Tramp froze.
“Get your paws off my stuff.”
Slowly, Tramp turned around. Towering behind him was Isaac. The brawny dog’s lips were curled up, revealing sharp teeth. Tramp let the sausage drop from his mouth as he took a few steps back. “Isaac!” he said, laying on the charm. “I was just looking for you. How are you, my big, sweet, kind, pugnacious friend?”
“Do I look like a pug to you?” Isaac snarled.
Tramp bit back a laugh. “No—I…” He started to explain and then thought better of it. “Never mind.” The big dog’s brains did not match his body.
Puffing up his chest, Isaac stalked closer to Tramp. There were two things Isaac hated—being made fun of and having his stuff taken. Right then, Tramp seemed to be doing both, and Isaac did not like it one bit.
“Someone has been stealing from my stash,” he said. “Should have known it would be a dirty tramp like you.”
Tramp put on his most innocent face. “You think I was stealing? C’mon, Isaac, I’m no thief!”
Isaac eyed the sausages. “Then what are you doing with those?”
Looking down at the string of sausages at his feet, Tramp hesitated. The last thing he wanted was to have Isaac after him for the rest of the day. Think, think, Tramp chanted to himself in his head. Then he smiled. That was it! He just had to outthink Isaac. That couldn’t be too hard.
Taking a deep breath, as if he had just had a great revelation, Tramp tapped the sausages. “Oh! I see what happened!” he said. “No, see, these are my sausages.”
Isaac cocked his head. “What?” He was clearly confused—which was just how Tramp wanted him.
“I heard someone was lifting your stuff,” Tramp went on. He lowered his voice and added, as though it were a secret, “A lot of the dogs are talking about it.”
There was something Isaac hated even more than having his stuff stolen and being made fun of, and that was other dogs talking about him behind his back. “Who’s talking?” he growled.
Tramp pushed ahead, mentioning quickly—very quickly—that he had, of course, not wanted Isaac to go hungry or be made a fool of because his sausages were being taken. So out of the kindness of his heart, he had brought his own sausages to share.
“Share?” Isaac asked.
Tramp nodded. “How does half sound?”
Isaac shook his head. “Nice try, smart guy,” he said, “but I’m going to take a lot more than half your sausages.”
“How about sixty–forty?” Tramp said as though it were really kind of him even to offer that. In reality, he was still winning out.
“Seventy–forty,” Isaac countered.
Tramp pretended to give in. He pushed just slightly more than half toward Isaac, then gathered the rest of the sausages for himself. “Serves me right, trying to match wits with you. You just talked me out of half my sausages.”
Eager to get out while the getting was good, Tramp headed out of the alley. Another narrow escape. The morning really was off to a good start.
The rest of the morning was more of the same. Stopping by the park, Tramp eyed a gentleman sitting on one of the many benches that lined the paths. A sandwich was placed on a piece of parchment paper beside him. Tramp’s mouth watered. The sausages had been tasty, but Tramp was always up for a bite. While the owner was distracted, Tramp nabbed the sandwich. Trotting away, he had only made it to the other corner of the park before he lost his snack. Two stray puppies, eyes wide and ribs showing, stared up at him—or, rather, at his sandwich.
“Come on,” Tramp said. “Don’t give me that look.”
But it was no use. He didn’t have the heart to say no—even if he had invented that look. Tossing the pups his sandwich, Tramp continued on his way. This was a wandering day. It was beautiful—sunny, not too hot, not too cold. He made his way along River Street, then turned down another alley behind Restaurant Row. This was his favorite spot in the city. The alley was a treasure trove of leftover food. Tramp could sample French cuisine or have some good old-fashioned American fare. But his favorite was Tony’s Restaurant. There was always something tasty waiting for him behind the Italian restaurant.
Approaching the back door of the restaurant, Tramp spotted Joe. The young man had been working at the restaurant for as long as Tramp could remember. Tramp barked, and Joe looked up from scraping leftovers and smiled. He grabbed a large meaty bone and held it up. “Here you go, Butch,” he said, tossing the bone to Tramp.
Tramp grabbed the bone in one swift and easy move. Then, with a bark of thanks and a wag of his tail, he moved along. There was no doubt about it: Tramp ran this town.
