other cells. The puppy’s ears went up a little. Its tail went thump-thump against the stone floor.
Rrrrrrrrrrrr , his mother scolded.
The puppy’s head drooped. He looked down at his paws as if he was determined not to look at Jean anymore.
“If only we had some food!” said Jean.
“Aye, there you go, thinking of your stomach again—and at a time like this!” Barbossa growled.
“I meant for the puppy ,” Jean objected.
“Oh,” Catastrophe Shane said from the floor. “Would something like this work?”
Jean turned slowly. Shane was holding out a croissant filled with bacon and cheese.
Jean’s face turned red. “Are you telling me,” he said, his voice rising, “that you’ve had that in your pocket this whole time? This whole time! While I was moaning about how starving I was! And you didn’t say anything! Where did you even get it?”
“Nabbed it from a street cart on the way here,” Shane said. “What? I forgot I had it. But I’m not going to eat it anyway. I’m a vegetarian.”
“A what?” Barbossa said. “Sounds like a disease. Is it contagious?”
“It just means I don’t eat meat,” Shane explained self-righteously.
Barbossa snorted. “A pretty bad disease, then.”
Jean snatched the croissant away from Shane. His hand trembled with hunger. He just wanted to stuff the food into his mouth and swallow it all before anyone else got their hands on it. But he couldn’t do that. They needed the croissant for bait.
He turned around and realized that the dogs were starting to move on to the next cell. The mother trotted off, and all the puppies smartly fell into line behind her. This was their last chance!
“Hsssssst!” he whispered frantically.
The smallest puppy, at the very end of the line, hesitated for a moment. Then, as his brothers and sisters scampered on ahead, he turned to give Jean an apologetic look.
But then Jean tossed him a piece of bacon.
The puppy’s ears went up. His nose went sniff, sniff, sniff . He took a couple of cautious steps toward Jean, then dropped his key and pounced on the bacon. In half a second, it was gone. The puppy licked his chops. He glanced down the hall, where his mother was vanishing around a corner. Then he came bounding over to Jean with his tail wagging.
“Oh, well done,” Barbossa said sarcastically, pointing to the key still lying out of reach on the floor, where the puppy had dropped it.
“Wait, wait,” Jean said, holding the food away from the dog. “Go get the key. Go on! Go get it!”
The puppy wagged his tail, staring up at the croissant.
“The key!” Jean said. He pointed. “Go get it! Fetch!”
Yip! the puppy yelped agreeably. He sat down and kept staring at the croissant.
Jean sighed and gave the puppy another small piece of bacon. “Now, go get the key,” he said.
More tail wagging. More staring.
Suffice to say, this took quite a while…and almost the entire croissant. But finally, Jean was able to convince the puppy to drag his key back to the cell. Barbossa reached through the bars and snatched it out of the puppy’s grasp. Jean sighed and fed the puppy the last scrap.
“Good dog,” he said. “More or less.”
The puppy wagged his tail and licked Jean’s fingers.
“You’ve probably ruined that dog for life,” Billy pointed out. “Now it’ll never be a proper prison dog like its brothers and sisters. It’ll always want to come over to check if the prisoners have any food for it.”
Jean felt guilty. He hadn’t thought about wrecking all the puppy’s training. He just wanted to escape from the cell!
Click!
“It worked!” Barbossa said in amazement. He’d managed to work the key through the bars, fit it into the lock, and turn it. The padlock sprang open. The door swung wide. They were free!
C HAPTER E LEVEN
D iscovering that their plan was successful made Jean feel much less guilty.
“Come on, Shane!” he said, hauling the hapless pirate to his feet. Barbossa and Billy were
Rrrrrrrrrrrr , his mother scolded.
The puppy’s head drooped. He looked down at his paws as if he was determined not to look at Jean anymore.
“If only we had some food!” said Jean.
“Aye, there you go, thinking of your stomach again—and at a time like this!” Barbossa growled.
“I meant for the puppy ,” Jean objected.
“Oh,” Catastrophe Shane said from the floor. “Would something like this work?”
Jean turned slowly. Shane was holding out a croissant filled with bacon and cheese.
Jean’s face turned red. “Are you telling me,” he said, his voice rising, “that you’ve had that in your pocket this whole time? This whole time! While I was moaning about how starving I was! And you didn’t say anything! Where did you even get it?”
“Nabbed it from a street cart on the way here,” Shane said. “What? I forgot I had it. But I’m not going to eat it anyway. I’m a vegetarian.”
“A what?” Barbossa said. “Sounds like a disease. Is it contagious?”
“It just means I don’t eat meat,” Shane explained self-righteously.
Barbossa snorted. “A pretty bad disease, then.”
Jean snatched the croissant away from Shane. His hand trembled with hunger. He just wanted to stuff the food into his mouth and swallow it all before anyone else got their hands on it. But he couldn’t do that. They needed the croissant for bait.
He turned around and realized that the dogs were starting to move on to the next cell. The mother trotted off, and all the puppies smartly fell into line behind her. This was their last chance!
“Hsssssst!” he whispered frantically.
The smallest puppy, at the very end of the line, hesitated for a moment. Then, as his brothers and sisters scampered on ahead, he turned to give Jean an apologetic look.
But then Jean tossed him a piece of bacon.
The puppy’s ears went up. His nose went sniff, sniff, sniff . He took a couple of cautious steps toward Jean, then dropped his key and pounced on the bacon. In half a second, it was gone. The puppy licked his chops. He glanced down the hall, where his mother was vanishing around a corner. Then he came bounding over to Jean with his tail wagging.
“Oh, well done,” Barbossa said sarcastically, pointing to the key still lying out of reach on the floor, where the puppy had dropped it.
“Wait, wait,” Jean said, holding the food away from the dog. “Go get the key. Go on! Go get it!”
The puppy wagged his tail, staring up at the croissant.
“The key!” Jean said. He pointed. “Go get it! Fetch!”
Yip! the puppy yelped agreeably. He sat down and kept staring at the croissant.
Jean sighed and gave the puppy another small piece of bacon. “Now, go get the key,” he said.
More tail wagging. More staring.
Suffice to say, this took quite a while…and almost the entire croissant. But finally, Jean was able to convince the puppy to drag his key back to the cell. Barbossa reached through the bars and snatched it out of the puppy’s grasp. Jean sighed and fed the puppy the last scrap.
“Good dog,” he said. “More or less.”
The puppy wagged his tail and licked Jean’s fingers.
“You’ve probably ruined that dog for life,” Billy pointed out. “Now it’ll never be a proper prison dog like its brothers and sisters. It’ll always want to come over to check if the prisoners have any food for it.”
Jean felt guilty. He hadn’t thought about wrecking all the puppy’s training. He just wanted to escape from the cell!
Click!
“It worked!” Barbossa said in amazement. He’d managed to work the key through the bars, fit it into the lock, and turn it. The padlock sprang open. The door swung wide. They were free!
C HAPTER E LEVEN
D iscovering that their plan was successful made Jean feel much less guilty.
“Come on, Shane!” he said, hauling the hapless pirate to his feet. Barbossa and Billy were
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