‘When they were two days old,’ Bones carried on with an effort, ‘he put them in a sack with a stone and tied it up with rope. Then he threw them into the sea. He was laughing when he did it.’
Atticus was horrified. He couldn’t believe anyone could be so cruel.
‘He only kept me because of my black fur. And even then he would say horrible things about me being a mongrel because I had tabby blood in me.’
Atticus had never particularly thought about what sort of cat he was. Of course, he knew that some breeds of cat like Persians and Siamese were pure-breeds. Mimi was one – she was a Burmese. But he’d never met anyone who thought it mattered. Cats were cats. Who cared what type you were? He put his paw reassuringly on top of Bones’s.
‘My poor mother never recovered,’ Bones said. ‘Two months later, when I was fully weaned, she died.’
Atticus felt like crying himself. It was the saddest story he’d ever heard. Even sadder than the mermaid’s.
‘I think the Captain would have had me killed too once he got a chance to replace me, but I took to the sea,’ Bones continued. ‘I learnt to sail and to navigate by the stars. The pirates showed me how to tie knots and read charts. I could climb up the rigging faster than any of them and hoist the Jolly Roger. They liked me,’ she said simply. ‘And the Captain’s luck continued, so he kept me on. He got richer and richer and greedier and greedier. He found sunken ships full of treasure. He raided boats and stole people’s money. As time went on he decided that I was indispensable – that I must be his new lucky charm after all. He’s too stupid to know that you make your own luck in life.’
It was true. Atticus had never really believed in magic or lucky charms, except the mermaid of course. Call it what you wanted: luck, fate, destiny even – like the ship. Mimi was right: life was about making the right decisions and learning from the wrong ones, like the one he’d made about the beard-jumper competition. He was starting to think he’d misjudged Bones. Maybe she did have a good reason for what she’d done after all. Or at least maybe she thought she did.
‘The two pirates I got on with best were Herman Tucker and Fishhook Frank,’ Bones said. ‘They’d seen what Black Beard-Jumper did to my brothers and sisters and they didn’t agree with it. They were kind. They brought me food and told me stories about countries I’d never seen. Black Beard-Jumper never let me ashore, you see, in case I tried to run away, like my mother.’
Atticus tried to imagine what it would be like to be stuck on a ship your entire life. He shivered. It was his idea of misery.
‘One night they told me they were going to leave. They said they were going to find a ship and go after treasure more valuable than anything Black Beard-Jumper had stolen. They asked me if I wanted to come with them. I suppose they saw from my reaction that I did. We took one of the lifeboats and rowed away from the Golden Doubloon back to shore. They bought a boat and set sail to find the casket.’ She paused. ‘You know about the legend of the mermaid?’
‘Mr Tucker told us,’ Atticus said.
Bones nodded. ‘From the port we sailed to the island we’ve just come from. Fishhook had an idea that was the starting point. He and Mr Tucker made the little wooden cabin in the clearing and a nice bed for me inside it. I used to go out hunting and fishing while they prepared for the voyage, and bring them things for tea. Eventually we set sail.’ Bones’s eyes were bright. ‘We had some adventures, I can tell you. Those man-eating plankton are a bunch of trouble!’
Atticus swallowed. He didn’t like the sound of them at all.
‘Well, anyway, to cut a long story short, we got as far as the sea guarded by the giant lobster. Then that terrible thing happened to Mr Tucker’s leg. We had to turn around.’
‘What, back through the man-eating plankton?’ Atticus queried.
‘No.’ Bones shook her head. ‘The magical sea creatures don’t disturb you if you sail away from the mermaid. There are no storms or hurricanes either. A few days later we dropped Mr Tucker off at the hospital on the mainland. He said once he was better he would return to Britain to be a fisherman. He said he wanted to settle down and get married.’ She smiled. ‘I’m glad he did. Mrs Tucker seems nice.’
‘She is,’ Atticus confirmed. ‘She used to be a secret agent called Whelk.’
‘Oh!’ Bones looked startled. ‘I didn’t know that. You don’t think she knows I chewed the cables, do you?’
‘Probably,’ Atticus said gloomily. ‘She always seems to know when I’ve done something wrong. Why did you chew the cables, anyway?’
