Magic Puppy: Cloud Capers Read Online Free PDF Page B

haven’t heard the last of this, I assure you. Come along, Gayle.’
    Gayle looked as if she was about to protest, but she turned and hurried after her.
    As Mrs Young stalked towards her motorhome in her high heels, she suddenly stopped. ‘What’s that glinting in the grass?’ she said, bending down to pick something up. She turned to Gayle. ‘It’s your necklace! You must have dropped it, just like Mr Tennant said.’
    ‘But I don’t get it! I put it under… I mean… I… um… didn’t…’ Gayle stammered in confusion.
    ‘You’ve made me look a completeidiot!’ Mrs Young fumed, marching Gayle up the steps of the RV. ‘What have you been up to? And you’d better tell me the truth, or you’ll be grounded!’
    The door closed firmly and silence fell. Jessica guessed that Gayle was getting a really severe telling-off. She turned back to her dad. ‘Thanks for sticking up for me, Dad.’
    ‘No problem,’ he said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. ‘You haven’t got a mean bone in your body, Jessica Tennant. But it was a good thing we got back here in time.’
    Just as her dad went into the van, Storm came out from underneath the camper and lolloped up to Jessica.
    ‘Thanks, Storm. That was a brilliantidea to drop Gayle’s necklace over by the RV. It really turned the tables on her!’
    ‘You are welcome, Jessica. I do not think she will be making any more trouble,’ he yapped happily.

Chapter

EIGHT
    Jessica woke up early on Sunday morning. Pale lemon sunlight was just pushing through the crack in the camper’s curtains.
    Storm was lying next to her. He wagged his little tail as she stroked him, and snuggled back under a fold of the warm duvet with a contented sigh.
    Jessica felt wide awake. Leaving Stormlying there, she carefully climbed over him and dressed in shorts and a T-shirt. After boiling the kettle, she took her mum and dad a cup of tea in bed.

    ‘Thanks, love. You’re an early bird today!’ Mr Tennant sat up looking sleepy-eyed and with his hair all tousled. ‘You’re not making breakfast too, are you?’ he asked hopefully.
    Jessica took the hint. ‘Eggs on toast?’
    By the time they were clearing away the cups and plates, the other High Flyers had arrived. Kim had bad news.
    ‘It’s going to be another no-fly day,’ she announced. ‘So the winning times have been worked out from Friday’s and Saturday’s flights. We’re in second place. The Cloud Racers are first.’
    Mr Tennant nodded. ‘Ah well, that’s how it goes,’ he said good-naturedly. ‘It’s a shame we won’t get a chance for another flight. But there’ll still be a balloon tether before we pack away for good.’
    ‘That’s when the balloons are roped to the ground and just hover a fewcentimetres in the air. No balloon monsters high in the sky to scare you today then,’ Jessica explained in a whisper to Storm.
    Outside in the enclosure, cars and trailers had drawn up and the grass was already covered with acres of brightly coloured nylon. Jessica could see that The Cloud Racers’ basket lay on its side. The burners were going and the huge black wolf face was almost fully inflated.
    She and Storm were standing with her mum and dad when Gayle’s parents hurried up to them. Mrs Young was holding Mikey’s hand.
    ‘Have you seen Gayle?’ Mr Young asked Jessica.
    Jessica shook her head, puzzled. ‘No,I haven’t seen her since yesterday.’
    She noticed that Mrs Young looked different and then realized why. Gayle’s mum was in jeans and a crumpled T-shirt and she wasn’t wearing make-up. Her eyes looked puffy as if she’d been crying.
    ‘Is something wrong?’ Mrs Tennant asked her gently.
    ‘It’s Gayle. She’s missing,’ Mrs Young said in a wobbly voice. ‘We had a bit of a row about this necklace business. I thought at first that she’d gone off somewhere sulking by herself – she’s done it before. But it’s been over an hour now and I’m starting to get really worried.’
    ‘I’ll help