making it into the city.
“Two,” Marigold continues.
“Who’s Rex?” I blurt out.
“None of your business,” Marigold snaps. “Three—”
“Wait!” I think of Oggie somewhere in that big, bright city, trapped in his cage. What if he’s hungry? What if the humans are hurting him? What if—I swallow hard—what if they’ve already called in the E word? Or Animal Control? My fur bristles all over. “I really want to know who Rex is,” I say desperately. On the other side of the window, the buildings of Manhattan creep closer. I have to keep her talking.
“Is he your brother?” I ask. “I have a brother. That’s who we’re trying to save. His name is Oggie, and he’s the sweetest, cutest rat anyone’s ever known.” Thinking about Oggie makes me feel all choked up, like I accidentally ate a whole shoelace. A sob rises inside me, but I take a deep breath and shove it back down. “He loves when I tell him stories,” I continue, “and he always wants to do everything I do, and—”
“Rex is not my brother,“Marigold says impatiently. “If you really have to know, he’s the love of my life!” She collapses in a fluffy heap and buries her head in her paws.
“And that’s a bad thing?” Kaz asks.
Marigold looks up with a sigh. “My human-mom doesn’t approve of Rex. It’s because … well…” She lowers her voice to a whisper. “He’s a mutt.” She moans softly. “I know what you’re thinking. What is a beautiful specimen like Marigold Rose Valencia the Third doing with a … a … you know?”
“Not even close to what I was thinking,” Kaz mutters. I kick him in the talon. My plan is working! The longer we can keep Marigold talking, the better.
“You read my mind, Marigold,” I jump in. “Tell us how that happened. I want to hear every detail.”
“Are you trying to die of boredom?” Kaz whispers in my ear. I nudge him in the side and point my snout toward the city. The towering buildings are closer than ever. “Oh.” Kaz turns to Marigold. “Raffie’s right. We need to hear every detail.”
Marigold slowly sits up. “Well…” She sniffles. “I guess it all started when our housekeeper began taking me to the basement with her when she did our laundry. I used to seriously hate it—I mean, she’d make me ride on top of the hamper! Who wants to smell like dirty laundry? But then one day, I met Rex.”
“His human-father is our building’s super. Which means he fixes stuff around the building. Hashtag super handy. They live in an apartment in the basement. At first I was like, ew, mutt! But Rex is so big and strong. He scared off that awful old Mrs. Pilly-Wink with a single growl, and she’d been mussing up my fur for years! Always petting my head like I’m some common lapdog. Plus, he could push the laundry room door open with just his nose. He just made me feel things, you know? I don’t care what anyone says. It wasn’t just puppy love.”
“Puppy love?” I repeat.
“Like some silly young crush,” Marigold huffs.
“Puppy love,” I murmur. I mentally store the phrase away to tell Oggie later.
“Then one day,” Marigold continues, “our housekeeper caught Rex and I canoodling behind the boiler. She told my human-mom, and I’ve been banned from the laundry room ever since. I didn’t even get a chance to tell Rex.” She shakes her head, making her fluffy ears swing from side to side. “He probably thinks I forgot about him. Or found someone else. But there’s no one else for me,” she whimpers. “If only my human-mom knew Rex like I do. He’s such a gentleman. Every Saturday when he goes to Central Park, he carries a flower back for me in his teeth. He has good taste in flowers, too, none of those ugly dandelions, which are really just weeds—”
“Wait.” My breath catches in my throat. “Did you say Central Park? Do you live near there?”
“Of course not.” Marigold sniffs. “Uptown is totally overrated. I live in Gramercy.”
“But Rex goes to Central Park?” I press.
“Every Saturday, with his human-dad.” Marigold looks out the window. “I miss those flowers—”
“I need to talk to Rex!” I cut in. I’m so excited that my whiskers stick straight out. “I need to ask him the best way for an animal to get to Central Park.”
The car bumps as it rumbles off the bridge. I look out the window. Huge green signs dangle from poles. Buildings clog up the sky. We’re officially in Manhattan. “You have to help us get to Rex,” I beg Marigold.
“Um, no, I don’t,” Marigold sniffs. “He’s the love of my life. Why should you get to see him when I can’t?”
I think quick. “That’s exactly why. If we can reach Rex, we can talk to him for you.”
Marigold’s tail lifts. She cocks her head. “You could give him a message?” she asks slowly.
I nod. “Whatever you want.”
Marigold looks out the window. The streets are so bright with lights here, you can barely tell it’s nighttime. “’Kay, fine,” she says. “I’ll help. But I’m warning you. Rex’s human-dad could be down there with him. And he’s totally declared war on rats.”
I fidget on my paws. The city zips past outside, packed with humans and cars and buildings that are taller than any I’ve ever seen. This is only a tiny section of the city, and already it feels like it never ends. Fear gnaws at my stomach, sharp as incisors. I look at Kaz. “Can your brain compass get us to Central Park?”
“It will help me sense the right direction,” Kaz says. “But it’s not a guidebook or anything. We have to figure out the route.”
