diamond thief is concerned, I must behave like an ordinary mog
.
Shakespeare sat on the professor’s knee and purred, trying to look like he imagined an ordinary cat would. Neither of the humans touched their drinks. Maude reached over and tickled Shakespeare behind the ear. ‘What a fabulous ship’s cat you’ve been,’ she cooed. ‘I see you’ve got two collars. A flashing one and a diamond one. How wonderful.’
Professor Cortex’s face was getting redder. He reached for his hankie and mopped again. ‘I know about you, Maude,’ he blurted. ‘And your little caper, and now
you
know I know.
And me knowing you know I know makes things a little … you know … complicated,’ he smiled, losing track of what he was on about.
Maude looked confused. ‘You seem to know an awful lot, Maximus. All I know is that I’d like to propose a toast,’ she suggested, looking at the champagne glasses.
The professor imagined himself to be one step ahead. ‘Here’s another thing I know, Maude,’ he babbled, pointing at a London landmark behind the old lady. ‘There’s the Shard,’ he said. ‘London’s highest building. It’s so modern and striking. You really must
look
.’ His plan was to distract her so that he could swap his drugged champagne for her not-drugged one.
But Maude had been hand-picked for this mission. She didn’t
think
she was one step ahead of the professor, she absolutely
knew
she was. Shakespeare held his breath as she turned slowly and surely, giving the professor just enough time to switch the drinks.
Now he had the drugged one.
Phew! Nice move, Prof
, thought Shakespeare, not suspecting a thing.
He winked at the cat. ‘Shoo,’ he mouthed. ‘Go and search her cabin.’ He jabbed a finger towards the other end of the boat. ‘I’ll be there in a minute or two.’
‘It is rather magnificent,’ smiled Maude, turning back to the professor. ‘I’ve heard that the view from the top is something special.’
The professor mopped his brow again, but was grinning broadly. Shakespeare dropped silently to the floor. He heard the champagne glasses clinking, and the gentle conversation continued as he sloped off to cabin number 5.
11. Top Cat
Shakespeare had no trouble finding a way into cabin number 5. The porthole had been left conveniently open.
Too conveniently?
He jumped on to Maude’s bed and did a bit of snooping. It was evening time and darkness was settling over London. The cat couldn’t reach the light switch so was using his night-vision as best he could. Shakespeare’s heart was racing.
This is soooo exciting. A proper mission
. He was sure Professor Cortex would be joining him, just as soon as Maude had sipped her own sleeping potion and was fast off.
The cat checked all the places a cat could.
Under the bed. Clear. On top of the wardrobe. Nothing. I hope the prof hurries up
, he thought.
His hands will be able to make light work of searching in
the drawers and cupboards. There has to be a big stash of diamonds somewhere
.
Shakespeare’s ears twitched as he heard footsteps shuffling along the corridor.
At last
! He yowled loudly. ‘In here, Prof.’
The cat came to full alertness when he heard the scratching sound of a key card being inserted in the door. A dark figure entered the cabin. Shakespeare meowed again.
About time
, he thought.
This place is spooky on my own. We’ve got diamonds to find
.
Maude was an expert on cats. She had spun the professor a web of lies that contained just one truth: she did have fifteen cats of her own. Shakespeare hissed as he was expertly plucked from the bed, the old lady grasping him firmly by the scruff of the neck.
He yowled and hissed again, his claws outstretched and his legs kicking in the darkness. Maude was a sprightly eighty-four-year-old and he was unceremoniously bundled into a bag, the zip sealing him in.
Shakespeare was in a panic. His mind was flooded with thoughts of the last time he was dumped in a bag.
I hate bags.
.
Shakespeare sat on the professor’s knee and purred, trying to look like he imagined an ordinary cat would. Neither of the humans touched their drinks. Maude reached over and tickled Shakespeare behind the ear. ‘What a fabulous ship’s cat you’ve been,’ she cooed. ‘I see you’ve got two collars. A flashing one and a diamond one. How wonderful.’
Professor Cortex’s face was getting redder. He reached for his hankie and mopped again. ‘I know about you, Maude,’ he blurted. ‘And your little caper, and now
you
know I know.
And me knowing you know I know makes things a little … you know … complicated,’ he smiled, losing track of what he was on about.
Maude looked confused. ‘You seem to know an awful lot, Maximus. All I know is that I’d like to propose a toast,’ she suggested, looking at the champagne glasses.
The professor imagined himself to be one step ahead. ‘Here’s another thing I know, Maude,’ he babbled, pointing at a London landmark behind the old lady. ‘There’s the Shard,’ he said. ‘London’s highest building. It’s so modern and striking. You really must
look
.’ His plan was to distract her so that he could swap his drugged champagne for her not-drugged one.
But Maude had been hand-picked for this mission. She didn’t
think
she was one step ahead of the professor, she absolutely
knew
she was. Shakespeare held his breath as she turned slowly and surely, giving the professor just enough time to switch the drinks.
Now he had the drugged one.
Phew! Nice move, Prof
, thought Shakespeare, not suspecting a thing.
He winked at the cat. ‘Shoo,’ he mouthed. ‘Go and search her cabin.’ He jabbed a finger towards the other end of the boat. ‘I’ll be there in a minute or two.’
‘It is rather magnificent,’ smiled Maude, turning back to the professor. ‘I’ve heard that the view from the top is something special.’
The professor mopped his brow again, but was grinning broadly. Shakespeare dropped silently to the floor. He heard the champagne glasses clinking, and the gentle conversation continued as he sloped off to cabin number 5.
11. Top Cat
Shakespeare had no trouble finding a way into cabin number 5. The porthole had been left conveniently open.
Too conveniently?
He jumped on to Maude’s bed and did a bit of snooping. It was evening time and darkness was settling over London. The cat couldn’t reach the light switch so was using his night-vision as best he could. Shakespeare’s heart was racing.
This is soooo exciting. A proper mission
. He was sure Professor Cortex would be joining him, just as soon as Maude had sipped her own sleeping potion and was fast off.
The cat checked all the places a cat could.
Under the bed. Clear. On top of the wardrobe. Nothing. I hope the prof hurries up
, he thought.
His hands will be able to make light work of searching in
the drawers and cupboards. There has to be a big stash of diamonds somewhere
.
Shakespeare’s ears twitched as he heard footsteps shuffling along the corridor.
At last
! He yowled loudly. ‘In here, Prof.’
The cat came to full alertness when he heard the scratching sound of a key card being inserted in the door. A dark figure entered the cabin. Shakespeare meowed again.
About time
, he thought.
This place is spooky on my own. We’ve got diamonds to find
.
Maude was an expert on cats. She had spun the professor a web of lies that contained just one truth: she did have fifteen cats of her own. Shakespeare hissed as he was expertly plucked from the bed, the old lady grasping him firmly by the scruff of the neck.
He yowled and hissed again, his claws outstretched and his legs kicking in the darkness. Maude was a sprightly eighty-four-year-old and he was unceremoniously bundled into a bag, the zip sealing him in.
Shakespeare was in a panic. His mind was flooded with thoughts of the last time he was dumped in a bag.
I hate bags.
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