100% Wolf (13 page)

If he was lucky he could just about nudge his way
out...

'Oh no, oh no ...'

He crashed onto the corridor floor with a heavy thud
but managed not to groan. He turned and saw Hamish
and Bruno's beaming smiles and wagging tails. He was
out!

'So far, so brilliant,' he whispered. He gave them a
grin and began creeping down the corridor. Despite
the noise, the dogs in the other cells seemed to be fast
asleep. Freddy held his breath as he tiptoed along the
walkway to the Commander's office. To his left was
the main iron door, through which he and Batty had
entered on their first day. In it was a smaller wooden
door, like a large cat flap.

'Ho ho, Cerberus!' Freddy laughed. This was
obviously how the guard dog came and went. There
was a bolt on the flap, which Freddy quickly locked.

He felt less nervous now that Cerberus had been
dealt with so easily. Slowly he opened the office door
and peeped inside. The room was dark and silent,
but from beyond another door came the sound of a
television. With his heart beating fast, Freddy reached
for the light switch and turned it on.

'So far, not so hard,' he laughed to himself with
relief. 'Now, the keys! Where are the keys?'

Freddy opened and closed drawers and cupboards,
but he couldn't find any keys. He turned to face a
painting on the wall, a cutesy picture of fluffy puppies
flopped onto flowers.

'Why would a mean old lady who hates dogs have
that on her wall? Unless ...'

Freddy reached up and pulled aside the painting.
Behind it was a hidden cupboard.

'Unless it's a sick joke,' he smiled as he saw a large
bunch of keys. They each had a cell number fixed on them
with sticky tape. There was also a larger, older, heavier
key with no label, and with it a much smaller one.

There was a heavy thump from outside followed
by an almighty roar of anger.

'Great howls,' Freddy cried. 'Cerberus.'

The wolfhound had not been pleased to discover
his door was locked by running headlong into it.
Freddy heard a door click behind him and felt a rush
of panic. He turned to see the Commander point at
him and scream. Freddy ran and fell over a small table
with a crash.

'A burglar boy. A naked burglar boy,' she gasped.

'Naked?'
Freddy cried, looking down in horror. He
quickly snatched up a cushion and covered himself.
He had spent so long as a dog he had completely
forgotten about his clothes.

'Please don't panic. I'm not a burglar, I'm a poodle,'
he protested, trying to calm the frantic woman.

'I'm calling the police,' the Commander cried before
racing back into the other room and slamming the
door closed. Freddy jumped into action and wedged
a wooden chair tightly under the door handle.

'That should keep her in. Now I'm going to end up
in human jail!' he muttered to himself.

He looked down the long corridor. The coast
was clear. He could see all the dogs' muzzles poking
through the bars on either side. He began to run down
towards the far end to the dungeon door. By now all
the dogs were awake and alert and volleys of barks
followed as he passed. Unknown to him, the word
was spreading. Hamish and Bruno barked to their
neighbours and they to theirs.

'He's the poodle.'

'The pink one?'

'A boy?'

'And a wolf.'

'How?'

'No-one knows.'

Freddy reached the door that led down to the
dungeon. As he did he heard a mighty crash behind
him and turned in terror to see Cerberus at the far
end of the corridor. The wolfhound saw the boy with
the pink hair, smelled the air and understood. St John
had been right. He gave a savage grin.

'Great bubbling farts!' Freddy gasped. He turned
to try the large old key in the lock, but in his panic
dropped it. The dogs began to bark in warning as
Cerberus ran past them towards Freddy. The cries
were almost deafening but above them all Freddy
could hear the hideous scrape of claws on stone
behind him.

Freddy reached for the key.

With a roar of hatred Cerberus leapt into the air.

Freddy turned the lock and slipped through the
door just before the wolfhound slammed into it. The
force of the dog's body banged the door closed and
threw the boy down the slippery cold stairs. He landed
with a groan at the bottom, the keys still clutched
tightly in his trembling hand.

'So far, so terrifying,' he squeaked in relief and
dragged himself shakily to his feet.

Freddy found a light switch in the dark stairwell. A
weak yellow glow illuminated the solid door that led
to the dungeon below. Freddy tugged at the bolt with
all his might.

The wolf beyond gave a low growl.

'Don't worry, Dad, it's me.'

The bolt shot open.

'Ha-ha-hardy-ha,' Freddy cried in triumph and
pushed open the dungeon door.

