Read Online Stay:The Last Dog in Antarctica by Jesse Blackadder - Free Book Online
Authors: Jesse Blackadder
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couldn’t go anywhere with a big hole in her chest. There was no other choice: she’d have to say goodbye to Chills and stay at Davis.
She wondered if Jet had felt as sad as she was feeling right then, when he said goodbye to his first family.
Chapter 15
Bear put Stay up on the bench and spent a long time examining her crushed foreleg. He pulled out a small saw and began to cut it away. To distract herself, Stay thought about Chills. He’d left that morning with Beakie to fly to Mawson Station, one of the other Australian bases, in a little Twin Otter plane.
Stay had gone with the others to say goodbye at the airstrip, a long stretch of sea ice that had been smoothed over to make a flat, clear surface. It was a brilliant, sunny day, with a light breeze. The pilot was already inside, running through the pre-flight check, and the plane was ready to go.
‘I was counting on you to call up a blizzard,’ Chills said to Kaboom. ‘Could have kept me here a few days until Stay was fixed. Is this the best you could do?’
Kaboom gave him a hug. ‘I tried. Have a great season. Say hi to those Adélies for me.’
Chills hugged Laser and turned to Stay. He looks self-conscious, Stay thought, as if he was embarrassed to say goodbye. He patted her on the head.
‘Oh, go on, give her a hug,’ Kaboom said.
Chills crouched and wrapped his arms around Stay. She remembered he’d done the same thing the very first time they met, on the street in front of the supermarket in Hobart, and she felt warm and sad, all at once.
Beakie said goodbye to Kaboom and Laser and gave Stay a pat. Then he and Chills clambered into the plane and in a few minutes they had disappeared into the sky.
‘There!’ Bear said, breaking into Stay’s thoughts and bringing her back to the present. ‘We’ll get that socket nice and smooth, ready for your new leg.’
Stay heard him open a drawer and rummage around inside. He came back holding a piece of brown paper and started rubbing the edges of the hole in her chest with it.
It was sandpaper. It felt awful and Stay wanted to growl. If she’d had real fur, it would have been standing on end. The sandpaper rasped and scraped and made her whole body feel restless and itchy. It was worse than having her leg sawn off.
‘How’s it going, Pooh Bear?’
Stay was relieved to hear Kaboom’s voice.
Bear looked up and grinned. ‘I feel like a dentist fixing a broken tooth.’
Stay shuddered at the same time as Kaboom pulled a face. ‘Yuck, I hate the dentist,’ she said. ‘I had to have a filling down here last season. The doctor was the dentist and the cook was helping out!’ She came closer and looked at Stay’s chest.
Bear gave the hole a final rub with the sandpaper and stood back. ‘There we go. All ready for the new leg.’ He picked up a light-coloured block of wood from the bench.
Kaboom frowned. ‘She’ll look very odd with a square leg.’
‘It won’t be square. I’ll carve her a leg just like the other one. It will take a little while, that’s all.’
‘Can I take her over to the Met office while you’re working on it?’ Kaboom asked. ‘It’s a bit lonely for her in here.’
Bear shook his head. ‘I need her here for fitting and making sure the leg is the same as the other one. She can come over and live with you and the Met Fairies when she’s done. As long as no one else gets her first.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘She’s had a few visitors already. Quite the popular dog on station. Everyone thinks they’ve got the best spot for her.’
Stay saw Kaboom’s face fall. ‘But I’m looking after her for Chills. She belongs to him. Don’t let anyone dognap her!’
‘She might need a little more security,’ Bear said. ‘I’ve got a chain and a thumping big padlock so no one can get her out of here. She’ll be safe. At least until her leg’s fixed.’
‘OK,’ Kaboom said. ‘Chain her up.’ She patted Stay on the head. ‘Goodbye, girl. See you
She wondered if Jet had felt as sad as she was feeling right then, when he said goodbye to his first family.
Chapter 15
Bear put Stay up on the bench and spent a long time examining her crushed foreleg. He pulled out a small saw and began to cut it away. To distract herself, Stay thought about Chills. He’d left that morning with Beakie to fly to Mawson Station, one of the other Australian bases, in a little Twin Otter plane.
Stay had gone with the others to say goodbye at the airstrip, a long stretch of sea ice that had been smoothed over to make a flat, clear surface. It was a brilliant, sunny day, with a light breeze. The pilot was already inside, running through the pre-flight check, and the plane was ready to go.
‘I was counting on you to call up a blizzard,’ Chills said to Kaboom. ‘Could have kept me here a few days until Stay was fixed. Is this the best you could do?’
Kaboom gave him a hug. ‘I tried. Have a great season. Say hi to those Adélies for me.’
Chills hugged Laser and turned to Stay. He looks self-conscious, Stay thought, as if he was embarrassed to say goodbye. He patted her on the head.
‘Oh, go on, give her a hug,’ Kaboom said.
Chills crouched and wrapped his arms around Stay. She remembered he’d done the same thing the very first time they met, on the street in front of the supermarket in Hobart, and she felt warm and sad, all at once.
Beakie said goodbye to Kaboom and Laser and gave Stay a pat. Then he and Chills clambered into the plane and in a few minutes they had disappeared into the sky.
‘There!’ Bear said, breaking into Stay’s thoughts and bringing her back to the present. ‘We’ll get that socket nice and smooth, ready for your new leg.’
Stay heard him open a drawer and rummage around inside. He came back holding a piece of brown paper and started rubbing the edges of the hole in her chest with it.
It was sandpaper. It felt awful and Stay wanted to growl. If she’d had real fur, it would have been standing on end. The sandpaper rasped and scraped and made her whole body feel restless and itchy. It was worse than having her leg sawn off.
‘How’s it going, Pooh Bear?’
Stay was relieved to hear Kaboom’s voice.
Bear looked up and grinned. ‘I feel like a dentist fixing a broken tooth.’
Stay shuddered at the same time as Kaboom pulled a face. ‘Yuck, I hate the dentist,’ she said. ‘I had to have a filling down here last season. The doctor was the dentist and the cook was helping out!’ She came closer and looked at Stay’s chest.
Bear gave the hole a final rub with the sandpaper and stood back. ‘There we go. All ready for the new leg.’ He picked up a light-coloured block of wood from the bench.
Kaboom frowned. ‘She’ll look very odd with a square leg.’
‘It won’t be square. I’ll carve her a leg just like the other one. It will take a little while, that’s all.’
‘Can I take her over to the Met office while you’re working on it?’ Kaboom asked. ‘It’s a bit lonely for her in here.’
Bear shook his head. ‘I need her here for fitting and making sure the leg is the same as the other one. She can come over and live with you and the Met Fairies when she’s done. As long as no one else gets her first.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘She’s had a few visitors already. Quite the popular dog on station. Everyone thinks they’ve got the best spot for her.’
Stay saw Kaboom’s face fall. ‘But I’m looking after her for Chills. She belongs to him. Don’t let anyone dognap her!’
‘She might need a little more security,’ Bear said. ‘I’ve got a chain and a thumping big padlock so no one can get her out of here. She’ll be safe. At least until her leg’s fixed.’
‘OK,’ Kaboom said. ‘Chain her up.’ She patted Stay on the head. ‘Goodbye, girl. See you
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