Not everyone agreed that Tramp was the king of the town. In fact, the local dogcatcher, Elliott, thought Tramp was nothing but trouble.
Spotting the dogcatcher standing in front of a store window, Tramp ducked into the shadows. Elliott’s brow was furrowed as he taped a piece of paper to the glass. Stepping back, he admired his handiwork. On the paper were several pictures of dogs and a number to call if a stray was spotted. Tramp made out the word “dangerous.” He laughed. That was a bit ridiculous. The most dangerous thing he knew was Elliott—not the dogs he pulled off the street.
Careful to stay out of sight, Tramp made his way across the street to Elliott’s parked paddy wagon. The big vehicle looked innocent enough—until you got close and saw the bars on the back and heard the whimpers of captured animals coming from inside.
“Hiya, handsome,” someone said from inside the truck.
Tiptoeing over, Tramp saw his pals Peg and Bull. The Lhasa apso and the rough-and-tumble bulldog were staring at him through the bars. “C’mon,” Tramp said, moving closer. “What happened?” The pair had been on the street as long as he had. They knew better than to get caught.
Bull shrugged his thick shoulders. “I had the idea to summer at the pound. Get off the streets for a bit, rest the rump…” He stopped. “What does it look like? We got caught!”
Beside him, Peg began to groom herself, trying to get her usually tamed coat back into some order. The fur was going every which way. Peg prided herself on always looking good. She was probably more upset about her coat than being stuck in the truck. “Some nerve of that guy,” Peg said, confirming Tramp’s thoughts about Elliott. “You think this hair styles itself?”
Tramp shook his head. “You guys make it too easy on him when you hang together,” he whispered. Peg and Bull, while an unlikely pair, were helplessly attached to each other. That was not Tramp’s style.
“We can’t all play lone wolf,” Peg replied, as if reading Tramp’s thoughts.
“I’m sorry. Was that a compliment?” Tramp teased, flashing Peg a charming smile. “Because I don’t mind the way ‘wolf’ sounds.”
Peg wasn’t biting. She knew Tramp’s act, and she didn’t have time for it that day. She needed him to get them out. Lucky for her, Tramp was feeling up for a challenge.
He paced back and forth in front of the truck, trying to think of a plan. He needed something that would get Elliott’s attention but leave him with a way out. The last thing he wanted was to free Peg and Bull and end up captured himself. Finally, he settled on a plan that was an oldie but a goodie.
He dropped to the ground and lay down. Then he began to whimper. By the store window, Elliott’s head snapped to attention. Elliott moved across the street, walked around the truck, and spotted Tramp.
“C’mon, at least give me a challenge.” He got closer and knelt down. When Tramp didn’t make a move to get away, Elliott smiled. He slipped his arms under Tramp and lifted him.
Instantly, Tramp went limp, causing Elliott’s legs to buckle. The man groaned as he struggled under Tramp’s weight. Tramp made himself even limper. Elliott awkwardly moved closer to the back door of the truck. He unlocked the door—just as Tramp leaped from his arms and darted across the street.
Elliott shouted in surprise. He looked from his now empty arms to the dog, who no longer seemed hurt at all. His eyes narrowed. The do
g had tricked him.
Pleased with his successful distraction, Tramp wagged his tail, then turned and took off down the street. Behind him, he heard Elliott muttering to himself as he grabbed his net and followed Tramp.
The chase was on.
Just like in the train yard, Tramp had the advantage. He knew the streets better than Elliott—better than anyone. Spotting a passing trolley car, Tramp leaped into it and dodged and weaved his way among the passengers’ legs. Elliott followed. But the man’s bulky frame made it hard for him to move quickly. Men and women let out angry cries as they were pushed out of the way.
“Clear a path,” Elliott said. “Animal control officer coming through.”
No one moved—except Tramp.
Making his way to the other end of the trolley, Tramp looked over his shoulder. Elliott’s eyes landed on him. They narrowed. Tramp barked once and then jumped from the trolley car onto the back of a passing delivery truck.