There, blinking in the light, stood his father, his
tail wagging proudly. Now Freddy could see how
badly the wolf had suffered. He was still huge, but
thinner than he should have been. Strong streaks of
grey lay in what had appeared to be a jet-black coat.
Freddy knew he had been right in refusing to leave his
father behind.

'So far, so great,' Freddy walked forward nervously.
The wolf lunged and Freddy gave a cry as he was
pushed to the ground. The wolf's fangs reached for him
... Flasheart licked his forehead and with a heavy paw
ruffled his hair. The wolf gave a deep rasping laugh.

'Very funny!' Freddy said grumpily, but then
laughed too.

They were interrupted by the sound of distant sirens.

'The police!' Freddy cried. 'We have to go, Dad.'

He walked to the wall where the wolf's heavy chain
was padlocked to a metal ring. With a silent prayer
Freddy tried the smaller key. Perfect! He laughed with
relief and the wolf howled loudly as the huge padlock
fell easily to the floor. With some difficulty Freddy
pulled the chain out of the hoop on the wolf's collar,
and at last Flasheart was free. He scooted around the
small room, flexing his stiff muscles.

'Dad, Cerberus is outside waiting for us,' Freddy
whispered nervously. 'Do you understand?'

The wolf flicked his ears.
Yes.

Freddy looked at his father with concern. He was
bigger than Cerberus but thin and who knew how
much weakened by his years in the dungeon.

The wolf pushed Freddy aside with his muzzle and
nodded urgently at the door. Freddy reached forward
and opened the upper door quickly.

Hamish and Bruno were straining their muzzles
through the bars of their cell to see.

Cerberus was standing and glaring at the door –
waiting, just waiting. He knew there was no other way
out for the poodle-boy and he was going to tear him
limb from limb. An extra worry heightened the tension
among the dogs. They all knew that beyond the door
the ghost hound stalked. Poor Freddy poodle-boy. He
had to come out and face Cerberus soon, or else stay
below with a hellhound.

Crash!

Without warning the door flew open. The dogs
barked and Cerberus growled. They all expected to
see a frightened human pup emerge. But no!

Flasheart Lupin, the great black wolf, leapt out with
a terrifying snarl and Cerberus jumped back in shock.
The dogs yapped and howled in fright and confusion.
Even Hamish and Bruno, who had been told what to
expect, could hardly believe it.

'The ghost hound! The ghost hound!' was the howl
from the crazed dogs.

Cerberus knew better than that, of course – he
knew of the wolf below. He soon recovered himself
and the two huge beasts snarled and scowled at each
other. Flasheart was the larger animal but Cerberus was
heavy, well-fed, mean and strong. Freddy watched with
a pounding heart from behind the half-closed door.

'Be careful, Dad,' he whispered to himself.

Cerberus flung himself at the wolf and the two
animals rolled over in a dangerous and savage
embrace. Freddy heard the police siren again, nearer
this time. With no time to waste, he carefully inched
past the fighting beasts and ran towards his old cell.
He opened the door, and Hamish and Bruno ran out.

Freddy turned back to see his father limping, blood
running from a deep wound in his rear leg. Cerberus
was tensed, ready for another attack.

'Dad, lead him here,' he called. Flasheart turned
around so that he was nearer to the cell. He began
to walk backwards towards Freddy. Seeing his prey
retreating, Cerberus flung himself at the wolf once
again and the pair rolled over. Inch by inch Flasheart
pushed the wolfhound towards the open door. When
they were close enough, Freddy cried out:

'Hey, Cerberus, bite this.' He waggled his bare
backside at his enemy.

The guard dog turned towards the boy in outrage
and as he did, the wolf lunged and knocked him into
the cell. Freddy slammed the door. In a fury Cerberus
threw himself against the bars and Flasheart pushed
back. Cerberus howled in outrage. Freddy struggled
with the lock, but the door just wouldn't close.
Bruno and Hamish flung themselves against the bars
enthusiastically and finally the door snapped shut.

'We've done it,' Freddy cried in triumph.

Cerberus snarled and spat threats from behind the
bars as Freddy flung his arms around the wounded
wolf's neck. All the dogs erupted into barks and howls.
Freddy didn't need to understand the woofs to know
they were cheering. Cerberus was where he belonged
at last.

At that moment, Dr Cripp was crossing the bridge that
led across the moat of Farfang Castle. He crept over,
sweating with nerves. Quickly he scurried into the
shadows of the high walls, then Cripp jumped back
in fright as the heavy oak door creaked open.

'Go on then, do it. You daren't!' a young boy's voice
whispered.

'Of course I dare, dunderbrain!' answered a girl.