I take a deep breath and sit up tall. “I don’t care about Rex’s human-dad,” I declare. “Oggie’s lost, and I have to find him. We’ll do whatever it takes to get to Central Park.”
“Whatever it takes,” Kaz agrees. He gives his wings an excited flap. “I’ve been dreaming of this my whole life.”
I try to ignore the fear gnashing at my insides as we wind through the city streets. We’re moving fast now. The city spins past outside, one building blending into the next. Still, even blurred together like that, things look different here: bigger, taller, shinier. I know Brooklyn can’t be that far away, but it feels like it’s on the other side of the world. I lose track of time as one street turns into another and then another until I’m so dizzy I have to close my eyes.
Finally, the car glides to a stop. I scurry over to look out the window. We’re next to the tallest, shiniest building I’ve ever seen. It goes up and up and up. Trees grow out of the very top of it.
“What is this place?” I whispe
r.
“This,” Marigold says smugly, “is home sweet home.”
I glance at Kaz. His beak is chattering nervously. I ignore the trembling in my paws as I turn back to Marigold. “Tell us how to get to Rex.”
CHAPTER
15
In the Doghouse
The front door of the car swings open. “Ooh, I have an idea!” Marigold squeals. “Get in my bag, ’kay?” She nods at a pink sparkly bag in the corner of the seat.
Kaz immediately backs away. “Uh-uh. No way. I don’t do small spaces.”
Footsteps make their way around the side of the car. “Thomas is coming,” Marigold says. “Hurry!”
“Please, Kaz,” I beg. “I’ll be right there with you.”
Kaz backs farther away. His wings flatten against his sides. “I—I can’t.”
The footsteps draw closer. “Now!” Marigold hisses.
I look from the bag to Kaz. I don’t have a choice. “Sorry, Kaz.” I rush toward him and sink my teeth into his tail.
He flaps forward with a yelp of pain—straight toward the bag. “Ow! What did you do that for?”
I don’t answer. I just ram my whole body into his. With another flap, Kaz goes stumbling into Marigold’s bag. I scurry in after him just as the door to the backseat flings open. “Time to get in your bag, Marigold,” I hear a deep voice say.
Marigold squeezes in behind us. She pulls the bag’s door shut with her teeth. “Stay behind me,” she whispers. “And get under the blanket.”
I grab Marigold’s silky pink blanket and throw it over Kaz. I squeeze under next to him. “I’m sorry—” I begin, but I stop when I see the look on his face. He doesn’t look mad. He looks terrified.
“Is it me or are the walls closing in on us?” he asks shakily.
Before I can answer, the bag is jerked into the air. I’m flung backward against the pink, sparkly wall. Jewels stab at my snout. Sequins scrape my fur.
Distantly, I hear the chauffeur let out a grunt. “What did they feed you at the groomer, Marigold? Bricks?”
I scramble to my paws and spit out a mouthful of pink glitter. “You okay, Kaz?” I whisper.
Kaz is lying on his side. He flaps his wings to right himself. Sequins and feathers rain down around him. “I am not in this bag,” he murmurs, squeezing his eyes shut. “I’m in the wide, open sky, stretching out my wings…”
“Just don’t stretch them too far, ’kay?” Marigold says over her shoulder. “I do not need more pigeon feathers on me.” She curls up in a tiny ball at the front of the bag. “Or rat fur,” she adds pointedly.
“You’re the one who made us get into this death trap,” Kaz says without opening his eyes. He’s breathing hard, his wings heaving up and down.
“Tell me about it.” Marigold sighs. “The things you do in the name of love.”
I peek out through the bag’s small mesh window. We’re outside now. Everything moves so fast here. Cars and bikes and humans whiz past. They must all be really hungry to be in such a hurry, I decide. I look away, feeling dizzy. Kaz’s eyes are still closed, and he’s murmuring to himself about open skies.
“What’s the plan?” I ask Marigold.
Marigold sits up. “When we get inside the lobby, Sal the doorman will want to say hello to me.” She lifts her nose in the air. “He doesn’t get to meet a lot of celebrities, you know. So Thomas will put down the bag and take me out to say hi. That’s your cue. Sal and Thomas will be distracted by my beauty. So you’ll have a chance to escape. Go straight to the back of the lobby. Behind the row of plants. I’ll keep the humans distracted long enough for you to get there. There’s a stairwell to the basement back there. The door’s broken and doesn’t totally close. There should be enough space for you two to squeeze through.”
I look over at Kaz, hoping he’s listening. He’s the one with the supernatural direction skills. But his eyes are still shut tight. “Clouds brush against my wings…” he murmurs.
I turn back to Marigold. “Tell me one more time,” I say.
Thomas stops short in front of a tall glass door. The bag bounces against his side. This time, I dig my claws into the bottom to keep from being tossed around. Marigold repeats the plan as the door glides open. A blast of cool air rushes into the bag. It smells disgustingly sweet, like the liquid the thief scrubs around our station after he robs us.