‘I’m coming to that,’ Bones said. ‘After Mr Tucker left, Fishhook wanted to complete the voyage to find the casket. But I’d had enough of the sea. And I was worried about what might happen if we actually did find the mermaid. Once Mr Tucker had gone, Fishhook started behaving strangely. All he could talk about was treasure and being rich and all the things he would ask the mermaid for once we found her. I thought he was becoming more and more like the Captain …’
‘So you left?’ Atticus guessed.
‘Yes, I thought I’d be fine on my own. But I got into trouble for stealing food. The police came and put in me a cage and called me a stray. They took me to a place with a lot of other cats. That’s where the Captain found me. He reckoned his luck had changed without me. That wasn’t really it, though. He just didn’t want anyone else to have me. He took me back to the Golden Doubloon and clapped me in irons for a week. He said if I ever tried to escape again, he would kill me like he’d killed my brothers and sisters. Worse still, he said that he would seek out Herman Tucker and Fishhook Frank and kill them too. I had no choice. I had to stay and do what he told me.’ She looked at Atticus appealingly. ‘I was frightened.’
‘I don’t blame you,’ Atticus reassured her. And he didn’t. Not any more. Whatever Bones’s reason for chewing the cables, it wasn’t because she was loyal to Black Beard-Jumper. ‘That pirate’s a brute.’
‘Of course, Captain Black Beard-Jumper knew about the legend of the casket. But he didn’t know that Herman and Fishhook Frank had gone looking for it. And none of us knew that Fishhook had finally discovered it after all these years until the Captain found out he hadn’t been invited to this year’s World Beard-Jumper Competition …’ She paused. ‘Was that when he cursed poor Inspector Cheddar?’
‘Er, yes.’ Atticus shifted uncomfortably. He didn’t want to get into the whole cursing thing with Bones.
‘I thought so,’ Bones said. ‘Anyway, as soon as the Captain returned to the ship, he set sail to find Fishhook. He didn’t tell anyone else about where we were going. He said he didn’t trust any of the other pirates. Only Pam.’
‘Pam?’ Atticus repeated. ‘Who’s Pam?’
‘Pam’s his parrot.’ Bones grimaced. ‘She’s a nasty piece of work. The Captain thinks she’s clever because she can speak English. But I don’t like the way she’s been behaving recently. Not since those other birds arrived.’
‘What other birds?’
‘I can’t remember what they’re called.’ Bones frowned. ‘They look a bit like seagulls. Only they’re black and white. Toothless Tony got them from a melon seller in an Egyptian bazaar by mistake. He was supposed to buy parrots.’
A melon seller? In an Egyptian bazaar? With black-and-white birds? For real? Atticus could hardly believe it. ‘Their names wouldn’t happen to be Jimmy, Thug and Slasher, would they?’ he said grimly.
Bones stared at Atticus in astonishment. ‘How do you know?’ she exclaimed.
‘I’ll tell you another time,’ Atticus promised. ‘It’s a long story. They’re magpies, by the way. Thieving, scheming, cheating magpies.’ He frowned. ‘Do you think they know about the casket?’
‘I wouldn’t be surprised if Pam told them,’ Bones said thoughtfully. ‘She’s pretty close with the boss one – Jimmy.’ She giggled. ‘I think she fancies him.’
‘She must be nuts!’ Atticus joked. He was thinking hard. If Jimmy knew about the casket, he’d be plannin
g something with Thug and Slasher. The magpies would want to summon the mermaid before anyone else did. And Atticus was pretty certain one of their first wishes would be revenge on him!
‘Well, it didn’t take us long to find the island,’ Bones carried on with her story. ‘I don’t think the Captain had been there before but I remembered it from the first time with Fishhook and Mr Tucker.’ She shivered. ‘I went ashore with the Captain and some of the pirates. Fishhook tried to run when he saw who had come to rescue him. But he didn’t get far. Captain Black Beard-Jumper tied him up while the pirates searched the little log house. The Captain wanted to know if Fishhook had made a treasure map. The Captain didn’t believe him when he said he hadn’t. All pirates make treasure maps, he said. He was all for running Fishhook through with his cutlass there and then, but Fishhook said if he did that he might never find the casket. The Captain didn’t want to waste any more time. So he took Fishhook back to the ship.’
‘And left you?’ Atticus guessed.
‘Yes. My instructions were to stay on the island and keep a look-out. If I found a map, I was to destroy it. But I couldn’t find anything. I’m not as clever as you, Atticus. I still don’t know how you did it.’