The next moment a plump, pink, red-headed girl
ran out of the castle and onto the bridge. She had a
bundle of clean laundry in her arms and she threw
it with a cry of delight into the water of the moat
below. The boy peeked his head out from the door
and shrieked with delight as he saw several pairs of
Mrs Mutton's enormous knickers floating away. They
had just made a raid on the housekeeper's ironing
pile. The twins roared with laughter at their joke, and
then disappeared inside. The door, however, did not
quite close behind them and, after a furtive glance,
Dr Cripp opened it and stepped inside the castle.
He took a coil of wire from his pocket. He planned on
making some traps for these wolves.

While Cerberus snarled venomously from his cell,
Freddy released all the other dogs. He then held
up his two thumbs to Hamish and Bruno and
winked, just as he'd promised. The terrier barked
out instructions to the dogs around him. Quickly the
noisy rabble organised into two columns of excited
but quiet dogs. The oldest, smallest and slowest
dogs stood behind Hamish. Bruno, looking proud
and eager, marshalled the fastest, fittest animals.
As they passed him, Cerberus flung himself against
the bars, promising vengeance on Freddy. The boy
just laughed at him and once again waggled his bare
backside. Cerberus's reign was over at last.

'Okay, Dad?' Freddy called.

As Flasheart walked slowly up the corridor the dogs
parted around him in awe. Hamish had explained by
now that he wasn't a ghost hound but a wolf. Not
just a wolf, but one twice the size of any normal wolf.
Usually he would be an animal to be feared and hated,
but he had overcome the dreaded Cerberus and helped
them to escape. They were nervous but respectful of
him.

Freddy unbolted the outside door and as he did
he saw the Commander's raincoat hanging nearby. It
was pink.

'Well, it is my colour,' he laughed as he slipped it
on. It wouldn't do to be seen naked in Milford.

'Okay, here we go,' he called nervously and flung
open the door. The police were waiting. Their torches
flooded the courtyard with light.

The portcullis that guarded the entrance to Coldfax
Fort was firmly shut.

'Wait here, Dad, while I see how to open it. When
I give the signal, charge as fast as you can.'

Flasheart flapped his ears in reply. Bruno and
Hamish kept their columns behind the wolf. Freddy
ran towards a small door next to the portcullis.

A policeman spotted him immediately. 'Oi, you
there!'

'Sorry, can't stop,' Freddy called gaily.

'Sergeant Green here. Open this door. Immediately,'
the policeman called.

Ignoring him, Freddy ducked inside. It wasn't
hard to see how to open the gate. A heavy chain was
wrapped around a wheel and then disappeared up
into the ceiling. It was connected to a motor with a
red button and a green button.

'So far, so easy-peasy,' he laughed.

Freddy pushed the green button. The engine
started to hum as it rattled into life and the chain went
tight around the wheel. Freddy ran back outside to
see if anything had happened.

'Open this gate this instant!' the policeman was
now roaring.

'I'm trying to,' Freddy said. He stood in the centre
of the courtyard with the lights trained upon him and
watched the portcullis anxiously. If it didn't open they
would never get away. With a huge creaking groan the
chain began to winch the heavy iron grille up. Once
under way, it began to rise rapidly.

'Now, sonny. What are you doing in here?' the
policeman asked as he waited for the gate to rise.

'Breaking out,' Freddy smiled cheekily, his pink
hair blowing in the wind.

The policeman laughed.

'I'm afraid I can't give you permission to do that,
son.'

'That's okay. I'm not asking for it,' Freddy replied.
He was an outlaw to make Batty proud.

'Now, Dad. Go! Go!' he called at the top of his
voice.

'Not one dog is leaving these premises ...' the
sergeant said sternly. Then his face dropped in horrible
surprise.

Flying towards him across the courtyard was a
huge and savage black wolf followed by an army of
dogs, all barking and snarling like wild beasts.

'Charge!' Freddy cried, running towards the
opening gate.

'Close the gate. Close the gate,' the other police
called in panic.

'Too late! Run away, run away.'

The terrified policemen ran around trying to escape.
Two tried to climb in through the same car door but
only succeeded in colliding with each other and falling
back onto the floor. Another two took off into the
woods. Sergeant Green stood frozen with terror as
the enormous wolf approached him. He gave a rising
cry as the animal halted at his feet. The wolf gave a
fiendish grin, its green eyes glinting, as Freddy jumped
onto its back.

