Read Online Hour of the Doomed Dog by Sam Hay - Free Book Online

CHAPTER ONE

    The hotel’s revolving doors whizzed round three times, then Toby burst out into the lobby.
    “AWESOME!” he squealed. “Your turn!”
    Joe grinned at his little brother. He knew they shouldn’t be playing in the revolving doors but it was hard to resist…
    It was a sunny Friday afternoon and the Edmunds family had just arrived at the Grand Hotel in Skipton Sands. Dad had gone to fetch the rest of the bags. Mum and Sarah, Joe’s big sister, were waiting at the reception desk, and Joe and Toby were supposed to be sitting quietly on the sofas.
    “Boys!” snapped Mum as the doors spun round again and Joe tumbled out. She gave them that look. The one that meant they were millimetres from a mega-blaster telling-off!
    But Toby was already heading back to the doors.
    “Toby!” bellowed Mum. “Stop that at once! You might get stuck.”
    “Your mother’s right,” said a voice. It belonged to a silvery-haired old lady who had appeared from the office behind the reception desk. “Accidents do happen!”
    “Oh, hello,” said Mum. “My name’s Helen Edmunds. We’ve got a booking for two nights.”
    The lady glanced down at a big book on the desk. “Oh yes, you’re here for the wedding. Welcome to the Grand Hotel – I’m Mrs Stanway, the owner. Please call me Sylvia.”
    Joe looked around the lobby. It was huge, with a high ceiling and wood-panelled walls. There were lots of weird ornaments dotted about, too – a stuffed fox inside a glass case, a giant vase with a blue whale painted on the side. There was even a collection of samurai swords pinned to a wall.

    “Look, Joe!” Toby had found a large brass gong. He picked up a wooden stick that hung next to it…
    DUNGGGG!
    Sarah gave a shriek.
    “Toby!” Mum snapped. “Put that down! I’m so sorry,” she added to Mrs Stanway. “He’s a bit overexcited about staying in a hotel.”
    “Oh, don’t worry,” Mrs Stanway replied. “The gong isn’t valuable. None of my things are. I just like collecting interesting objects.” She smiled at Toby. “You should look at the suit of armour on the landing upstairs. My granddaughter says there’s a ghost inside.”
    “Wow!” breathed Toby. “Can I see it?”
    “Maybe later,” Mum called, but Toby was already racing up the stairs, two at a time.
    Joe was about to follow, when he noticed a small dog sleeping near the bottom of the stairs. It had a long, thin body and droopy ears,and it was snoring loudly.
    “Joe! Give me a hand!” Dad was struggling through the revolving doors, his arms full of luggage. He shuffled forward, then staggered out into the reception area, dropping the bags.
    The dog looked up and blinked a few times. Joe noticed it had weird eyes – big and staring and green. The dog stood up stiffly and Joe noticed its short legs. It was a sausage dog! Then suddenly the dog lunged towards Dad…
    RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!

    It was barking at Dad and baring its teeth.
    Dad ignored the dog and calmly carried on picking up the stuff he’d dropped.
    The dog leaped forward as though it was about to sink its teeth into Dad’s ankles.
    “Watch out!” cried Joe.
    But Dad didn’t even look up. “Come on, Joe!” he said impatiently. “Help me with the bags.”
    “But…” Joe began.
    And then the dog stopped barking and sat back. “It’s not him. He looked a bit like one of the bad guys for a minute, but he’s not!”
    Joe gasped. The dog had spoken. This was no ordinary dog – it was an undead pet! That explained why Dad had ignored it – he couldn’t see it!
    “Hello, Joe,” the dog said, turning to face him. “My name is Frankie. I’ve been waiting for you. There’s going to be a robbery and you’ve got to stop it!”

CHAPTER TWO
    Joe felt a tingle of excitement. An undead pet was the last thing he’d expected to see! They often turned up at home, demanding that Joe solve their problems – they were unable to pass over to the afterlife until he helped them.