Atticus shrugged modestly. ‘It was nothing,’ he murmured.
‘I’m sorry Michael thought it was me who found the map,’ Bones added. ‘You should have got the credit.’
‘It’s okay.’ Now he knew Bones’s history, Atticus could forgive her almost anything. One thing was still puzzling him though. ‘Why did you follow us? And why didn’t you come out of the jungle when you saw it was Mr Tucker?’
‘I wanted to,’ Bones said. ‘But I couldn’t. That’s where my real loyalty lies, you see, Atticus: to Herman Tucker. I thought if Mr Tucker didn’t find anything, he might give up and go home, where he’d be safe. If he went on and tried to find the casket and Fishhook, Black Beard-Jumper might kill him. I would have destroyed the map if I’d found it, to save him. Only you got there first. And that’s why,’ she said finally, ‘I destroyed the computer equipment instead.’ She looked at him wistfully. ‘I still thought Mr Tucker might turn back if he couldn’t radio for help.’
So that was it. She was trying to help Mr Tucker. She was loyal to him, after all. Atticus had been wrong. ‘He can’t turn back,’ Atticus said simply. ‘None of us can. The only way to cure Inspector Cheddar is to find the mermaid. We’ve got to go on. All of us.’
‘I understand now,’ Bones said. ‘They’re your family. You’d do anything to help them. You’re loyal to them. That’s what I feel like about Mr Tucker. He’s the only good thing I know.’
‘Not now he isn’t,’ Atticus said. ‘You know me. And the Cheddars. And Mrs Tucker.’ He felt as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Of course he wouldn’t leave Littleton-on-Sea. He must have been mad to even think about it. Mimi was right. The children didn’t blame him for what had happened. Nor did Mrs Cheddar or Mrs Tucker. They weren’t like that. They loved him. And he loved them.
Loyalty: it was really important. Most cats didn’t understand it properly. They liked their independence. But Mimi understood it. And so did Bones. And now he did too. Being part of the Cheddar family wouldn’t just stop once he’d saved Inspector Cheddar from the curse of the black spot. It was something that would last for the rest of his life.
‘You’re safe now, Bones,’ he said. ‘Once this is all over you must come back with us to Littleton-on-Sea. You’d like it there. Mr Tucker has a boat. You can meet the kittens.’ Atticus grinned at the thought. ‘They’re loads of fun.’
‘Thanks, Atticus,’ Bones said gratefully. ‘You’ve been so kind about all this.’ She hesitated. ‘Is there anything I can do to help you in return?’
‘As a matter of fact there is,’ Atticus said. ‘You can teach me to sail. I’ve got a feeling we’re going to need two ship’s cats where we’re going.’
Somewhere up ahead the Golden Doubloon had hit the Sea of Calamity. The pirates scurried to and fro across the deck in the darkness trying to keep control of the ship as the wind strained at the sails and the rained lashed at them like a whip.
Captain Black Beard-Jumper stood at the helm shouting commands. Pam sat on his shoulder keeping a watch on the men. Beside the Captain stood Fishhook Frank. His hair was long and his beard-jumper ragged from his time marooned on the island. His hands were tied behind his back. His expression was surly. Every now and then the Captain would bark a question at him. If he didn’t reply Pam would fly at him angrily and peck him on the nose until he talked.
‘Ready to go about!’ the Captain yelled.
The pirates ducked as the boom swung across and the ship changed tack. They took up their new positions as the ship crested the next wave and plunged into a trough.
The magpies huddled beside some crates that had been lashed to the deck, trying to keep out of the way.
‘Are we nearly there yet, Boss?’
Thug had his head over the side of the bucket in case he threw up. This time the bucket was full of pirate sick not dirty water. It kept sliding from side to side.
‘No!’ came Jimmy’s muffled reply. His wing was spread across his face to keep out the spray. He separated a few feathers and poked his beak out so he could talk to the others. ‘I already told you: this is the Sea of Calamity. After that we’ve got to navigate the Whirlpool of Doom, the Storm of Stupefaction and the Ocean of Terror.’
‘What’s that again?’ Slasher had a turn at the bucket.
The ship listed suddenly. The bucket overturned, trickling sick along the deck. Thug trod in it.
