We Sled With Dragons by C. Alexander London Read Free Book Online

sirens wailed on the street below.
    â€œThat will be the police,” one of the warriors said. “We have to go. Follow us.”
    He turned and the warriors began moving across the roof.
    â€œWait!” Oliver rushed to catch up with the boy in the lead. “You didn’t tell me your name!”
    â€œI know I didn’t.” The boy smiled enigmatically, which Oliver would have known meant mysteriously if he had spent more time watching educational programming on TV instead of
Agent Zero
and
Bizarro Bandits.
    â€œCome on!” Oliver complained. “Why won’t anyone explain anything? What’s your name?”
    â€œSam,” the boy answered.
    â€œSam?” said Oliver.
    â€œWhat?” The boy wondered. “Sam is not a good name?”
    â€œNo,” said Oliver. “It’s fine. I was just expecting something more . . . I dunno. Exotic.”
    â€œExotic?” Sam wondered.
    â€œYou know,” Oliver said. “Like foreign.”
    â€œBut you are the foreigners here,” said Sam.
    â€œOh,” said Oliver. “Right.”
    â€œCome this way.”
    â€œSo where are we going?” Oliver jogged to keep up. “Sam! Hey, Sam! You can’t just herd us like cows! Why are you being so mysterious? Why won’t anyone ever explain anything?”
    Oliver’s complaints echoed across the rooftops of Djibouti, but no one answered his question. Sam now knew what Celia had discovered years ago: it was fun driving Oliver Navel crazy.

8
WE CATCH A FILM

    BEHIND THEM, THEY heard the whine of fire engines racing to the burning hotel and the screech of police sirens racing after the pirates and the mob of goat herders.
    The Dinka warriors, the tweens, their parents, Qui, their pets, Corey Brandt, his impersonator, and the professor climbed down from the rooftop to an empty square and crossed under a shady colonnade where a few women covered in brightly colored headscarves sold mangoes and vegetables and stinking piles of tiny fish. The women vanished into doorways as soon as they saw the Dinka warriors coming their way.
    A few moments later, half a dozen armed pirates ran past the women in hot pursuit.
    Just ahead of Oliver and Celia, a police jeep blocked their path.
    â€œStop!” two policemen in blue outfits called out, pointing their rifles at the warriors, who froze. The pirates scattered and disappeared while the Navels put their hands into the air.
    â€œYou are under arrest by the authority of the Djibouti Police!” one of the police officers said and spoke quickly into his radio in Arabic.
    â€œHe said Djibouti.” Oliver chuckled. Celia elbowed him.
    â€œHe’s calling for backup,” said Sam.
    â€œI’m Corey Brandt!” Corey Brandt stepped forward, his hands high in the air, a friendly smile spread across his face. “From television’s hit shows
Agent Zero, The Celebrity Adventurist,
and
Sunset High
!”
    The police shouted and waved their guns at him. He stepped backward.
    â€œI tried.” He shrugged. “They’re not fans.”
    Sensing the danger, or maybe just enjoying a good fight, Patrick and Beverly charged forward through Oliver’s legs. The monkey jumped onto the head of one policeman while Beverly hissed and snapped her jaws at the other one. The police dropped their guns and dove into their jeep, locking their doors. Oliver smirked. He’d grown to like Beverly quite a lot.
    Dennis clucked. Being a chicken, he was often left out of the action, which was too bad. Chickens can be frightfully vicious when they want to be.
    The warriors looked at the animals who had subdued the police, looked at each other, and shrugged. They picked up their spears again and kept running past the police jeep. The Navels and their entourage followed. As soon as they turned a corner, Bonnie and her pirates appeared ahead of them.
    â€œAha!” Bonnie shouted.
    Dennis the chicken