Waggit Again by Peter Howe Read Free Book Online Page A

they rumbled past, Felicia stood back a little bit so that she could get a better look at what was coming.
    â€œThat one,” she said, pointing to a car, the doors of which were open. “That is the best.”
    This train was moving faster than the previous one, but Waggit was easily able to leap aboard. He turnedto look and see how the other two were doing. Lug was lumbering along, more or less keeping up, with Felicia close behind him, although she was slowed down by the weight and size of her backpack. She bent down and grabbed the pit bull by the scruff of his neck and threw him into the car. Then her foot caught in one of the railroad ties, and with a cry of pain she fell beside the track.

8
Freight Train to Nowhere
    W aggit looked out of the doors to see Felicia on the ground, rolling over and over.
    â€œFelicia,” he yelled in panic, but she did not reply. He didn’t know what to do next. If he leapt out to help her, Lug would be left by himself in the boxcar, unable to get out, and if he didn’t he would be separated from her maybe forever. All day long he had been regretting his agreement to let the pit bull join them but no time more so than now.
    The decision to jump or not was nearly made forhim as the train lurched forward and almost pitched him back onto the tracks, but he managed to regain his balance and stay on his paws. The train was beginning to pick up speed, and when he looked out again Felicia was nowhere to be seen.
    â€œThis is terrible,” Lug said.
    â€œIt is,” agreed Waggit.
    â€œWe’ll never get to New York now,” continued the pit bull. “I mean, she’s the only one who knows the way. Who’s going to look after us if she’s not here?”
    â€œActually,” said Waggit irritably, “I was thinking more along the lines of wouldn’t it be terrible if she’s hurt herself.”
    â€œYou’re absolutely right,” said Lug. “If she’s hurt herself she’ll never be able to catch up with us, plus she’s got all the food.”
    Waggit was beginning to realize that it was useless to talk to Lug about anything that didn’t directly affect him, and sympathy for the plight of another simply wasn’t something he felt. So he said nothing, sat down, and looked around. The car had obviously been used to transport animals of some kind, and it still smelled of them and their hay.
    Lug was adding his own smell of fear, and despitehimself Waggit felt sorry for him. He seemed scared of everything and everyone, and here he was stuck in a train car that he couldn’t get out of that was going who knew where with a dog he’d met just the day before. The only reason he had wanted to come with them in the first place was that he was more frightened of going back to the town than he was of the journey.
    â€œIt’ll be okay,” Waggit assured him, sounding more confident than he felt.
    â€œI dunno,” said Lug. “I hope you’re right.”
    â€œHow come if you never lived with Uprights you’ve got a name?” Waggit asked, trying to take the other dog’s mind off his present situation by changing the subject.
    â€œThe Upright at the bar,” replied Lug, “the one that used to feed me. He started to call me big lug, and it just sort of stuck. How about you? You’ve got a strange name. How did you get yours?”
    â€œThe team gave it to me,” said Waggit. “When I was younger my tail used to wag a lot when I was excited or scared and so that’s why they called me Waggit.”
    â€œWhat’s the team?” asked Lug.
    â€œOh, they’re a pack of dogs that I lived with in the park. They saved my life. I’m going back to them whenI get to New York, if they’ll have me, if there still is a team, of course.”
    â€œCan I join the team when we get there?” Lug asked. “If we get there.”
    â€œLet’s see when we