‘For goodness sake!’ Jimmy fluttered on to the top of the crates. He wriggled his tail under the tarpaulin. ‘The Ocean of Terror is where the man-eating plankton, the giant squid and the giant lobster live,’ he shouted. The wind whistled through his feathers.
‘Oh yeah.’ Slasher joined Jimmy on the crate. ‘Then there’s Volcano Island. Fishhook Frank told the Captain the casket’s there, right?’
Jimmy said nothing.
‘Help!’ Thug was flapping frantically. Every time he tried to land on the crate next to Slasher the wind pushed him off again. Eventually he managed it. ‘Move up!’
The three birds nestled under the tarpaulin. A disgusting smell of sick wafted up from Thug’s feet.
‘Whereabouts on Volcano Island?’ Slasher asked, resuming their conversation.
‘I don’t know,’ Jimmy snapped.
‘What do you mean you don’t know?’ Slasher frowned. ‘I thought Pam told you everything.’
Since the arrival of Fishhook Frank on board the Golden Doubloon, Jimmy’s information had been coming freely from Pam on a daily basis. Until that morning.
Thug chortled. ‘Your girlfriend got the hump with you, has she, Boss? Is that why she’s in such a bad mood?’
The magpies watched as Pam took another nibble at Fishhook Frank.
‘Yeah, what’s happened, Boss?’ Slasher asked. ‘You two had a row?’
‘She wants to get married,’ Jimmy said sourly.
‘Married?’ Thug repeated. ‘What, you and Pam?’
‘Yes,’ Jimmy said. ‘Me and Pam.’
Thug and Slasher fell about laughing. ‘Chaka-chaka-chaka-chaka-chaka!’
‘Shut up!’ Jimmy tried to punch them both in the crop. It didn’t work very well in the cramped space under the tarpaulin but it still hurt.
‘Sorry, Boss,’ Thug wheezed. ‘What I meant to say was congratul-hations!’
‘Yeah, many happy returns.’ Slasher tried to shake Jimmy’s wing.
Jimmy kicked him in the shins.
‘I love weddings!’ Thug gushed. ‘Can I wear a hat?’
‘We could have worm cake!’ Slasher said enthusiastically. ‘With beetle-shell sprinkles.’
‘And confetti!’ Thug gasped. ‘I love that stuff! It’s all pretty, like snow.’
The two magpies were beginning to warm to the idea.
‘Can we invite so
me baby blackbirds to scare?’ Slasher begged.
‘Can we have a knicker trampoline?’ Thug pleaded.
‘There’s not going to be a wedding,’ Jimmy snapped.
Thug and Slasher exchanged looks. It was always important to read Jimmy’s moods correctly, especially if you didn’t want to be pushed into a puddle of pirate sick. They tried a different approach.
‘I can’t say I blame you,’ Thug said. ‘She’s horribly ugly. Her face looks like she’s been run over by a steam roller.’
‘Yeah and she’s got a bum like Wally’s,’ Slasher said, remembering their old friend. Wally’s turbo-charged poo-packed bum was legendary amongst the magpie gang. ‘Imagine having to share a nest with that!’
Thug grimaced. ‘Nasty, Slasher my friend,’ he agreed. ‘Very nasty.’
‘The problem is,’ Jimmy said dismally, ‘if I don’t marry her, she won’t tell me where the casket is.’
Thug and Slasher glanced at one another. A bit like the ship, Jimmy’s mood had changed direction again.
‘Looks like you’ll have to do what she wants, then, Boss,’ Slasher spoke hesitantly. ‘If that’s the only way to be certain we’ll get to the mermaid first. I mean, we don’t want to take any risks.’ He nudged Thug.
‘She’s not that bad,’ Thug said generously. ‘Apart from the way she picks her beak and eats her own droppings.’
Jimmy shuddered.
‘I’d marry her myself,’ Slasher said, ‘only she hates me.’
‘Look at it this way, Boss,’ Thug said wisely, ‘once you’ve summoned the mermaid you can ask for what you want, right?’
‘Right,’ Jimmy said cautiously.
‘So the first thing you ask her for is to send Pam to prison …’
‘Or Patagonia,’ Slasher suggested.
‘Yeah, whatever that is,’ Thug agreed. ‘Get rid of her anyway.’
‘I suppose so,’ Jimmy said.
‘Then the next thing you ask for is one of them lovely sunny holidays in the Caribbean with your mates,’ Slasher said.
Atticus Claw Goes Ashore Page 8
