“That was quite a whirlwind,” said Mom, shutting the door. Then she, Cassie, and Mary Anne went back to the classroom to clean up. Polite Puppies can make quite a mess.
“All clear,” Leopold said from his perch. I nodded and took my position at the office door.
“What’s going on?” Whiskers asked from the sofa.
“Fuzzy and Furry are getting information about the last-minute guest,” whispered Leopold.
“They’re in the office now,” I added.
“But I thought there was nothing to worry about,” Whiskers said.
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” I answered.
I listened carefully, my ear to the door. I heard noises coming from inside the office—shuffling and clicking and beeping noises.
“What’s Mom’s password?” I heard Fuzzy ask.
“Dash-Tibetan-seven,” said Furry.
I stood up a little straighter. I hadn’t known I was Mom’s password.
“Nothing there,” said Fuzzy. “What’s Dad’s?”
“Leopold-macaw-eight,” said Furry.
“Nothing there,” said Fuzzy. “What about the general Animal Inn address?”
“J-E-C-three-S-W-two-F-F-two,” said Furry.
“How do you remember all that?” asked Fuzzy.
“Easy,” said Furry. “J is for Jake. E is for Ethan. C is for Cassie. The number three is for three kids. S is for Shadow. W is for Whiskers. Two is for . . .”
Suddenly I noticed Leopold. He was waving a wing to get my attention.
I quickly stepped away from the office door.
Mom and Mary Anne were coming back into the Welcome Area. Cassie and Coco followed.
“Thanks so much for your help today,” said Mom.
“I had a lot of fun,” said Mary Anne, waving good-bye.
Mom shut the front door and took out her to-do list. Her next stop would probably be the office.
I looked at Leopold. Leopold looked at me and nodded.
Squawk! Squawk!
Squawk! Squawk!
Hopefully, his squawks sent a clear message to Fuzzy and Furry: Hurry up!
I inched closer to the office door. I heard a few more beeps and clicks.
“Say cheese!” said Fuzzy.
“Smile!” added Furry.
I heard a whir, a rip, a double-thump, and a skitter.
“Is it time for lunch yet?” Cassie asked. She flopped onto the floor next to Coco.
“Almost,” said Mom. “I just need to e-mail that coupon for five percent off.”
I gulped. I sure hoped Fuzzy and Furry were finished.
Ding-dong!
“Now, who could that be?” said Mom.
Whew! I thought. Saved by the bell.
Mom opened the front door. It was Mary Anne with Shadow under one arm.
“I found this stowaway in the back of my pickup truck,” Mary Anne said with a smile.
“Sorry about that,” said Mom. She took Shadow from Mary Anne. “Twice in one day, Shadow?” she asked, setting her down on the floor. Shadow quickly scampered behind the sofa.
“Now is it time for lunch?” asked Cassie.
Mom nodded. “Just need to send the e-mail.”
Cassie followed Mom into the office. I held my breath.
“That’s odd,” I heard Mom say. “I don’t remember sending the coupon. But I guess I did. It says right here, ‘Message sent.’ ”
I looked at Leopold. Leopold looked at me.
What had Fuzzy and Furry done now?
CHAPTER
6
Fuzzy and Furry poked their heads out of the heating vent in the Welcome Area. They looked a little bleary-eyed from staring at the computer.
“Thanks for the squawk, Leopold,” said Fuzzy.
“We got away just in time,” added Furry.
“What did you find?” I asked.
“First,” said Fuzzy, “the new computer is awesome.”
“It can play music, take pictures, and even show movies,” added Furry.
“Second, we found a box of paper clips,” said Fuzzy.
“Good for picking locks,” added Furry.
“Third, there are new photos on the wall,” said Fuzzy.
“There’s a nice one of you and Leopold,” added Furry.
“And another of Shadow and Whiskers,” said Fuzzy.
“And one of Coco eating cheese,” added Furry.
“Did someone say ‘cheese’?” Coco asked, opening her eyes.
“But there’s no picture of us,” sighed Furry.
This was typical of the gerbils. They were easily distracted.