'Not
one
dog is leaving, but a
hundred
are,' Freddy
laughed. 'Ha-ha-hardy-ha!' The huge wolf howled at
the moon. The poor sergeant had had enough – he
turned tail and took off at full speed into the woods.

'We did it! We did it!' Freddy roared in triumph.
'I
am
the Plan Master!'

Some time later, the light of the moon shone down
upon a pack of dogs streaming over fields and through
woods. Freddy sat astride Flasheart, holding on for all
he was worth as the huge animal leapt ditches and
dykes, hardly slowed by his injured leg. The heat
from the moonbeams was already healing the wound
on the great wolf's leg and his old strength was
returning. The grey streaks in his fur were fading
as his Fangen blood pulsed. Behind them, Bruno led
his column of fighting-fit dogs through the night.
They hurtled towards Farfang Castle, Sir Hotspur and
Dr Cripp, towards danger and a friend in need.

'We're coming, Batty,' Freddy called. 'We're coming
at last!'

The charge halted a few metres short of the castle
gate. Freddy's tower was silhouetted against the moonlit
sky. The dogs collapsed on the ground for a moment
to recover their breath. Freddy jumped off his father's
back and felt a rush of relief to be home again. The
grounds of Farfang Castle were well secured to keep
out nosy neighbours. The gate could be opened from
the outside only by typing a code into the electronic
keypad. However, a strange-looking device with
flashing neon signals had been attached to the controls
and they no longer worked. The gate was slightly
ajar. Someone had broken in.
Cripp!
Urgently Freddy
pushed the gate wide to let the dogs in.

Flasheart raised his nose and sniffed the night air;
he could smell his home for the first time in six years.
He put back his ears and howled. Dark clouds were
dragging across the three-quarter moon. The air was
colder and the wind rising. The wolf's howls echoed
eerily through the air. Bruno and the other dogs paused
and looked at each other, then they raced forward and
into grounds of the House of Howls.

In his study, Sir Hotspur awoke with a start. His
newspaper had fallen over his head.

'Flasheart?' he croaked.

There was no mistaking that howl. He jumped up
quickly and glared out of the window.

'I warned you
never
to return to Farfang Castle.
Never never, sir!'

He reached inside a desk drawer and took out a
tiny gun.

'Cripp isn't the only one with silver bullets.'

'Bruno, here boy,' Freddy called.

The boxer approached suspiciously. All the dogs
were extremely nervous at being there, in the grounds
of the Red Wolf. Batty was right, they all knew and
feared this place.

'Find Batty, find Batty,' Freddy hissed urgently,
pointing his finger towards the woods. Bruno only
looked at him in confusion. Freddy groaned and for
once wished he was a dog again.

'Batty! Batty! Find!' he repeated loudly.

Just when there seemed no chance of getting
through to the dim hound, the boxer's ears pinged
high. In a second he had barked out instructions to his
companions. The dogs immediately ran in all directions
to search for Batty. With his nose on the ground, Bruno
began to move slowly towards the castle. On the lawn,
he picked up a trail and barked excitedly. Flasheart
and Freddy followed him as he took off at top speed
towards the woods. They ran into a clearing behind
the castle, and Flasheart growled in fury.

'Is she here, Dad?' Freddy whispered, his stomach
aching with nerves. It was now hours since Cripp had
taken Batty. Who knew what the evil coward might
have done to her.

Drops of heavy rain began to fall as Bruno appeared
on the edge of the clearing and gave an urgent gruff.
Freddy and his father followed as he jumped back
into a dark thicket. There in the gloom, Freddy
could make out a small body lying motionless on the
ground. He crept forward, dreading the truth. Bruno
was whimpering pathetically and pushing his nose
against the body.

'Batty?' Freddy called gently, but there was no
response.

As he drew nearer he was overpowered by the
most repulsive stench. Flasheart stopped immediately
and howled in pain. Several bundles of a green herb
with dull yellow flowers were strewn around the still
animal.

'Wolf's bane!'
Freddy cried. The stench was worse
than a thousand rotten egg farts. The wolf wouldn't
move a step nearer, for to his sensitive nose it was
practically poisonous. Freddy held his breath and
kicked the bundles as far away as he could.

He then crept forward and knelt down next to Batty.
The muzzle was still over her mouth and her lead was
tied to a tree. She didn't seem to be breathing.

'Oh, Batty!' Freddy cried, tears streaming down his
face. 'I'm too late. I'm so sorry.'

How could that hateful man have killed such
a beautiful dog? Batty's long black-and-white hair
had fallen over her eyes. Freddy pushed it away and
hugged his best friend.