Пола Харрисон: Kitty And The Tiger Treasure

“STOP THIEF!” cried Cleo. “That doesn’t belong to you!”

The dog knocked the statue from its pedestal. The Golden Tiger rolled across the museum floor, its diamonds sparkling in the moonlight. The statue’s emerald eyes glowed like the eyes of a real tiger. Then the dog picked up the statue in his jaws and ran off into the shadows.

“He’s getting away!” squeaked Pumpkin. Kitty saw the desperate look on Cleo’s face. “Don’t worry! We’ll help you catch him.” She shimmied down the drainpipe to the ledge.

The she threw up the window and leaped inside. The museum was silent and still.

Cleo shook her head. “Stan must have forgotten to set the burglar alarm again!”

Kitty looked around and shivered. The last time she’d visited the museum, the whole place had been bright and noisy and full of people.

Now there was a shadowy shape in the corner, and moonlight glinted on something shiny. Kitty caught her breath. Then her eyes sharpened, and she saw a wax model of a soldier carrying a spear. She breathed slowly to calm her racing heart. The thief was somewhere in the building, and she was determined to catch him.

Cleo and Pumpkin tumbled into the room behind her. Figaro climbed in last, with a flick of his tail.

“Cleo, can you take us to the exhibit room?” said Kitty.

“This way!” Cleo led them up a grand marble staircase into a splendid gallery beneath the domed ceiling. Moonlight shined through the window above. All around them, the treasures of the exhibit were arranged in beautiful cases.

There were fans painted in delicate colors, ancient coins, and silver plates studded with rubies.

A spotlight shined down on the space where the Golden Tiger had been. Cleo paced around the empty pedestal, her tail swishing. “I should have noticed!” she muttered. “I should have been watching more carefully.”

Kitty’s heart sank. The best treasure of all was missing, and everyone in Hallam City would be disappointed. Worst of all, what if the statue really did grant wishes? If bad guys got hold of the Golden Tiger, they might wish for something terrible!

“Look—paw prints!” Pumpkin pointed at the prints leading away into the dark.

They followed the paw prints, but the trail ended at the stairway.

“I fear the trail has gone cold,” said Figaro. “This building is enormous. We have little hope of finding the scoundrel now.”

“Wait, listen!” Kitty focused with her super hearing. She picked up the sound of paws padding on the floor above. “He’s upstairs! We can still catch him.”

Her heart thumped as she rushed toward the staircase. The race to stop the thief was just beginning!

Chapter

4

Kitty ran lightly up the spiral stairs, and the cats dashed after her. Cleo’s eyes narrowed when the group reached the top. Her gray tail swayed worriedly as she searched the shadowy room.

Kitty heard a creaking sound. “This way!” she whispered.

At the far end of the gallery, the dog was opening the window with his nose. Kitty crept nearer, her orange sneakers silent on the polished floor. The robber had put the statue down. Maybe, if they got close enough, they could snatch the Golden Tiger back.

Pumpkin’s tail brushed against a display, knocking over a pile of old coins. They jangled as they rolled around and around in circles. The dog whirled around, and the moonlight gleamed on his patchy coat. His eyes were wide, and he had a strange, faraway look, like someone daydreaming.

Kitty shrank into the shadows, raising a finger to her lips. Pumpkin looked like he was about to meow, but Figaro clapped a paw over his mouth. The thief gave a low bark before picking up the statue, pushing the window open, and squeezing through. Kitty raced to the window and looked along the wide ledge, but the dog had already vanished.

Slipping outside, Kitty clambered to the roof. With her super night vision, she scanned the shadowy streets. Cleo and the other cats scrambled up beside her. Pumpkin twitched his whiskers nervously. Moonlight poured down, reflecting off the museum’s glassy dome.

Cleo meowed impatiently. “How could I have been so silly! If I’d been paying attention instead of chatting with all of you, then this would never have happened.”

“It’s not your fault!” Kitty spotted the dog running down an alleyway. The Golden Tiger gleamed in his jaws. “Look, there he is!” Scrambling to the edge, she got herself ready to leap across to the opposite roof.

“Be careful, Kitty!” called Pumpkin.

Kitty felt her superpowers tingling, and her heart skipped with excitement. She was determined not to lose sight of the robber dog. She sprang to the next house and kept on running, her feet barely touching the roof.

Using her outstretched arms to balance, she leaped from one house to the next. Her cape flew out behind her, as black as midnight. The ground looked far away, but she wasn’t afraid. She trusted her superpowers. She could do this!

The springer spaniel reached a row of shops. Kitty edged closer, ducking behind a chimney when the dog glanced around. A moment later, he disappeared from view. Cleo and Pumpkin scampered over to Kitty.

“Where did he go?” whispered Pumpkin.

Figaro puffed a little as he caught up. “He’s obviously a slippery sort of dog. He could be anywhere!”

Kitty crept to the corner of the building and found a metal staircase. “We can use this fire escape to get down.” She tiptoed down the steps, and the cats followed her.

The robber dog was hurrying down the street, the statue still clamped in his jaws. He stopped beside a shop, pushed the door open, and went inside.

Kitty followed him. She stared up at the store sign, which was lit by a streetlamp. “The Happy Paws Pet Shop,” she read aloud. “Do you think he lives here?”

THE HAPPY PAWS PET SHOP

Pumpkin’s eyes were wide. “Maybe he’s stealing for his owner.”

“Very odd!” said Figaro. “I haven’t heard much about this pet shop. I think it only opened a few months ago.”

Cleo sighed. Her gray fur was tinged with orange in the glow of the streetlight. “I should have done a better job. I wasn’t watching the museum carefully enough. I have to fix this!”

“You were doing a good job,” Kitty told her. “Let’s check the windows and find the best way to get inside.”

“Great idea! If we can take the thief by surprise—” Cleo fell silent as the door opened again.

The robber dog darted outside, his eyes wide and glazed. He scampered down the street and vanished into the dark.

“He doesn’t have the statue anymore,” said Kitty. “He must have left it inside!””

“There’s a way in over there.” Figaro pointed to an open window.

“You and Pumpkin should stand guard, ready to warn us if the thief returns,” said Cleo. “He may be a dangerous kind of dog.”

“Very well!” Figaro nodded. “Be careful, won’t you?”

“Don’t worry—we will!” Kitty scaled the side of the shop and peered through the window.

It was dark inside, and there was a great deal of shuffling and squeaking as the animals moved about inside their cages. Kitty slipped through the window. Then she climbed onto a cupboard and dropped soundlessly to the floor, helping Cleo down after her.

Moonlight reflected off the gray tiled floor. The shop was filled with dozens of cages—tall bird pens, guinea pig and rabbit hutches, and tortoise cages. Toward the back, shelves of pet food and bedding were hidden in darkness.

“Where do you think he left the treasure?” whispered Kitty.

Cleo sniffed the air. “It’s difficult to follow his scent. There are too many different animal smells in here.”

“Then we’ll just have to search.” Kitty looked around for possible hiding places. She pointed to the shop counter. “I’ll look over here.” But as she turned, she got the strange feeling that someone was watching her.