“Guys,” I interrupted. “Did you find the e-mail?”
“Oh, we found the e-mail,” said Fuzzy.
“We printed it out,” added Furry.
“First the paper jammed,” said Fuzzy.
“Then it unjammed,” added Furry.
“So, where is it?” asked Leopold.
“We have it right here,” said Fuzzy. He pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of the heating vent.
“But we didn’t have time to read it,” added Furry.
“I can read it for you,” offered Coco.
“Hang on just a second,” said Shadow. She strolled out from behind the sofa. “You can read, Coco? When did you learn?”
“Furry Pages,” said Coco. “You should join us sometime. It’s very educational. I started with Go, Dog. Go! But you might want to try The Cat in the Hat.”
Coco took the paper from Fuzzy. She smoothed it out on the floor with her paws.
“It says, ‘Overnight delivery cone-formation.’ ” Coco looked up. “What is a cone-formation? Is it like an ice-cream cone?”
I looked at the page. I said, “It’s not ‘cone-formation.’ It’s ‘confirmation.’ Overnight delivery confirmation.”
“What about Blackbeard?” Whiskers asked nervously.
“What about the treasure?” asked Shadow.
I looked at the page more carefully. It had nothing to do with pirates. “This is an e-mail receipt,” I said. “It’s from a company called Picture Purr fect.”
“Uh-oh,” said Fuzzy. “We may have printed the wrong e-mail.”
“We were in a rush,” added Furry.
“What now?” asked Whiskers.
I thought for a moment. “As a precaution,” I said, “we should have a lookout.”
“We can be the lookout,” said Fuzzy.
“We’re expert lookouts,” added Furry.
“To the crow’s nest!” said Fuzzy.
“It’s a real crow’s nest,” added Furry. They scampered off into the heating vent.
“I can’t wait to see the Jolly Roger,” said Shadow.
“Jolly?” asked Whiskers. “That doesn’t sound scary. And who’s Roger?”
“The ‘Jolly Roger’ is another name for the pirate flag,” explained Leopold. “It traditionally features a skull and crossbones.”
Whiskers’s fur stood on end. “Skulls and bones!” he cried.
“Stay calm,” I said. “Let’s think. What do we know for certain?”
“We know someone named Blackbeard is coming,” said Leopold.
“We know he’s coming from the harbor,” added Coco.
“We know he has a treasure,” said Shadow.
“And we also know pirates carry swords!” cried Whiskers.
“Swords-shmords,” said Shadow. “I can’t wait to get my paws on that treasure chest. I bet it’s filled with gold doubloons or precious jewels. We are going to be rich!”
“Maybe the treasure chest is filled with cheese,” said Coco.
“Cheese?” scoffed Shadow.
“Sure,” said Coco. “Grilled cheese or mac-and-cheese or just plain cheese. A whole treasure chest full of cheese. Yum.”
“Whatever the treasure turns out to be,” said Leopold, “we should hand it over to Mom and Dad. They’ll know what to do with it.”
“They should use
it to buy a security system,” whimpered Whiskers, “to protect us against pirate raids.”
“Or,” said Coco, “they could buy more cheese.”
CHAPTER
7
Ring-ring!
Ring-ring!
Mom hurried into the Welcome Area from the office. Cassie followed her.
“Where did I leave that phone?” Mom said. She dug around the sofa cushions. “Whiskers, have you seen the phone?”
Ring-ring!
“Sounds like it’s in the classroom,” said Mom. She hurried off to find it.
“Hi, Coco,” said Cassie, coming over and giving her a big hug. “It’s almost time for lunch.” Coco sighed happily.
Mom came back to the Welcome Area with the phone to her ear. “Sounds good. We’ll see you Thursday for Fritz’s grooming appointment. You’d like to use the e-mail coupon? Great.”
Then she suddenly stopped.
“Wait . . . fifty percent off? Are you sure it doesn’t say five percent off? Okay, then. We’ll see you on Thursday.”
Mom hung up the phone. “That’s odd,” she said. “I know I wrote ‘five percent off.’ And no one else has been on the computer today.”
