Spy Cat by Andrew Cope

Author:Andrew Cope
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780141357195
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2014-03-21T04:00:00+00:00

Lara’s throat emitted a low growl. You don’t have royal blood. You have evil blood! Her ears were pricked, listening and learning, desperately trying to figure a way out.

‘Here is the score sheet,’ explained Mr Big, Archie darting between the hunters with a handout. ‘Each animal has a value. I’ve graded the animals according to their level of difficulty. If you look at the bottom of the list, you’ll see the pandas are worth ten thousand points apiece.’

‘And points make prizes …’ purred one of the men.

‘But pandas are easy,’ suggested Mr Big. ‘Sluggish. Rare, yes, but certainly not the ultimate hunting challenge. You will see that our one and only cheetah is a hundred thousand points. It will take a professional shot to get that little beauty.’

A large American man cracked his knuckles and strode over to the weapon trolleys. ‘Looks like I’m going to be baggin’ myself a li’l ol’ fast cat,’ he said, picking a rifle and looking through the sights.

One of the other men looked confused. He jabbed the top four names on the list. ‘Gorilla, two hundred thousand points. Puppies, three hundred thousand points and “Spy Dog”, a million points? What makes these creatures so special?’

Mr Big had been looking forward to this question. He rose from his chair and wandered towards the cage where, predictably, Lara, the pups and the professor jumped to their feet and started to vent their anger. The animals threw themselves at the bars. ‘These,’ he shouted above the growling, ‘are my most prized targets. Some, like the dogs, have sentimental value. The black and white dog is especially tricky. I acquired it from MI5. It’s the world’s first ever spy dog. Trained to kill! And these yapping puppies are not just full of noise. They are a menace to society.’

‘You’re the menace!’ woofed Spud, his muzzle pushing through the bars.

‘And the monkey?’ asked the lady, seeming particularly interested.

‘For a start, Gloria, it’s not any old monkey. The gorilla is very talented. One of a kind, hence the big bonus points. Nicknamed the Picasso Primate, he can talk and paint. You might have seen him on the TV. I’ve tamed him, you see. He was completely wild when I captured him.’

The professor had never been so angry. He rattled the bars of his cage and his muffled voice rang out. ‘Wild? I was livid! Grrrr. Let me out of here right now …’

The lady looked startled. ‘He really does talk! And he sounds very angry indeed.’

The American had swapped his weapon. He pointed a pistol at the gorilla and did an imaginary shot. ‘BANG!’ he said. ‘I’m excited, Your Lordship. You’ve got my juices flowing. Spy dogs and talking gorillas. A million of your British pounds is a bargain. Tomorrow, I’m having your critters at the top of my list.’

The shooting party trailed out of the room, eagerly anticipating the following day’s sport. Gloria paused for a moment in the doorway and looked over towards the dogs. Lara sensed she wasn’t quite as eager as the others.

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