Blackout by Andrew Cope Read Free Book Online Page B

on the riverbank, soggy and half drowned. He lay there and mewed, hoping his mum or brothers and sisters would hear.
But, assuming they survived, his brothers and sisters were all on the other side of the river
. Shakespeare had been tiny and alone. And, even worse, unwanted. He forced himself to his feet.
I think I know what it means to be ‘weak as a kitten’
, he thought and stumbled towards the road. A car horn blared. He had walked as far as his tiny kitten feet would take him before he curled up, too weak to go any further.
    The river. Water. Horrible, horrible wet stuff. I hate water! If the professor wants me to be a ship’s cat, on a boat, he can think again. It’s never going to happen. I’ve nearly drowned once and it’s put the ‘scared’ into ‘scaredy cat’
.
    Shakespeare wasn’t sure how it happened, but he assumed someone must have handed him in to a rescue shelter.
Then some nice humans nursed me back to health. And I was adopted by a family with a lovely little girl. She was small. I was small. We were a perfect match. Those were good months. But
, considered Shakespeare,
I must be the unluckiest cat in the world because there was a scuffle with the family dog, my claws caught one of the adults and that was it. I was abandoned again!
    He looked at Sophie, fast asleep. He loved her long eyelashes and freckled cheeks. He looked at the indentation in the duvet.
Probably still warm
, thought the cat, forcing himself to be strong. Running away was tough. But spending time on a boat was tougher.
No more families for me. It always ends in heartbreak
.
    Shakespeare took a pencil in his mouth and tapped a brief message for Sophie.
Will MISS u little girl. But I have to go it Alone. This cat isn’t cut out to be a spY. Will love you 4ever. Please don’t be SAd.
    Shakespeare wiped a paw across his face. Cats can’t cry, but they can feel very sad indeed. He held his paw on the ‘x’ button until about fifty kisses had been added.
And I mean every single one of them
, he thought.
    He checked himself in the mirror. His translating collar was flashing.
That’s my passport to a successful future
, he thought.
No more falling in love with kind children. No more being stroked. No more attachment
. He made for the bedroom door and glanced back at the sleeping little girl. His heart was heavy, but his mind made up.
I hope her heart doesn’t hurt as much as mine
.
    It was as he looked back that Lara made her move. She was a highly trained superspy, a lethal weapon. Her paw came down on Shakespeare’s head with just the right amount of force and the cat slumped to the floor.
    Shakespeare woke, his vision blurred and his head heavy. The room seemed to be moving. He shook himself awake and looked around,
his vision righting itself. He was lying on a bed, in a small room, unlike any room he’d ever been in. He tried to piece the clues together, but they made no sense.
Why on earth has the room got round windows? How odd
.
    Shakespeare got to his feet and shook himself to full alertness. He jumped off the bed.
Woah, still swaying
, he thought.
I’m still a groggy moggy. But where am I? And why are my legs so wobbly?

The Spy Cat jumped silently on to the desk and stretched his neck to peer out of the round window.
Blue sky and blue water
! All of a sudden the clues fitted together.
My legs aren’t wobbly. The boat is wobbly. Someone’s clonked me on the head and smuggled me on to a ship!
He strained his neck even higher.
River! Water! I’m surrounded by water!

    Shakespeare struggled with his emotions. Anger was high on the list. Along with fear and betrayal. Who on earth had smuggled him on to this boat? His cat’s eyes scanned for more clues. The professor’s laptop was on the desk with a yellow Post-it note. ‘Play me,’ read Shakespeare, his translating collar working extra hard to decipher the spidery pen-in-the-mouth writing. The cat pressed the Return key and a home-made video sparked into life.