I looked at Leopold. Leopold looked at me.
Mom didn’t know it, but someone else had been on her computer. Two someones to be exact.
“Is it time for lunch yet?” asked Cassie. “Look at poor Coco. She’s so hungry.”
“Tell you what,” said Mom. “Let’s take the dogs for a walk. We’ll check on the guests in the barn and kennels. Then we’ll come back and have a nice, relaxing lunch.”
“Okay,” said Cassie. She grabbed a leash and clipped it to Coco’s collar.
Shadow rubbed against Cassie’s leg. “Mom, can Shadow come too?”
Mom smiled. “Of course. Sometimes I think she’s more dog than cat.”
Cassie put on Shadow’s leash. Yes, Shadow has a special cat leash.
As Mom attached my leash, she gave my head a pat. “I was hoping we could take a long walk in the woods today, Dash, but things are busier than—”
Ding-dong!
Mom opened the door. It was Martha, the groomer.
“Hi, guys,” said Martha. She quickly shut the door. “It sure is getting blustery out there.”
“Hi, Martha,” said Mom. “Cassie and I are just heading over to the barn and kennels.” Mom held up the phone. “Better bring this with us,” she said, and laughed. “It’s been ringing all morning.”
Ding-dong!
“That must be Monsieur Petit,” said Martha.
Monsieur Petit is a miniature French poodle. He’s been coming to Animal Inn for his weekly grooming appointment ever since we opened.
But it was not Monsieur Petit. It was a Labradoodle badly in need of a bath.
“What’s that smell?” asked Cassie. The unmistakable aroma of skunk blew into the Welcome Area.
“Can we help you?” Mom said to the dog’s owner.
“I hope so,” said the woman. She wore a big, floppy hat, which she held on to with one hand, to keep it from blowing away. “I’m Wilhelmina, and this is Felix,” she said, stepping inside and closing the door. “Felix is a bit . . . skunky. So when I received your coupon for fifty percent off, I thought, Perfect! And we came right over.”
“Fifty percent off?” asked Martha.
“Small typo,” Mom said sheepishly.
“I can take him after Monsieur Petit,” Martha offered.
“Thank you,” Mom said with a sigh. She turned to Felix’s owner. “This is Martha, our groomer. Why don’t I bring Felix to the outdoor play area until Martha’s ready for him?”
Ding-dong!
“That must be Monsieur Petit,” said Martha. She opened the door.
This time it was Monsieur Petit.
“Ooh la la,” he muttered under his breath. “Something here is smellier than a French cheese.”
“Mmm, cheese,” moaned Coco.
“It’s this guy,” whispered Shadow, pointing with her crinkled nose.
“Sorry,” mumbled Felix, a bit embarrassed.
Mom held Felix’s leash in one hand and the phone in the other. “Cassie, do you have everybody else?”
Cassie nodded, gathering leashes.
“Okay, crew,” said Mom. “Let’s cast off!”
“I’ll be back soon!” called Monsieur Petit’s owner, Madame Gigi.
“I’ll be back soon!” called Felix’s owner, Wilhelmina.
I looked at Leopold. “I’ll be back soon,” I whispered.
CHAPTER
8
“Whoa!” shouted Cassie. “It’s windy out here!”
She was having a hard time holding on to the leashes and keeping her hair out of her eyes.
“You walk ahead,” Mom called to Cassie. “You don’t want to be downwind of Felix.”
Poor Felix. He had probably just wanted to play with the skunk but had gotten a little too close. Now you could smell him a mile away.
“Let me put Felix in the play area,” said Mom. “The fresh air will do him good.”
Afterward she slid open the heavy barn door. The wind rushed in, blowing bits of hay into tiny cyclones.
We all piled inside. Mom slid the large door closed. Cassie undid all of our leashes. Shadow scampered straight to the loft. Coco flopped onto a mound of hay. I stayed close to Mom.
The building had once been a cow barn, but today our only guest was a beige-colored alpaca named Dandelion. She was staying with us while her owners repaired her shelter at home.