As the truck continued on, the driver was unaware of his new passenger. Tramp glanced back at the trolley car. Elliott stood in the doorway, his hand raised in the air, his face a mask of anger. Tramp smiled. Now he just had to hope the distraction had given Peg and Bull time to get away.
He lay down and closed his eyes as the truck headed into the nice part of town. He would take a quick nap. It had been a busy morning.
Lady was confused. Her house was full of people, but none of them were paying attention to her. Pink and blue balloons floated above the dining room table, which was covered in food—cupcakes, little sandwiches, and fruit. The living room was full of presents, and women giggled and chatted with each other.
At the top of the stairs, Lady stood and watched, leash in her mouth. She had been waiting forever for Jim Dear to take her on their morning walk. Every time he passed by, Lady wagged her tail excitedly and jingled the leash. But he didn’t notice. He kept tugging nervously at his suit, and his face was pale. So why didn’t he take her on a walk? Lady wondered. It would make them both feel better.
Lady ran down the stairs and headed toward the living room. Maybe Darling would take her out. But when she walked into the room, she saw that Darling, whose belly had grown quite large, was sitting on the couch, surrounded by women.
Walking over, Lady tried to get Darling’s attention. It was hard. Darling was surrounded by blue and pink and yellow packages. “Oh, my goodness!” Darling said happily. “It’s adorable.”
Assuming Darling meant her, Lady looked up happily. But her smile faded as she saw that Darling was talking about a small stuffed bear, not her. She gingerly stepped between the presents, trying to get closer. She had almost made it to Darling’s side when she heard a commotion at the door.
A moment later, Aunt Sarah waltzed in. Lady had met Aunt Sarah only once. But she didn’t like her. The woman smelled like cat, and she spoke fast and loudly. From the look on Darling’s face, she could tell her human wasn’t thrilled to see Aunt Sarah, either.
“Aunt Sarah,” Darling said. “You made it.”
Aunt Sarah pushed her way through the other women to get to Darling. She leaned down and gave Darling a kiss on each cheek before plopping herself onto the couch. Another woman who had been sitting there was forced to move.
“Of course,” Aunt Sarah said. She paused, looking around the room. “Your house is very…modern. Don’t worry, it takes time to develop an eye for these things.” Lady didn’t like the tone of Aunt Sarah’s voice. She sounded unimpressed. Lady loved her house and knew Darling did, too. Before Darling could respond, Aunt Sarah shoved a present at her. “This is for you.”
Darling carefully unwrapped the present. She lifted the object out of the wrapping. Lady cocked her head. It was a big vase.
“Oh, wow,” Darling said, “it’s an—”
“Original majolica,” Aunt Sarah finished, looking incredibly pleased with herself. “It’ll do wonders for this room. And I knew Jim couldn’t afford one with the salary of a—”
“Musician?” Darling finished. On the floor, Lady tensed. Darling seemed upset. Wanting to comfort her, Lady moved closer and then hopped up onto the couch. The movement nearly knocked the vase out of Darling’s hands.
“Careful! This is priceless!” Aunt Sarah snapped as Lady tried to make herself comfortable. “That dog needs to be trained.”
Expecting Darling to come to her defense—Lady was very well trained—she was surprised when Darling picked her up and put her back on the floor. “Not now, Lady,” she said.
Lady walked away, embarrassed. First Jim wouldn’t give her a walk. Now Darling acted like she wanted nothing to do with her. What was going on?
Since no one seemed to want her around, Lady decided to go outside. Maybe Trusty or Jock would be home and could explain why everyone was acting so funny. Slipping through the doggy door, Lady made her way to the vine-covered fence. On the other side she heard a rustling noise. Trusty must be sniffing for something. “Hey, Trusty,” she called out.
The big bloodhound didn’t respond. But Lady went on anyway. “Something strange is going on,” she began. “There’s a bunch of toys, and none of them are for me. And I just jumped onto Darling’s lap like I always do, but this time…she snapped at me.” Lady paused. Saying the words out loud made her feel terrible all over again. “And Jim Dear? Well, he seems normal, but I smell fear on him all the time.” She paused, waiting for Trusty to say something. He was quiet. “I’m overreacting, aren’t I?”
