Read Online The Case of the Missing Cats by Gareth P. Jones - Free Book Online

go,’ said Dirk.
    â€˜Are we going back to the warehouse?’ asked Holly.
    â€˜No. Here, hold these.’ And he grabbed a couple of bags of assorted liquorice sweets and handed them to Holly. She stuffed them in her pockets and climbed on to his large, red back, carefully positioning the hatand coat between her and the dragon.
    Dirk pushed open the window, glanced down again and then leapt on to the neighbouring roof.
    Bathed in the reddish glow from the setting sun, the rooftops of London looked even more magical to Holly this evening. She was doing her best to think tough like a proper detective, but looking down at the yellow lamps and the people below going about their humdrum lives, unaware of the dragon leaping over their heads, she couldn’t help but feel excited and special.
    Dirk decided it was time to tell Holly about the catnapping dragons he had witnessed. As they travelled, he described how he had followed the Mountain Dragon to the warehouse and then narrowly avoided being seen by the Sea Dragon shortly afterwards.
    â€˜Wow, so there are loads of dragons in London,’ said Holly. ‘What do you think they’re doing with the cats?’ she asked. ‘You don’t think they’re eating them, do you?’
    â€˜Not likely,’ replied Dirk. ‘Unlike humans, dragons don’t eat other animals,’
    â€˜Not all humans. I’m a vegetarian too,’ said Holly.
    â€˜You choose not to eat meat. For us it’s death toconsume the body of another living creature.’
    Holly looked around at their surroundings. She was lost. ‘Where are we?’ she asked.
    â€˜We’re in Greenwich,’ replied Dirk.
    â€˜What’s in Greenwich?’
    â€˜Well, there’s a nice market, a naval college, a couple of good pubs and a lovely park,’ joked Dirk.
    â€˜I mean, what’s in Greenwich for us?’
    â€˜The underground.’
    â€˜We’re getting the tube?’
    â€˜Something like that,’ replied Dirk and he jumped on to a large clock tower and scampered up its side, gaining enough height to spread his wings and glide down on to a row of houses. He ran across the houses then sailed over a glass-topped market place. One more jump and he landed on a flat pub roof next to a concrete concourse beside the River Thames. Holly stopped herself from squealing with excitement like she was on the best roller-coaster ride in the world ever.
    She dismounted and looked down. In the middle of the concourse was an old tall ship that she remembered was called the
Cutty Sark
and by its side a cylindrical concrete structure with a green dome-like top.
    â€˜That’s the entrance to the pedestrian tunnel under the Thames,’ said Dirk, pointing to the structure.
    â€˜I know,’ replied Holly. ‘I came here on a school trip once.’
    â€˜
You
went on a school trip?’ said Dirk disbelievingly.
    â€˜It wasn’t my school. I’d had an argument with my dad’s wife, so I ran away and then I saw a coach and just jumped on it. It turned out to be a school trip, so I pretended I went to their school.’
    Dirk laughed, ‘You’re growing on me, kiddo. Now, give me the hat and coat.’
    Holly handed him the giant coat. Laughter rose up from the pub garden below. Someone dropped a glass. It smashed on the ground, receiving a round of applause and a drunken cheer.
    Dirk pulled the coat over his shoulders, covering his wings. He tucked his long nose under his chin and buttoned it up. Next he put the hat over his head and pulled it down. He swished his tail twice and then curled it up behind him, making the coat taut and strangely shaped. He took a step back and said in a muffled voice, ‘How do I look?’
    Holly looked at him. Although he had succeeded in hiding his distinctive dragon features he stilllooked pretty bizarre. Even with his tail tucked in and his head bowed he was still taller than the