Mom raked out Dandelion’s stall. She gave her fresh water. Cassie brought over some hay.
“Sorry I haven’t gotten you out to the pasture today,” Mom said to Dandelion. “It’s been busier than I expected.”
“I think Dandelion’s happy in here,” said Cassie, gently stroking her neck. “It’s too windy out there.”
“She’s right,” Dandelion whispered to me with a toothy smile. We could all hear the wind blowing.
Coco and I followed Mom and Cassie to the back of the barn. Mom opened the door to the kennels. Each dog gets a private enclosure with a door to an outside run. On nice days the dogs are free to go in and out whenever they choose.
I always enjoy visiting the kennels and meeting new guests. Our current guests included a hound named Houdini, a Portuguese water dog named Walter, and a Pomeranian puppy named Penny.
The cats have smaller enclosures, each with its own window to see outside.
We had only one feline guest, a cuddly calico named Cassandra.
I could hear Penny, the puppy, quietly crying in her kennel.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“Are you hungry?” asked Coco.
“I’m scared,” Penny whimpered. “Too many strange noises.”
The wind whistled. A tree branch cracked nearby. I was little scared too, and the pirates hadn’t even arrived yet.
“It’s just the wind,” I said, trying to comfort her.
“I want to go home,” Penny said.
Mom gave the dogs fresh water. Cassie refilled their food bowls. Then Mom noticed Penny cowering in the corner.
“Oh, little one,” she said. “Not the best weather for your first trip away from home.”
Mom reached into Penny’s kennel and picked her up. “Why don’t you come back to the inn with us for a little bit?”
“Yay!” cheered Cassie. “Can I carry her?”
“Sure,” said Mom.
Coco and I followed Mom and Cassie back into the barn.
“Shadow!” Cassie called. “It’s time to go.”
Ring-ring!
Ring-ring!
“Animal Inn,” answered Mom.
Shadow appeared, her fur dotted with bits of hay. “Who’s that in Cassie’s arms?” she whispered to Coco and me.
“That’s Penny,” I said.
“She’s a little nervous,” said Coco.
“She should meet my brother
,” said Shadow.
Mom hung up the phone. “We’d better get back to the inn,” she said to Cassie. “Our last-minute guests will be here momentarily. And I still don’t know where to put that treasure.”
CHAPTER
9
Back in the Welcome Area, Mom and Cassie took off our leashes and hung them up.
“Let’s find a comfy place for Penny on the third floor,” Mom said to Cassie. “We can check on the upstairs guests, and then, I promise, we’ll have lunch.”
Cassie followed Mom upstairs, with Penny snuggled in her arms.
“Anything to report?” I asked Leopold.
“All quiet here,” Leopold said. “Smooth sailing.”
“Yes, very quiet,” agreed Whiskers from the sofa. He stood up and stretched. “Monsieur Petit has already been picked up. Martha just brought Felix into the grooming room. He sure was stinky, but now I smell lavender. It’s very relaxing. It might turn out to be a quiet day after all.”
“Except—” I started.
“Except what?” Whiskers said with alarm.
“Except the pirates will be here any second,” Shadow said with a grin.
“Why didn’t anybody warn me?” asked Whiskers.
“We just found out ourselves,” I said.
Whiskers gulped. “We need to do something.”
“I’m too hungry to do anything,” moaned Coco. “When’s lunch?”
“Let’s use the element of surprise,” suggested Shadow. “When the pirates arrive, I’ll leap out from behind the sofa and swipe at their ankles with a swish and a slash.” Shadow made dramatic sword-fighting motions with her paws.
“Maybe I can speak with their parrot,” said Leopold. “I always find talking to be the best strategy.”
“I agree,” I said. “We need to stay calm and—”
Whoosh!
The door blew open. The wind rushed in.
“Hit the deck!” cried Whiskers. “It’s a raid!”
“It’s just the wind,” I said.
“Wait a minute,” said Leopold. He flew over to the open door. Leaves and dust whipped and swirled outside. He slowly raised his head, trying to make out something in the distance.
Treasure Hunt Page 2