“Uh, no. You aren’t overreacting.”
Lady’s head snapped up. That wasn’t Trusty’s voice! As she peered through a hole in the fence, her eyes widened. On the other side was a dog she had never seen before. He was a mutt with big brown eyes and a rough coat. One of his ears flopped down, giving him a playful look. He was handsome, in a rough-and-tumble way, Lady thought. Then she shook her head. Why was she thinking about him being handsome? He had just eavesdropped on her private—well, sort of private—thoughts.
“Who are you?” she asked. “Where’s Trusty?”
The dog scrambled up and over the fence, then landed on the ground in front of Lady. He gave her a charming grin. “Let me explain…” he said.
Lady didn’t let him finish. She began to bark.
“Easy, easy,” Tramp said, holding up a paw to calm down the dog in front of him.
When he had woken up in the back of the delivery truck miles from downtown, he hadn’t been worried. He had figured he would just take a leisurely walk home, look at some nice houses. He hadn’t expected to get distracted by a pretty little dog with a barking problem.
“You’re overreacting,” he said. If she kept it up, Elliott, who was probably still looking for him, would find him. “Could you please stop overreacting?”
Hearing Elliott’s paddy wagon coming down the street, Tramp shifted nervously on his feet. He needed the dog to stop barking—now. “I get it,” he said, trying to keep his voice calm. “You think I’m here to make trouble. I’m the one in trouble.”
As if on cue, Elliott’s net poked into view.
At the same time, the back door to the house opened and a man’s head popped out. Quickly, Tramp scrambled backward, wedging his lanky body into the doghouse.
“Everything all right, Lady?” the man called out to the pretty cocker spaniel staring daggers at Tramp.
Lady gave a bark.
“That your dog barking?” the dogcatcher asked. Tramp saw Elliott walking around from the other side of the fence. The man’s beady little eyes were narrowed as they scanned the lawn.
“Yeah, she’s mine,” the man answered.
Elliott frowned. “Seen anything else? I’m looking for a dangerous animal around here.”
Inside the doghouse, Tramp bit back a laugh. The man on the porch seemed to find the statement funny, too. He made a face. “Like a bear?” he asked, clearly teasing the dogcatcher.
Elliott missed the sarcasm. “Worse,” he said very seriously. “A stray dog.”
The
man walked down the steps of the porch and over to Lady. “You barking at a stray, Lady?”
For one long moment, Tramp was sure Lady was going to tell on him. He looked at her, his eyes wide, begging her silently to keep him safe. Finally, she wagged her tail. Taking that as a no, the man turned back to the dogcatcher. “Nope,” he said. “Everything seems to be fine.” Giving Lady a pat on the head, the man began to usher the dogcatcher out of the yard.
The backyard grew quiet.
Tramp squeezed himself out of the doghouse and approached Lady. “Thanks,” he said. “I owe you one.”
Lady looked at him. She did not seem impressed. “You owe me more than one, I’d say.”
Tramp shrugged. She was probably right. With the danger gone, he could finally take a serious look around the yard. It was neat and clean, the grass green and the porch cozy. His eyes stopped on a stroller by the back door. He remembered Lady’s words. “First baby, huh?” he said, nodding at the stroller.
“First…what?” Lady asked. She looked confused and worried.
Tramp felt oddly sorry for her. She seemed like a sweet dog. She had no way to know her life was about to be rocked. Tramp sat down. “You’re the center of your people’s universe, right?” he asked. Lady nodded. “They make you feel special and loved every day?”
Again, Lady nodded. “Every day.”
“Well, that’s all over now,” Tramp said. “You’re about to be replaced.”
“Replaced?” Lady repeated. Then she shook her head. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Look, kid,” he said with a shrug, “I know people. People aren’t loyal. My philosophy? Look out for yourself. The sooner you start doing that, the better.”
Suddenly, two other dogs rushed into the yard. Tramp looked up, surprised. Then he relaxed. It was an old bloodhound and a little Scottish terrier wearing…a hat and a scarf?
“Lady! Are you okay? Stay back, mongrel!” the terrier said.
Lady and the Tramp Live Action Junior Novel Page 2
