The Bare Bum Gang Battles the Dogsnatchers by Anthony McGowan Read Free Book Online Page B

said.
    Yes, at long last he was going to earn his place in the Bare Bum Gang.
    I realized my mistake when I saw the others waiting for me at the den. I should have explained that the disguise was so that we didn’t stand out. But they would have stood out less if they’d been carrying a huge banner with LOOK AT ME written on it in letters three metres tall.
    Noah, who really should have known better, was wearing his Spider-Man costume. The Moan was dressed as a spaceman and Jamie had a cowboy outfit, with a giant cowboy hat, a waistcoat with a silver sheriff’s badge, flapping leather trousers and a gun-belt with two toy pistols. But Jenny was the worst. She had on a pink fairy costume, complete with wings. At least she didn’t have the wand.
    â€˜What are you lot playing at?’ I yelled in desperation.
    Noah looked bewildered. ‘You said to come in fancy dress.’
    â€˜I did not. I said
in disguise
.’
    Â 

    â€˜I’m sure you said fancy dress.’
    â€˜Didn’t.’
    â€˜Did.’
    That could have gone on for hours, but we had work to do.
    â€˜Doesn’t matter now. Jenny, did you bring it?’
    â€˜My wand?’
    â€˜No, not your wand. The
thing
.’
    â€˜Yes, of course I brought it, I’m not a dummy. But you’d better be careful with it. It was a present to me.’
    She reached into her fairy costume. The thing she pulled out looked, for a second, in its shimmeriness, like part of the costume. It was the snakeskin she’d been given by Declan. I took it and crouched down in front of Rudy.
    â€˜Here, boy. Come snuffle this.’
    Rudy instantly waddled over and went into hyper-snuffle mode. He was definitely excited about the snakeskin.
    Then, before I could stop him, he suckedit into his slobbery mouth, gave it a quick chew, and then swallowed it down, the way you would a slice of bacon. All that was left in my hand was the last bit of skin from the back end of the snake.
    Unfortunately Jennifer saw it all.
    â€˜You beast!’ she screamed, and aimed a big kick at Rudy.
    At least that’s what I thought she was doing. She was actually aiming a big kick at me. It landed on my bottom and I went sprawling face first on the ground.
    It’s always embarrassing when someone kicks you up the bum and you end up flat on your face. It’s doubly embarrassing when the thing doing the kicking is a big pink fairy.
    I thought about kicking her back, but decided not to for three reasons:
It’s wrong to kick girls.
Jennifer was allowed to be upset because her present had been eaten by Rudy.
We had to get on with the mission.
Oh, and:
She’d only kick me again, even harder.
    â€˜I’m sorry about the snakeskin, Jenny,’ I said. ‘But there’s something more important going on here. There’s a real snake to save, along with other nice pets.’
    I think the others were actually quite impressed with my behaviour. Sometimes being a Great Leader involves getting kicked up the bum by a fairy and rising above it to save kidnapped parrots, snakes, fat cats, etc.
    I took Rudy’s ugly face in my hands.
    â€˜OK, boy,’ I said. ‘Listen like you’ve never listened before.’ I dangled the last bit of snakeskin before his snuffly nose and said, ‘Find, Rudy, Find.’
    Rudy looked up at me, his milky eyes trying hard to understand. I felt the Gang watching closely. If this didn’t work, therewas no way I could carry on as its Great Leader.
    Come on, Rudy
, I begged silently.
    Then there was a little wag from his tail, and his mouth opened into an eager grin. He heaved himself up and began to trundle off in the direction of the park.
    â€˜It’s working!’ I yelled. ‘Follow Rudy, everyone.’

IT WAS LUCKY that Rudy wasn’t one of the fastest dogs, because then he’d have been out of sight in no time. Even a medium-paced dog would have been too much for us to keep up