“Whatever you do, don’t forget my message,” Marigold finishes. “Tell Rex I love him and to find a way to get to me. And tell him…” She drops her head. Her voice comes out in a shy whisper. “Tell him I miss his pawsy wawsies.”
“His pawsy what?” I say.
Marigold’s fur bristles. “Pawsie wawsies,” she snaps.
“Got it,” I reply with a giggle.
I press my snout to the mesh window again. I can see the lobby on the other side. My eyes go wide. Everything gleams. The walls, the doors, even the floor. It’s shinier than the subway tracks after a storm. It’s enough to make me lose my appetite. “Why is it so clean in here?” I whisper.
“It’s a luxury building, of course,” Marigold huffs. “But watch out when you get to the basement. The Seven Deadly Scums are down there.” Marigold shudders. “I’ve spotted all of them: dust, dirt, mud, mold, rot, dung, and grime.”
My stomach yawns hungrily. I’ve never heard of scum, but it sounds delicious.
“Welcome back,” a deep voice booms outside the bag. “Let me see our pretty little Marigold.”
“That’s Sal the doorman,” Marigold whispers. “Hurry. Get back under the blanket.”
I yank the blanket over us. Then I pop back out. “Marigold, wait,” I whisper.
“What’s your problem?” Marigold snaps. “Thomas is coming!”
“It’s just … well … thank you,” I say quickly. “For helping us.”
“Oh.” Marigold’s eyes meet mine. “Well, you’re not that bad. For a rat. Just remember to give my message to Rex!”
I slip back under the blanket. “Keep quiet,” I whisper to Kaz. His eyes dart frantically back and forth, but he keeps his beak shut.
“Come out and say hi, Marigold,” Thomas says cheerfully.
The bag drops onto the ground, knocking me into Kaz. I pull the blanket more tightly around us. There’s a tiny hole where the threads in the blanket have worn thin. Through it, I watch the bag’s door drop open. I hold my breath. Next to me, Kaz tenses.
A large human hand reaches into the bag.
CHAPTER
16
A Dog and Pony Show
The hand reaches farther into the bag. An eye peers in next to it. “Come on out, Marigold,” Thomas says. “Sal wants to see you.”
His hand freezes. His voice falls silent. “What’s with the mess, Marigold? How did you manage to knock all those sequins off? And is that a feather?”
His hand reaches past Marigold …
… straight toward us.
My heart beats wildly.
The hand comes closer.
Closer.
I tremble against Kaz. Thomas’s hand is going to find us and then it will be all battle cries and Animal Control and—
Marigold leaps on top of Thomas’s hand. “Take me out!” she howls. “Right now!”
“One second, Marigold.” Thomas tries to shake her off, but she digs her claws in, holding on tight.
“Ow, stop it, Marigold,” Thomas says impatiently. “I want to clean this out…”
Marigold begins furiously licking Thomas’s fingers. I try not to gag. I will never understand dogs.
“That tickles.” Thomas giggles. Marigold licks him faster. “All right, all right, I’ll clean the bag later. Come say hi to Sal.” Thomas’s fingers wrap around Marigold’s back. His hand pulls out of the bag.
Marigold twists around. “Don’t forget my message!” she calls out. Then Thomas carries her out of sight.
I push the blanket off. We don’t have a lot of time. Kaz is huddled in a ball, his beak chattering loudly. Outside the ba
g, I hear Sal’s booming voice. “Look how spiffy you are, Marigold, all nice and groomed!”
They’re distracted by her beauty. This is our chance.
“Run!” I exclaim.
Kaz leaps to his talons. “Don’t have to tell me twice,” he wheezes. His wings knock into me as he barrels out of the bag. I scurry after him.
“Marigold is doing tricks!” I hear Sal say behind us. We hurry away from the humans while they’re distracted.
“Marigold said we have to get behind the row of plants,” I whisper.
“Those plants?” Kaz asks.
I follow his gaze to a long line of plants. All the way on the other side of the room. I swallow hard. “Those plants,” I confirm.
Kaz lifts his wings, but I shake my head.
“Too loud,” I say. “You’re going to have to run with me.”
We race across the lobby’s shiny tile floor. Kaz pants as he waddles beside me. Behind us, I hear Marigold putting on a show to distract the humans. “Look how high I can leap!” she yaps.
Kaz and I duck behind a large white bath as we hurry on. The water spouting out of it is so clear it doesn’t have even a tinge of rust. “Who would want to bathe in that?” I whisper.
“Are you kidding?” Kaz pants. “Nothing’s better than a fountain for a good birdbath.” We round a bend. We’re out of sight of Thomas and Sal. I sigh in relief. “Almost there.” Kaz pants.
Ding!
I jump at the sound of the high-pitched noise. “What was that?” I whisper.
“Elevator,” Kaz gasps. A silver door in the wall slides open. An old woman limps out on a cane.
“Hide!” I squeak. We dive side by side toward the plants.
A shriek rings out behind us. “Holy kitten caboodles! It’s a—a—AHHHHH!”
My stomach drops all the way to my paws. We’ve been seen.
CHAPTER
Raffie on the Run Page 6